BELLEVUE, WA – The California Department of Justice has announced the dates when it will re-open registration of so-called “assault weapons” required by a federal court as a result of the successful Second Amendment Foundation lawsuit in the case of Sharp v. Becerra.
The court also ordered the State of California to pay $151,821.42 in legal fees to the plaintiffs.
California owners of affected firearms may complete the registration process during a 90-day period running from January 13, 2022 through April 12, 2022, according to a directive from Luis Lopez, director of the Bureau of Firearms, and Attorney General Rob Bonta.
Registration will be open for eligible “bullet-button” firearms for those persons who would have been eligible to register under Penal Code 30900, if they lawfully possessed the firearm prior to Jan. 1, 2017, and if they attempted to register prior to the original deadline of July 1, 2018, the DOJ said.
SAF was joined in the lawsuit by the Firearms Policy Coalition, Firearms Policy Foundation, Madison Society Foundation, Calguns Foundation and several private citizens.
“Law-abiding California gun owners were not responsible for the failure of the registration process, and we’re delighted with the outcome of our lawsuit to set things right,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “When a process that should be user-friendly becomes a fiasco, it’s the government’s responsibility to correct the problem and the affected citizens should not suffer any consequences.
“We will be closely monitoring the process when it begins in January, to make sure this time around everything works as it is supposed to,” Gottlieb promised.
According to the DOJ memo, registration will be handled “using the same procedures that were used by the Department in 2018…except that individuals may submit a paper form in lieu of an Internet registration. Individuals who believe they are eligible to take advantage of the re-opened registration period as a result of the federal court order may get more information here.
The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation’s oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 650,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control.
