April 19, 2007, Introduced by Reps. Rick Jones, Espinoza, Brown, Nofs, Stahl, Sheltrown, Polidori, Scott, Stakoe, Hune, Mayes, Schuitmaker, Meadows, Condino, Bieda, Calley, Elsenheimer, LeBlanc, David Law, LaJoy, Pearce and Agema and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
A bill to authorize a process for retired law enforcement
officers to carry concealed firearms in this state; to prescribe
certain powers and duties of the commission on law enforcement
standards; to impose certain civil and criminal penalties; to
impose certain requirements on persons issued certificates to carry
concealed firearms; to provide for certain civil immunity; to allow
for the collection of certain fees; to create certain funds; to
provide for the forfeiture of firearms under certain circumstances;
and to provide for the promulgation of rules.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the
"Michigan law enforcement officer's firearm carry act".
Sec. 2. As used in this act:
(a) "Active duty firearms standard" means the in-service
standard for the training and qualification of active duty law
enforcement officers as mandated by the commission under the
commission on law enforcement standards act, 1965 PA 203, MCL
28.601 to 28.616.
(b) "Alcoholic liquor" means that term as defined in section
105 of the Michigan liquor control code of 1998, 1998 PA 58, MCL
436.1105.
(c) "Certification" or "certified" means official recognition
by the commission that a retired law enforcement officer has met
the active duty firearms standard in this state and is eligible to
carry a concealed firearm under 18 USC 926C.
(d) "Certificate" means a commission-issued document that
identifies a qualified retired law enforcement officer who is
certified under 18 USC 926C and this act.
(e) "Controlled substance" means that term as defined in
section 7104 of the public health code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.7401.
(f) "Certificate holder" means a qualified retired law
enforcement officer who is issued a certificate by the commission.
(g) "Commission" means the Michigan commission on law
enforcement standards established under section 3 of the commission
on law enforcement standards act, 1965 PA 203, MCL 28.603.
(h) "Firearm" means that term as defined in section 1 of 1927
PA 372, MCL 28.421.
(i) "Qualified retired law enforcement officer" means that
term as defined in 18 USC 926C(c).
Sec. 3. The commission shall establish requirements and
procedures through which a qualified retired law enforcement
officer may be certified to carry a concealed firearm under 18 USC
926C and this act. The commission shall establish requirements and
procedures through which certification under 18 USC 926C and this
act may be denied or revoked. The commission may promulgate rules
to implement this act in accordance with the administrative
procedures act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201 to 24.328.
Sec. 4. (1) In order to be eligible to carry a concealed
firearm under 18 USC 926C and this act, a qualified retired law
enforcement officer must meet the requirements of 18 USC 926C and
be a legal resident of this state.
(2) A retired law enforcement officer is not eligible for
certification by the commission under 18 USC 926C and this act if
he or she is prohibited under federal law from being certified
under 18 USC 926C.
Sec. 5. (1) The commission shall establish application
requirements and procedures in order to verify the identity of an
applicant, to conduct a complete criminal history, and to conduct a
background investigation into an applicant's fitness to carry a
concealed firearm under 18 USC 926C and this act.
(2) An applicant for certification shall be required to submit
to fingerprint-based identification and criminal history searches.
The commission or its agents may conduct criminal history inquiries
on applicants for certification through the law enforcement
information network and the national crime information center,
operated through the department of state police, and the national
crime information center, operated by the federal bureau of
investigation.
Sec. 6. (1) The commission shall create an application form
for certification under this act. The applicant shall sign the
application acknowledging that all information contained in the
application is true and accurate.
(2) An applicant who knowingly provides false or misleading
information on the application, in whole or in part, is guilty of a
felony, punishable by imprisonment for not more than 4 years or a
fine of not more than $2,000.00, or both.
Sec. 7. (1) The commission or its agent shall issue a
certificate to a qualified retired law enforcement officer who has
complied with the active duty firearms standard and is eligible to
carry a concealed firearm under 18 USC 926C and this act.
(2) A certificate holder shall carry the certificate and a
valid driver license or Michigan personal identification card on
his or her person at all times while in possession of a concealed
firearm and shall produce the documents upon demand by a peace
officer.
(3) A certificate holder who is carrying a concealed firearm
and who is stopped by a peace officer shall immediately disclose to
the peace officer that he or she is carrying a concealed firearm on
his or her person or is transporting a firearm in his or her
vehicle.
(4) Upon notice of revocation, a certificate holder is
required to forfeit his or her certificate to the commission by
returning the certificate in person to the commission or returning
the certificate by certified mail.
(5) A violation of this section subjects the certificate
holder to the penalties provided in section 5f of 1927 PA 372, MCL
28.425f, including forfeiture of the firearm.
Sec. 8. (1) A certificate holder shall immediately report to
the commission in writing the circumstances of any of the
following:
(a) An arrest or a conviction for a violation of any state or
federal criminal law.
(b) Becoming the subject of an order or disposition in any
jurisdiction that does 1 or more of the following:
(i) Restrains the certificate holder from harassing, stalking,
or threatening an intimate partner of the person or a child of the
intimate partner or person, or engaging in other conduct that would
place an intimate partner in reasonable fear of bodily injury to
the partner or child.
(ii) Prohibits or limits the transport, possession, carrying,
or use of firearms or ammunition.
(iii) Involves an adjudication of mental illness, a finding of
insanity, a finding of legal incapacity, or an order for
involuntary commitment in an inpatient or outpatient setting.
(c) A laboratory result reflecting the unauthorized presence
of controlled substances following a drug test administered to the
certificate holder.
(2) A certificate holder who fails to file a written report as
required under subsection (1) is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable
by imprisonment for not more than 1 year or a fine of not more than
$5,000.00, or both.
Sec. 9. (1) Acceptance of a certificate issued under this act
constitutes implied consent to submit to a chemical analysis under
this section.
(2) A certificate holder shall not carry a concealed firearm
while he or she is under the influence of alcoholic liquor or a
controlled substance or while having a bodily alcohol content
prohibited under this section. A person who violates this section
is responsible for a state civil infraction or is guilty of a crime
as follows:
(a) If the person was under the influence of alcoholic liquor
or a controlled substance or a combination of alcoholic liquor and
a controlled substance, or had a bodily alcohol content of .10 or
more grams per 100 milliliters of blood, per 210 liters of breath,
or per 67 milliliters of urine, the individual is guilty of a
misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 93 days or
a fine of not more than $100.00, or both. The court shall order the
commission to permanently revoke the certificate. The commission
shall permanently revoke the certificate as ordered by the court.
(b) If the person had a bodily alcohol content of .08 or more
but less than .10 grams per 100 milliliters of blood, per 210
liters of breath, or per 67 milliliters of urine, the individual is
guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more
than 93 days or a fine of not more than $100.00, or both. The court
may order the commission to revoke the certificate for not more
than 3 years. The commission shall revoke the certificate as
ordered by the court.
(c) If the person had a bodily alcohol content of .02 or more,
but less than .08 grams per 100 milliliters of blood, per 210
liters of breath, or per 67 milliliters of urine, the individual is
responsible for a state civil infraction and may be fined not more
than $100.00. The court may order the commission to revoke the
certificate for 1 year. The commission shall revoke certification
if an individual is found responsible for a subsequent violation of
this subdivision.
(3) This section does not prohibit an individual certified
under this act to carry a concealed firearm who has any bodily
alcohol content from transporting that firearm in the locked trunk
of his or her motor vehicle or another motor vehicle in which he or
she is a passenger or, if the vehicle does not have a trunk, from
transporting that firearm unloaded in a locked compartment or
container that is separated from the ammunition for that firearm or
on a vessel if the firearm is transported unloaded in a locked
compartment or container that is separated from the ammunition for
that firearm.
(4) A peace officer who has probable cause to believe a
certificate holder is carrying a concealed firearm in violation of
this section may require the certificate holder to submit to a
chemical analysis of his or her breath, blood, or urine.
(5) Before a certificate holder is required to submit to a
chemical analysis under subsection (4), the peace officer shall
inform the certificate holder of all of the following:
(a) The certificate holder may refuse to submit to the
chemical analysis, but if he or she chooses to do so, all of the
following apply:
(i) The officer may obtain a court order requiring the
certificate holder to submit to a chemical analysis.
(ii) The refusal may result in his or her certificate being
revoked.
(b) If the certificate holder submits to the chemical
analysis, he or she may obtain a chemical analysis described in
subsection (4) from a person of his or her own choosing.
(6) The collection and testing of breath, blood, and urine
specimens under this section shall be conducted in the same manner
that breath, blood, and urine specimens are collected and tested
for alcohol-related and controlled-substance-related motor vehicle
operation violations under the Michigan vehicle code, 1949 PA 300,
MCL 257.1 to 257.923.
(7) If a certificate holder refuses to take a chemical test
authorized under this section, the peace officer shall promptly
report the refusal in writing to the commission.
(8) If a certificate holder takes a chemical test authorized
under this section and the test results indicate that the
individual had any bodily alcohol content while carrying a
concealed firearm, the peace officer shall promptly report the
violation in writing to the commission.
Sec. 10. (1) The department of state police shall create and
maintain a computerized database of individuals who apply for a
certificate under this act. The database shall contain only the
following information as to each individual:
(a) The individual's name, date of birth, address, and county
of residence.
(b) If the individual is issued a certificate, the certificate
number and date of expiration.
(c) Except as provided in subsection (2), if the individual
was denied a certificate, a statement of the reasons for that
denial.
(d) A statement of all criminal charges pending and criminal
convictions obtained against the individual during the certificate
period.
(e) A statement of all determinations of responsibility for
civil infractions of this act pending or obtained against the
individual during the certificate period.
(2) If an individual who was denied a certificate is
subsequently issued a certificate, the department of state police
shall delete from the computerized database the previous reasons
for the denial.
(3) The department of state police shall enter the information
described in subsection (1)(a) and (b) into the law enforcement
information network.
(4) Information in the database, compiled under subsections
(1) through (3), is confidential, is not subject to disclosure
under the freedom of information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL 15.231 to
15.246, and shall not be disclosed to any person except for
purposes of this act or for law enforcement purposes. The
information compiled under subsection (5) is subject to disclosure
under the freedom of information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL 15.231 to
15.246.
(5) The department of state police shall file an annual report
with the secretary of the senate and the clerk of the house of
representatives setting forth all of the following information:
(a) The number of certificate applications received.
(b) The number of certificates issued.
(c) The number of applications for certificates that were
denied.
(d) Categories for denial under subdivision (c).
(e) The number of certificates revoked.
(f) Categories for revocation under subdivision (e).
(g) The number of applications for certificates pending at the
time the report is made.
(h) The number of charges of state civil infractions of this
act or charges of criminal violations, categorized by offense,
filed against certificate holders that resulted in a finding of
responsibility or a criminal conviction. The report shall indicate
the number of crimes in each category of criminal offense that
involved the brandishing or use of a firearm, the number that
involved the carrying of a firearm by the certificate holder during
the commission of the crime, and the number in which no firearm was
carried by the certificate holder during the commission of the
crime.
(i) The number of pending criminal charges, categorized by
offense, against certificate holders.
(j) The number of criminal cases dismissed, categorized by
offense, against certificate holders.
(k) The number of cases filed against certificate holders for
criminal violations that resulted in a finding of not responsible
or not guilty, categorized by offense.
(l) The number of suicides by certificate holders.
(m) Actual costs incurred per certificate.
Sec. 11. The commission shall identify public entities
eligible to administer the active duty firearm standard to
qualified retired law enforcement officers for purposes of carrying
out 18 USC 926C and this act.
Sec. 12. A firearm that is carried in violation of this act is
subject to seizure and forfeiture in the same manner that property
is subject to seizure and forfeiture under sections 4701 to 4709 of
the revised judicature act of 1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL 600.4701 to
600.4709. This section does not apply if the violation is a state
civil infraction under section 5f(7) of 1927 PA 372, MCL 28.425f,
unless the individual fails to present his or her certificate
within the 45-day period described in that section.
Sec. 13. (1) The retired law enforcement officer safety fund
is created in the state treasury. The money in the fund shall be
expended by the commission only to carry out the purposes of this
act.
(2) The state treasurer shall credit to the fund deposits from
the collection of application fees as provided in section 14. The
state treasurer may invest money in the fund in any manner
authorized by law for the investment of state money.
(3) The unencumbered balance remaining in the fund at the end
of a fiscal year shall remain in the fund and shall not revert to
the general fund.
Sec. 14. The commission may set and collect a fee for actual
costs associated with administration under 18 USC 926C and this act
by any method of payment accepted by the commission. The fees shall
be deposited in the retired law enforcement officer safety fund.
Sec. 15. The commission or any law enforcement agency,
governmental entity, agent, employee, volunteer, designee, or
individual who is acting in good faith in discharging his or her
responsibilities under this act is immune from civil liability for
any damages resulting from the ownership, possession, carrying,
use, or discharge of a firearm by any qualified retired law
enforcement officer who has been certified under this act or whose
certification has been denied. The immunity provided under this
section is in addition to any immunity otherwise provided by law.
Sec. 16. This act does not preempt any existing state or
federal statute, regulation, or other authority governing the use,
possession, carrying, or receiving of firearms or ammunition in
this state, including application by a qualified retired law
enforcement officer to carry a concealed firearm under 18 USC 926C.
Sec. 17. The commission's authority to issue certificates
under this act expires immediately upon the repeal of 18 USC 926C.
Enacting section 1. This act takes effect January 1, 2008.