§ 400.00 Licenses to carry, possess, repair and dispose of firearms.
1. Eligibility. No license shall be issued or renewed pursuant to this
section except by the licensing officer, and then only after
investigation and finding that all statements in a proper application
for a license are true. No license shall be issued or renewed except for
an applicant (a) twenty-one years of age or older, provided, however,
that where such applicant has been honorably discharged from the United
States army, navy, marine corps, air force or coast guard, or the
national guard of the state of New York, no such age restriction shall
apply; (b) of good moral character; (c) who has not been convicted
anywhere of a felony or a serious offense; (d) who has stated whether he
or she has ever suffered any mental illness or been confined to any
hospital or institution, public or private, for mental illness; (e) who
has not had a license revoked or who is not under a suspension or
ineligibility order issued pursuant to the provisions of section 530.14
of the criminal procedure law or section eight hundred forty-two-a of
the family court act; (f) in the county of Westchester, who has
successfully completed a firearms safety course and test as evidenced by
a certificate of completion issued in his or her name and endorsed and
affirmed under the penalties of perjury by a duly authorized instructor,
except that: (i) persons who are honorably discharged from the United
States army, navy, marine corps or coast guard, or of the national guard
of the state of New York, and produce evidence of official qualification
in firearms during the term of service are not required to have
completed those hours of a firearms safety course pertaining to the safe
use, carrying, possession, maintenance and storage of a firearm; and
(ii) persons who were licensed to possess a pistol or revolver prior to
the effective date of this paragraph are not required to have completed
a firearms safety course and test; and (g) concerning whom no good cause
exists for the denial of the license. No person shall engage in the
business of gunsmith or dealer in firearms unless licensed pursuant to
this section. An applicant to engage in such business shall also be a
citizen of the United States, more than twenty-one years of age and
maintain a place of business in the city or county where the license is
issued. For such business, if the applicant is a firm or partnership,
each member thereof shall comply with all of the requirements set forth
in this subdivision and if the applicant is a corporation, each officer
thereof shall so comply.
2. Types of licenses. A license for gunsmith or dealer in firearms
shall be issued to engage in such business. A license for a pistol or
revolver, other than an assault weapon or a disguised gun, shall be
issued to (a) have and possess in his dwelling by a householder; (b)
have and possess in his place of business by a merchant or storekeeper;
(c) have and carry concealed while so employed by a messenger employed
by a banking institution or express company; (d) have and carry
concealed by a justice of the supreme court in the first or second
judicial departments, or by a judge of the New York city civil court or
the New York city criminal court; (e) have and carry concealed while so
employed by a regular employee of an institution of the state, or of any
county, city, town or village, under control of a commissioner of
correction of the city or any warden, superintendent or head keeper of
any state prison, penitentiary, workhouse, county jail or other
institution for the detention of persons convicted or accused of crime
or held as witnesses in criminal cases, provided that application is
made therefor by such commissioner, warden, superintendent or head
keeper; (f) have and carry concealed, without regard to employment or
place of possession, by any person when proper cause exists for the
issuance thereof; and (g) have, possess, collect and carry antique
pistols
which are defined
as follows: (i) any single shot, muzzle
loading pistol with a matchlock, flintlock,
percussion cap, or similar
type
of ignition system
manufactured in or before l898, which is not
designed
for using rimfire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition;
and (ii) any replica of any pistol described
in clause (i) hereof
if
such replica--
(1)
is not designed or redesigned for using rimfire or conventional
centerfire fixed
ammunition, or
(2) uses rimfire
or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition
which is
no longer
manufactured in the United States and which is not readily
available in the
ordinary channels of commercial trade.
3. Applications. (a) Applications shall be made
and renewed, in the
case
of a license
to carry or possess a pistol or revolver, to the
licensing officer in the city or county, as
the case may be, where the
applicant resides, is principally employed or
has his principal place of
business
as merchant or storekeeper; and, in the case of a license
as
gunsmith or dealer in firearms, to the
licensing officer where
such
place
of business is located. Blank applications shall, except
in the
city of New York, be approved as to form
by the superintendent of state
police. An
application shall state
the full name,
date of birth,
residence, present occupation of each person
or individual signing the
same, whether
or not he is a citizen of the United States, whether or
not he complies
with each requirement
for eligibility specified
in
subdivision
one of this section and such other facts as may be required
to show the good character, competency and
integrity of each person or
individual
signing the application. An
application shall be signed and
verified by the applicant. Each individual
signing an application shall
submit
one photograph of himself and a duplicate for each required copy
of the application. Such photographs shall have
been taken within thirty
days prior to filing the application. In case
of a license as gunsmith
or
dealer in firearms,
the photographs submitted shall be two inches
square, and the application shall also state
the previous occupation of
each
individual signing the same and
the location of the place of such
business, or of the bureau, agency, subagency, office or
branch office
for
which the license is sought,
specifying the name of the city, town
or village, indicating the street and number
and otherwise giving such
apt description as to point out reasonably the
location thereof. In such
case,
if the applicant is a firm, partnership or corporation, its name,
date and place of formation, and principal
place of business shall
be
stated.
For such firm or partnership, the application shall be
signed
and verified by each individual composing or
intending to compose
the
same, and for such corporation, by each
officer thereof.
(b)
Application for an
exemption under paragraph
seven-b of
subdivision a of section 265.20 of this
chapter. Each applicant desiring
to obtain the exemption set forth in paragraph
seven-b of subdivision a
of
section 265.20 of this chapter shall make such request in writing of
the licensing officer with whom his
application for a license is filed,
at
the time of
filing such application. Such request shall include a
signed and verified statement by the person
authorized to instruct and
supervise the applicant, that has met with the
applicant and that he has
determined
that, in his judgment, said
applicant does not appear to be
or poses a threat to be, a danger to
himself or to
others. He shall
include
a copy of his certificate as an instructor in small arms, if he
is required to be certified, and state his
address and telephone number.
He shall specify the exact location
by name, address
and telephone
number
where such instruction will take place. Such licensing
officer
shall, no later than ten business days after
such filing, request
the
duly
constituted police authorities
of the locality
where such
application is made
to investigate and ascertain any
previous criminal
record
of the applicant pursuant to subdivision four of
this section.
Upon completion of this investigation, the
police authority shall report
the
results to the
licensing officer without
unnecessary delay. The
licensing officer shall no later
than ten business
days after the
receipt
of such investigation, determine
if the applicant has been
previously denied a license,
been convicted of
a felony, or
been
convicted
of a serious
offense, and either approve or disapprove the
applicant for exemption purposes based upon
such determinations. If the
applicant
is approved for
the exemption, the licensing officer shall
notify the appropriate duly
constituted police authorities
and the
applicant.
Such exemption shall
terminate if the application for the
license is denied, or at any earlier time based
upon any information
obtained
by the licensing officer or the appropriate police authorities
which
would cause the
license to be
denied. The applicant
and
appropriate
police authorities shall
be notified of
any such
terminations.
4. Investigation. Before a license is issued
or renewed, there shall
be an investigation of all statements required
in the application by the
duly
constituted police authorities
of the locality
where such
application is made. For that purpose, the
records of the
appropriate
office
of the department
of mental hygiene
concerning previous or
present
mental illness of the applicant
shall be available
for
inspection
by the investigating
officer of the police authority.
In
order to ascertain any
previous criminal record,
the investigating
officer
shall take the
fingerprints and physical descriptive data in
quadruplicate of each individual by whom the
application is signed and
verified.
Two copies of
such fingerprints shall be taken on standard
fingerprint cards eight inches square, and one
copy may be taken on a
card
supplied for that purpose by the
federal bureau of investigation.
When completed, one standard card shall be
forwarded to and retained by
the
division of criminal justice
services in the executive department,
at Albany. A search
of the files
of such division
and written
notification of
the results of the search to the investigating officer
shall be made without unnecessary delay.
Thereafter, such division shall
notify the licensing officer and the executive
department, division of
state police, Albany, of
any criminal record of the
applicant filed
therein subsequent to
the search of its files. A second
standard card,
or the
one supplied by the federal bureau of investigation, as the case
may be, shall be
forwarded to that bureau at Washington with a
request
that the files of the
bureau be searched and notification of the results
of the search be made to the investigating
police authority. The failure
or
refusal of the
federal bureau of
investigation to make
the
fingerprint check provided for in this section
shall not constitute the
sole
basis for refusal to issue a
permit pursuant to the provisions of
this section. Of the remaining two fingerprint
cards, one shall be filed
with the executive
department, division of state police, Albany, within
ten days
after issuance of the license, and the other remain on file
with the investigating police authority.
No such
fingerprints may be
inspected
by any person
other than a
peace officer, who is acting
pursuant to his special duties, or a police
officer, except on order of
a judge or
justice of a
court of record either upon
notice to the
licensee
or without notice,
as the judge
or justice may
deem
appropriate.
Upon completion of the investigation, the police authority
shall report the results to the licensing officer
without unnecessary
delay.
4-a.
Processing of license
applications. Applications for licenses
shall be accepted for processing by the
licensing officer at the time of
presentment. Except
upon written notice to the applicant
specifically
stating
the reasons for any delay, in each case the licensing
officer
shall act upon any application for a license
pursuant to this
section
within
six months of the date of
presentment of such an application to
the appropriate authority. Such delay may only
be for
good cause and
with
respect to the
applicant. In acting
upon an application, the
licensing
officer shall either
deny the application
for reasons
specifically
and concisely stated in writing or grant the application
and issue the license applied for.
4-b. Westchester county firearms safety course certificate.
In the
county of Westchester, at the time of
application, the licensing officer
to which
the license application is made shall provide a copy of
the
safety course booklet to each license
applicant. Before such license is
issued, such licensing officer shall require
that the applicant submit a
certificate
of successful completion
of a firearms safety course and
test issued in his or her name and
endorsed and affirmed
under the
penalties of perjury by a duly authorized
instructor.
5.
Filing of approved applications.
The application for any license,
if granted, shall be filed by the licensing
officer with the clerk
of
the county of issuance, except that in the
city of New York and, in the
counties of Nassau and Suffolk, the licensing officer
shall designate
the place
of filing in the appropriate division, bureau or unit of the
police department
thereof, and in the county of Suffolk the county clerk
is hereby authorized
to transfer all records or applications relating to
firearms to the licensing authority of that
county. The name and address
of any person to whom an application for any
license has been
granted
shall be a public record. Upon application by
a licensee who has changed
his place of residence such records or
applications shall be transferred
to
the appropriate officer at the
licensee's new place of residence. A
duplicate copy of such application shall
be filed by
the licensing
officer in
the executive department, division of state police, Albany,
within ten
days after issuance
of the license.
Nothing in this
subdivision
shall be construed to change the expiration date or term of
such licenses if otherwise provided for in
law.
6. License: validity. Any license issued
pursuant to this
section
shall
be valid notwithstanding the
provisions of any local law or
ordinance. No license shall be transferable to
any other person
or
premises.
A license to
carry or possess
a pistol or revolver, not
otherwise limited as to place or time of
possession, shall be effective
throughout the state, except that the same shall
not be valid within the
city of New York unless a special permit
granting validity is issued by
the police
commissioner of that city. Such license to carry or
possess
shall be
valid within the city of New York in the absence of a
permit
issued by the police
commissioner of that city, provided
that (a) the
firearms
covered by such
license have been purchased from a licensed
dealer within the
city of New York and are being transported out of said
city forthwith and
immediately from said dealer by the licensee
in a
locked container during a continuous and
uninterrupted trip; or provided
that
(b) the firearms covered by such
license are being transported by
the licensee in a locked container and the
trip through the city of New
York is continuous and uninterrupted; or provided that (c) the firearms
covered by such
license are carried by
armored car security
guards
transporting
money or other valuables, in, to, or from motor
vehicles
commonly known as armored cars, during the
course of their employment;
or
provided that (d) the licensee is a retired police officer as police