Requires Attorney General to compile and publicly report certain statistics pertaining to permits to carry for handguns and firearm purchaser identification cards.

A222

ASSEMBLY, No. 222

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman DAWN FANTASIA

District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)

Assemblyman ROBERT AUTH

District 39 (Bergen)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblymen Inganamort, Scharfenberger, Assemblywoman
Flynn, Assemblymen Rumpf, Myhre, Sauickie, Kanitra and McGuckin

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires Attorney General to compile and publicly
report certain statistics pertaining to permits to carry for handguns and
firearm purchaser identification cards.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning firearms and supplementing Title 2C of the
New Jersey Statutes.�

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� The Legislature finds
and declares that:

���� a.���� Following
N.Y. State
Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen
, 142 S. Ct. 2111 (2022), states may
no longer use subjective standards when issuing licenses to possess or carry
firearms by law-abiding citizens. �In
Bruen
, the United States Supreme
Court determined that means-end tests concerning firearm regulations are not
permissible under the Second Amendment.� The framework established in
Bruen
requires
courts to determine whether modern firearm restrictions align with historical
firearm regulations and are comparable to historical analogues.

���� b.��� In
United States v.
Rahimi
, 602 U.S. 680 (2024), the United States Supreme Court concluded
that, consistent with the Second Amendment, an individual could be disarmed
temporarily if a court finds that the individual poses a credible threat to the
physical safety of another.

���� c.���� In
Range v. Attorney
General
, 69 F.4th 96 (3d. Cir. 2023), it was determined that even those
with a criminal history could not be stripped of the Second Amendment right to
keep and bear arms when the person�s criminal history was limited to nonviolent
offenses.

���� d.��� In the context of
constitutional law, a suspect class is a group of people who have historically
been subject to discrimination based on shared characteristics, and courts
apply heightened scrutiny to laws that have a disparate impact on suspect
classes.

���� e.���� Section 1 of the
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that �[n]o
State shall . . . deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal
protection of the laws.� The Fourteenth Amendment�s equal protection clause
guarantees that people similarly situated will be treated similarly by states
under the law.� Under the holding in
Gratz v. Bollinger
, 539 U.S. 244
(2003), laws that treat members of a suspect class differently is subjected to
the highest standard of court review, the strict scrutiny standard. �A will be
overturned unless the disparate treatment is narrowly tailored to achieve a
compelling public purpose. �In
Clark v. Jeter
, 486 U.S. 456 (1988), the
court noted that the strict scrutiny standard is utilized by courts to examine classifications
affecting fundamental rights.

���� f.���� A law is invalid on its
face if it openly discriminates against a suspect class, but laws can have a
disparate impact on suspect classes which are not plainly evident in the
statutory text.� When disparate impact on a suspect class arises from policy
choices that are not narrowly tailored to achieve a compelling public interest,
the Legislature should review those laws to ensure that New Jersey residents
are treated fairly and equally under the law, particularly in situations
impacting the fundamental rights of the residents of this State.

���� g.��� In June of 2023, the New
Jersey Attorney General issued Directive No. 2023-02, which required that State
law enforcement agencies acting as licensing authorities for firearms related
permits and licenses submit a report to the Attorney General regarding the
number of licenses issued and the number of licenses denied and the basis for
those denials over distinct time periods. �A Directive by the Attorney General
can be withdrawn or amended at the Attorney General�s discretion.

���� h.��� Studies have shown that
licensing criteria based on subjective standards lead to higher denial rates
for applicants who are Black, indigenous, or otherwise people of color when
compared to non-Hispanic, white applicants.� A recent independent study was
conducted by the civil rights group Rise Against Hate regarding New Jersey
firearms licensing outcomes. �That study suggests that the rate of permits
denied based on subjective standards currently contained in New Jersey
statutory law is significantly higher for Black applicants.

���� i.���� If there are material
differences in firearms licensing and permitting outcomes with respect to
suspect classes, both the public and the Legislature should consider that data,
and to the extent that a pattern exists, the government should inquire as to
the root cause of those disparate outcomes.

���� 2.��� a.� Each State and local
law enforcement agency shall submit on a monthly basis to the Attorney General
information concerning applications for permits to carry a handgun, permits to
purchase a handgun, and firearm purchaser identification cards.� The information
shall include:

���� (1)�� the date of the
application�s submission;

���� (2)�� the county and
municipality in which the application was submitted;

���� (3)�� the applicant�s year of
birth, race, ethnicity, and gender identity;

���� (4)�� whether the application
has been approved or denied;

���� (5)�� the date of approval or
denial; and

���� (6)�� the reason for denial,
if applicable.

���� b.��� The Attorney General
shall:

���� (1)�� compile data received
pursuant to this section, which was submitted on or after June 23, 2022;

���� (2)�� issue an initial report
containing the data compiled between June 23, 2022, and the first day of the
second month following the effective date of P.L.���� , c.���� (C.����� )
(pending before the Legislature as this bill) and monthly reports thereafter; and

���� (3)�� make the initial and
monthly reports available on the office�s Internet website.

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately and shall be retroactive to June 23, 2022.

STATEMENT

���� This bill requires State and
local law enforcement agencies to report certain firearm permit application
data to the Attorney General and requires the Attorney General to issue and
make public certain reports.

���� Under the bill, each law
enforcement agency in the State is required to submit to the Office of the
Attorney General anonymized data concerning certain information contained in
permit to carry a handgun, permit to purchase a handgun, and firearm purchaser
identification card applications that were approved or denied by a law
enforcement agency.�

���� The bill requires the
submitted information to include:

���� (1)�� the date of
application�s submission;

���� (2)�� the county and
municipality in which the application was submitted;

���� (3)�� the applicant�s year of
birth, race, ethnicity, and gender identity;

���� (4)�� whether the application
has been approved or denied;

���� (5)�� the date of approval or
denial; and

���� (6)�� the reason for denial,
if applicable.

���� Under the bill, the Attorney
General is required to:

���� (1)�� compile data received
pursuant to this section, which was submitted on or after June 23, 2022;

���� (2)�� issue an initial report
containing the data compiled between June 23, 2022, and the first day of the
second month following the effective date of this bill and monthly reports
thereafter; and

���� (3)�� make the initial and
monthly reports available on the office�s Internet website.