BULLETIN: 2004-13

SUBJECT: CLARIFICATION OF HOUSE RESOLUTION 218: LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS SAFETY ACT OF 2004

House Resolution (HR) 218, entitled Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004, was recently signed into federal law. HR 218 allows both current and retired law enforcement officers to carry concealed weapons wherever they go in the United States, regardless of most state or local prohibitions. Specific provisions of the safety act are contained in Chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, Sections 926B (a) and 926C. The California Attorney General’s Office Firearms Unit has convened a task force to seek clarification on some of the law’s provisions.

Because POST has received inquiries about the act, the purpose of this bulletin is to clarify the identification a qualified retired law enforcement officer (defined in the act) must possess to carry a concealed firearm. The identification required by Section 926C is either:

1) A photographic identification, issued by the agency from which the individual retired from service as a law enforcement officer, that indicates the individual has been tested or otherwise found to meet the standards for training and qualification for active law enforcement officers to carry a firearm of the same type as the concealed firearm. (The certification must be issued no longer than one year before the date the individual is carrying the concealed firearm.)

OR

2) A photographic identification issued by the agency from which the individual retired and certification issued by the State in which the individual resides, certifying that the individual has been found by the state to meet state-established standards for training and qualification of active officers.

Alternative #2 is not available in California, because no state agency, including California POST, issues that certification. Therefore, retired California officers must obtain a photographic identification and verification from the law enforcement agency from which they retired as described in Alternative #1.

For questions about this bulletin, please contact Assistant Director Hal Snow at (916) 227-2807 or hal.snow@post.ca.gov.

KENNETH J. O’BRIEN

Executive Director

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