SAN DIEGO — Gun owners will pay more at checkout when purchasing firearms and ammunition starting July 1 as Assembly Bill 28 goes into effect.
The new law will charge an 11% excise tax on firearms and ammunition. It’s one of several laws signed by Governor Gavin Newsom aimed at addressing gun violence.
“The idea behind this tax is to get a pull of money to deal with gun violence and school safety as it relates to the use of firearms,” Legal Analyst Dan Eaton said.
The money collected from AB 28 will be deposited into the Gun Violence Prevention and School Safety Fund which will cover several gun violence prevention programs including research, response and education.
“The excise tax is designed to generate revenues for the purpose of educating the public in how to prevent gun violence and promote gun safety,” Eaton said.
Eaton told CBS 8 that AB 28 is expected to raise more than $150 million in additional revenue in the first year alone. It's money that goes towards its purpose of providing educational programs.
This new law also means the purchase of guns and ammunition will be more expensive for people.
“The bottom line is that... when you add the federal excise tax, the existing state excise tax and this additional excise tax …you're talking about essentially a 30 percent tax on the purchase of firearms and ammunition,” Eaton said.
Another gun law signed by Newsom is Assembly Bill 1587, which will help flag suspicious gun and ammunition sales.
“The idea behind this law is to better enable those who are processing payments from firearms dealers to be able to tell when there's unusual activity which could suggest some sort of a crime in the making,” Eaton said.
To read more about gun safety laws signed by Newsom visit gov.ca.gov
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