San Jose Passes First-of-Its-Kind Insurance Requirement for Gun Owners

San Jose’s city council approved a new measure that would require gun owner to purchase liability insurance for their guns.

Several cities across the U.S. have presented similar proposals, but it’s likely that San Jose, which passed the ordinance on Tuesday, will be the first in the country to implement such a measure.

The law will impact approximately 55,000 gun-owning families in the city. Mayor Sam Liccardo hopes this will be a good thing. the measure will have a ripple effectThis could encourage people to take additional safety precautions like taking gun safety classes, or obtaining gun safes or other locking mechanisms.

Liccardo also claimed that although the ordinance won’t stop mass shootings and violent crime, it may help in other ways, like preventing deadly accidents and suicides.

Gun owners will have to purchase liability insurance for weapons and home insurance plans with liability insurance. The city won’t go door-to-door to check that the ordinance is being followed; instead, enforcement will come about if an investigation uncovers that a person isn’t insured for weapons that they own.

A gun owner who doesn’t have insurance will be subjected to a fine from the city and possible forfeiture of their gun. If a gun is stolen or lost, the gun owner must still have insurance until they notify police.

The city council also approved a provision that requires gun owners pay an annual fee, $25-35. This money will go toward a number nonprofit services in the area, including suicide prevention programs as well as gender-based violence services.

The ordinance does make exceptions for certain individualsThis includes active and retired police officers, concealed weapon license holders in the state, as well as low-income residents who cannot afford liability insurance.

Many residents expressed opposition to this ordinance during the meeting of the city council this week. Gun advocates were quick in their objections. Dudley Brown, president and CEO of the National Association for Gun Rights, stated that his organization was not in compliance with the ordinance. would undoubtedly file a lawsuit against San Jose’s new rule on gun ownership.

“Our message is clear and simple: see you in court,” Brown said.

However, Liccardo stated that the ordinance does not contradict the right to bear arms.

“Certainly the Second Amendment protects every citizen’s right to own a gun. It does not require taxpayers to subsidize that right,” the mayor saidAdd to that the $40 million San Jose taxpayers pay annually for emergency response services, guns are a significant expense.