San Jose Cracks Down on New Gun Law Mandating Liability Insurance – NBC Bay Area

The Bay Area’s largest city is cracking down on its new gun law. 

The San Jose City Council passed the first-in-the-nationlaw in January mandating gun owners carry liability insurance in case their gun is used in a crime or an accidental shooting.

The mayor said it will encourage gun safety and help offset the millions of dollars gun violence costs the city in law enforcement response, emergency services, and medical care.

“Most homeowners and renters who have insurance can easily avail themselves of gun liability coverage within their policy,” said Mayor Sam Liccardo. 

Now the city has decided exactly what the charge will be for violating that law, $250 dollars for a first offense, $500 for the second, and $1,000 for a third offense within a year.

“People will talk about the fines but you only need to talk about the fines if people aren’t complying, and complying is nearly free,” said Liccardo.

The mayor has pushed for the Gun Harm Reduction Ordinance since 2019, following the Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting and then again after last year’s VTA mass shooting.

The law was challenged in courts almost immediately after it passed.

The National Association for Gun Rights is one of those suing, saying in a statement, in part,

“It appears that San Jose is finally getting around to setting forth how it plans to violate its citizens constitutional right to keep and bear arms … these excessive fines are San Jose’s first crack at this and clearly demonstrate that San Jose wants to disarm its citizens and if they cannot do it by confiscation, they will do it by fines and insurance.”

“What’s wonderful about this approach is that we’re not taking anyone’s gun away,” said Liccardo.

Gun owners will also have to pay $25 a year that’ll be donated to a non-profit focusing on mental health and domestic violence prevention in gun owning homes.