Testimony to the San Diego County Board of Supervisors:
The proliferation of ghost guns in San Diego County is a major health and safety threat to our residents. The League of Women Voters supports strong measures to limit the accessibility and regulate the ownership of these weapons by private citizens, including a waiting period for background checks, personal identity verification, gun safety education, and annual license renewal.
Currently, ghost guns are sold without background checks. And while California law requires a background check before manufacturing a ghost gun, and requires owners to apply for a unique serial number, these requirements are largely ignored. The state law that requires a person or business to have a valid firearm precursor part vendor license will not go into effect for another year. And, there are no firearm safety certifications for ghost guns. Ghost guns mean even more guns in homes, with no safety training and more possibilities for unlocked firearms to result in unintentional shootings and loss to theft. The League supports regulating firearms for public safety.
LWV San Diego and North County San Diego urge the supervisors to pass an ordinance to help decrease the rapid proliferation of nonserialized firearms, commonly known as “ghost guns”, in San Diego County.