House passes bill to require lost, stolen guns be reported to law enforcement

Rep. Kaohly Vang Her (DFL-St. Paul) says lost and stolen firearms are “an appealing source of firearms for people who are illegally prohibited from owning guns.”

Hoping to diminish the allure, Her sponsors HF601, which would require a person who owns, possesses, or controls a firearm to report a loss or theft of the firearm to law enforcement within 48 hours of the time the person knew, or reasonably should have known, of the loss or theft. Not doing so the first time would be a petty misdemeanor, with greater penalties for future failures.

“This is a reasonable gun violence prevention measure,” Her said.

After about four hours of discussion, the House passed the bill 68-63 Monday and sent it to the Senate.

The bill would also grant immunity from criminal charges resulting from the negligent storage of firearms under current law for anyone who complies with the 48-hour reporting requirement.

Another House bill scheduled to be taken up Monday night, HF4300, proposes to toughen those gun storage laws.

Rep. Paul Novotny speaks April 29 in support of a proposed amendment to HF601 on the House Floor. (Photo by Andrew VonBank)

Republican opposition, amendments

Republicans repeatedly said penalizing a failure to report a firearm theft in a timely manner would revictimize people already victimized by the theft.

“Are we on the side of a burglar or a thief or are we on the side of the crime victim?” asked Rep. Harry Niska (R-Ramsey).

Rep. Jim Nash (R-Waconia) said the 48-hour reporting requirement would unintentionally criminalize victims who were busy tending to themselves or their loved one’s injuries rather than determining whether a firearm was stolen and then taking the time to file a report to law enforcement if required.

Her said the 48-hour deadline would only apply when “a person knew, or reasonably should have known, of the loss or theft,” therefore, a person unaware of a firearm theft due to dealing with the aftermath of a theft would not be penalized for a delay.

An amendment unsuccessfully offered by Rep. Elliott Engen (R-White Bear Township) would have replaced the bill’s language with the establishment of a task force to study the use of firearms that are lost or stolen in the commission of a crime.

Under the bill, Her noted, police chiefs and sheriffs would be required to inform the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension of all lost and stolen firearms reported to them and would appropriate $36,000 in fiscal year 2025 for the BCA to develop and oversee such a reporting system.

“A task force does not collect data,” said Her, who said not approving the bill as is would be a missed opportunity for the BCA to collect solid data on firearms that could help track lost or stolen firearms used in the commission of a crime.

Rep. Walter Hudson (R-Albertville) unsuccessfully offered an amendment to make it a gross misdemeanor for a person to be in possession of a firearm reported as having been lost or stolen or found to be stolen.

"(It would) solve this problem from the side of the equation that we ought to be targeting. That’s the actual criminal, the actual person who engages in the theft and then turns around and uses that weapon to engage in further crime.”