Folks:
I’ve spoken with one of my contacts, who was there, last night. It seems that the main points of discussion were surrounding the semi-auto rifle license, the renewal status of handgun licenses and the required classroom/range course, for “unrestricted” handgun licenses.
Here’s what I came away with, from that discussion and these rules are applicable ONLY to the 5 Western towns of Suffolk. The Suffolk Sheriff’s Dept. and the NCPD will have their own guidelines, with no bearing on what SCPD is doing:
1) on or after 9/4/22: no one, under the age of 21, will be able to purchase a semi-auto rifle and no one, age 21 or over, will be able to do so, without either a valid NYS handgun license or a semi-auto rifle license. If you have a handgun license, the semi-auto rifle will be purchasable in the same way as you add a handgun to that license. If you do not have a handgun licenses, then you must apply for, then receive, a semi-auto rifle license, before you can purchase or touch any semi-auto rifle. There is NO EXCEPTION, for active duty law enforcement, who, although they can legally purchase a NY-defined “assault weapon” or a handgun, on the badge, can no longer purchase a semi-auto, non-“assault weapon” rifle, on the badge or without a separate NYS semi-auto rifle license.
2) as of 9/4/22, no one, without a valid, NYS handgun license or a valid NYS semi-auto rifle license, may even touch a semi-auto rifle. Newly acquired, semi-auto rifles will be listed, on the handgun license or semi-auto license, by make, model, caliber and serial number.
3) for the purposes of obtaining an “unrestricted” handgun license, Suffolk PD will recognize training certificates, issued by any NRA instructor, who is currently certified, as a handgun instructor, provided the certificate includes the name of the student, plus the instructor’s name, NRA instructor’s number, place and date of training, as well as a unique serial number on the certificate. My suggestion would be to also add the student’s NYS handgun license number. NRA certified handgun instructors are able to certify themselves, by issuing a certificate of training, to him/herself.
4) all handgun licenses, issued or renewed, within the 5 Western towns of Suffolk County, on or after 9/1/22, which do not contain the “business” endorsement, will be renewed, for a period of THREE (3) years. All handgun licenses, issued or renewed, on or after 9/1/22, which contain the “business” endorsement, will be renewed, for a period of FIVE (5) years.
5) all of the above is subject to change, depending on the decisions rendered by the various courts and instructions from the state government.
Nothing was provided, in writing and all acknowledged that, for the moment, these rules are not expected to be firm or for the long term.
Gary