Georgia House Bill 80 authorizes law enforcement agencies to destroy or sell seized and unclaimed firearms

Original title: Law enforcement agencies; option to destroy or sell certain firearms; provide

Last action · January 27, 2025: House Second ReadersSponsors: Anne Westbrook and 4 others

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Introduced

Committee

Floor Vote

Passed

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What This Bill Proposed

Georgia law enforcement agencies are authorized to return, sell, or destroy seized and unclaimed firearms within specified timeframes under House Bill 80. Unsafe or legally restricted firearms must be destroyed or transferred to forensic laboratories, while saleable firearms can be auctioned exclusively to federally licensed firearms dealers or collectors.

Why it matters

Local governments and law enforcement agencies gain explicit procedural options for disposing of custody firearms, altering how seized weapons are cleared from inventory through mandatory auctions, transfers, or destruction.

Who It Would Have Affected

Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

law enforcement agencies

Law enforcement agencies are given specific options and timeframes to return, sell, transfer, or destroy seized and unclaimed firearms in their custody.

Directly affected

federally licensed firearms collectors, dealers, importers, or manufacturers

These licensed entities are designated as the exclusive eligible buyers for public auctions or municipal sales of unclaimed firearms.

Directly affected

Division of Forensic Sciences of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation

The division may receive transfers of unsafe, unclaimed, or unsold firearms for training or experimental purposes.

Key Facts

State attorneys seeking civil forfeiture must commence proceedings within 60 days of the entry of a final judgment.
Unsafe or legally restricted firearms must be transferred to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation forensic division, a forensic laboratory, or be destroyed.
Municipal corporations possessing unclaimed firearms may destroy them or dispose of them via sales limited strictly to federally licensed firearms collectors, dealers, importers, or manufacturers.
State or political subdivision agencies other than municipal corporations must dispose of saleable unclaimed firearms via public auction held at least once every 12 months if inventory reaches five or more saleable firearms.

Show all 5 facts

If no bids are received within six months from when bidding opened on an unclaimed firearm, the firearm must be transferred to a forensic laboratory or destroyed.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens to firearms that are deemed unsafe or illegal to sell?

Firearms certified as unsafe due to wear, damage, age, or modification, or prohibited by law from sale, must be transferred to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's Division of Forensic Sciences, a forensic laboratory for training or experimental purposes, or destroyed.

Who is eligible to purchase unclaimed firearms auctioned by local governments?

All sales must be made to persons who are licensed as firearms collectors, dealers, importers, or manufacturers under 18 U.S.C. Section 921, et seq., and who are authorized to receive such firearms.

What happens if an unclaimed firearm fails to receive any bids at auction?

If no bids from eligible recipients are received within six months from when bidding opened, the firearm must be transferred to a forensic laboratory for training or experimental purposes or destroyed.

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Where This Stands

This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · introduced in the House.

Procedural history

3 actions

Jan 27, 2025House
House Second Readers
Jan 17, 2025HouseIntroduced
House First Readers
Jan 16, 2025HouseIntroduced
House Hopper

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

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