The U.S. Department of Justice sued the city of San Jose on Wednesday for charging residents \u201cunreasonable fees\u201d to obtain a concealed carry firearm license, alleging that the expensive permitting violates the Second Amendment, the department said.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit, filed in the Northern District of California, claims that San Jose\u2019s concealed carry license fee of $1,591 is the \u201chighest in the nation\u201d and \u201ctowers over\u201d those implemented by other large cities such as New York, Boston and Chicago, according to a news release from the DOJ. The city of San Jose and the San Jose Police Department, which administers the permit process, are both named as defendants.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll law-abiding Americans have a constitutional right to bear arms for self\u2011defense. This right is not a luxury reserved for a privileged few, but a fundamental element of our republic,\u201d Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said in a news release. \u201cYou don\u2019t need a law degree to recognize that charging a fee several times higher than the cost of the firearm itself is illogical, and an unconstitutional attempt to impede Americans\u2019 Second Amendment rights.\u201d<\/p>\n
The DOJ added that the Supreme Court has ruled that \u201cexorbitant fees\u201d are a violation of the Second Amendment because \u201cthey deny ordinary citizens their right to carry firearms for self-defense.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a letter sent to Dhillon on Tuesday addressing the DOJ\u2019s threat of a lawsuit, San Jose City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood pushed back against the allegations, writing that they \u201cappear to be based on a number of misconceptions.\u201d She maintained that San Jose\u2019s fees are compliant with California law, which allows the city to charge \u201ca fee in an amount equal to the reasonable costs for processing the application for a new license or a license renewal, issuing the license, and enforcing the license.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe City remains committed to lawfully implementing California\u2019s shall-issue licensing framework and to ensuring that responsible, law-abiding residents can exercise their Second Amendment rights,\u201d Alcala Wood wrote. \u201cWe do not believe the facts support a finding that San Jos\u00e9\u2019s fee structure, properly understood, denies that right to ordinary citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n
Concealed carry permit fees vary widely across the state. Los Angeles County charges $216 for a two-year permit, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff\u2019s Office. San Francisco charges $288, according to the San Francisco Police Department. The Alameda County Sheriff\u2019s Office, which oversees the application process for Oakland, Dublin and unincorporated areas of the county, charges $694. Many communities, including San Jose, demand a portion of the total fee up front when an application is filed; the balance is due only if a permit is issued.<\/p>\n