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Gun Owners Stock Up On Ammo As New Online Bullet Law Looms

DUBLIN (KPIX) -- Gun owners were stocking up on ammunition Saturday before new laws kick in across California on January 1.

At Guns, Fishing and Stuff in Dublin they've seen a steady stream of customers buying ammo all day. They say once the laws change, not only will ammo be harder to get, but it will also be more expensive.

In one trip to the range, a shooter can easily go through a couple hundred rounds, but starting Monday, ammo sales laws are changing.

Todd Settergren owns Setter Arms in Walnut Creek. He has seen a big spike in business as people try to stock up on ammo before the laws and the prices change.

"You have to go to a brick and mortar store to buy your ammunition starting January 1st, you can't do anymore online sales," Settergren.

Anyone who buys ammunition online in California can't get it sent directly to their house. It must shipped to a licensed dealer approved by the department of justice and picked up from the store - meaning the cost could go up.

"You're going to have extra paperwork to fill out or you send me your ammunition and I'm holding onto your ammunition for a couple of weeks, and I'm going to charge you a storage fee. That's what a lot of dealers are doing," said Settergren. "There are people who've gotten 5 to 10 thousand rounds," he said.

"I only get paid so much in a month, and I can only spend so much, so if it goes up, I won't be able to buy as much and go out and stress relieve right here," said buyer Scott Watson.

The Department of Justice hasn't issued exact guidelines for how stores can get approval to sell ammo, meaning some smaller mom-and-pop shops will have to stop selling ammo on Monday.

"We are waiting for them to give us the when where and how. It's a big unknown circle right now that we would love to have the answer to and hope to get it really soon," said store manager Keven Yost.

Griffin Dix with the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence says the new laws are a step in the right direction.

"It's not an attempt to prevent law-abiding citizens from purchasing ammunition," he said. But it is an attempt to make sure that the sales don't go to criminals or other persons who are prohibited from buying ammuniton."

Stores like Guns, Fishing and Stuff that have a federal firearms license are grand-fathered into the program, which means they can continue selling ammo on Monday like they have been.

The biggest change comes in July of 2019 when the law will require ammunition buyers to get a background check.

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