(a) Commencing January 1, 2018, a firearms dealer shall require any agent or employee who handles, sells, or delivers firearms to obtain and provide to the dealer a certificate of eligibility from the Department of Justice pursuant to Section 26710. On the application for the certificate, the agent or employee shall provide the name and California firearms dealer number of the firearms dealer with whom the person is employed.

(b) The department shall notify the firearms dealer in the event that the agent or employee who has a certificate of eligibility is or becomes prohibited from possessing firearms.

(c) If the local jurisdiction requires a background check of the agents or employees of a firearms dealer, the agent or employee shall obtain a certificate of eligibility pursuant to subdivision (a).

(d) (1) Nothing in this section shall be construed to preclude a local jurisdiction from conducting an additional background check pursuant to Section 11105. The local jurisdiction may not charge a fee for the additional criminal history check.

(2) Nothing in this section shall be construed to preclude a local jurisdiction from prohibiting employment based on criminal history that does not appear as part of obtaining a certificate of eligibility.

(e) The licensee shall prohibit any agent who the licensee knows or reasonably should know is within a class of persons prohibited from possessing firearms pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 29800) or Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 29900) of Division 9 of this title, or Section 8100 or 8103 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, from coming into contact with any firearm that is not secured and from accessing any key, combination, code, or other means to open any of the locking devices described in subdivision (g).

(f) Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing a local government from enacting an ordinance imposing additional conditions on licensees with regard to agents or employees.

(g) For purposes of this article, “secured” means a firearm that is made inoperable in one or more of the following ways:

(1) The firearm is inoperable because it is secured by a firearm safety device listed on the department’s roster of approved firearm safety devices pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 23655.

(2) The firearm is stored in a locked gun safe or long-gun safe that meets the standards for department-approved gun safes set forth in Section 23650.

(3) The firearm is stored in a distinct locked room or area in the building that is used to store firearms, which can only be unlocked by a key, a combination, or similar means.

(4) The firearm is secured with a hardened steel rod or cable that is at least one-eighth of an inch in diameter through the trigger guard of the firearm. The steel rod or cable shall be secured with a hardened steel lock that has a shackle. The lock and shackle shall be protected or shielded from the use of a boltcutter and the rod or cable shall be anchored in a manner that prevents the removal of the firearm from the premises.

(Amended November 8, 2016, by initiative Proposition 63, Sec. 7.2.)