Alameda County readies safe gun storage ordinance

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COUNTY NEWS

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

—GUN CONTROL—A draft ordinance that would enact safe gun storage regulations in unincorporated Alameda County comes before the Board of Supervisors Unincorporated Services Committee tonight in San Lorenzo.

—The “County Safe Storage of Firearms in Residences Ordinance” would require gun owners to use trigger-locks or store their guns in lockboxes.

—“No person shall keep a firearm within any residence located within an unincorporated territory within the County of Alameda unless the firearm is stored in a locked container or disabled with a trigger lock,” according to the proposed ordinance.

—Violation of the proposed ordinance is punishable as a misdemeanor.

—The draft ordinance was originally scheduled for a public hearing in late July, but was postponed due to a mix-up, Supervisor Nate Miley said previously.

—In 2020, Alameda approved a safe gun storage ordinance. Alameda’s ordinance, however, includes administrative fines, rather than criminal penalties.

—Oakland passed its own safe gun storage ordinance in 2016, and includes both fines and a misdemeanor criminal penalty.

—UNIVERSALLY BASIC PROBLEM—Two members of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors pondered whether structural social inequities can be reversed through solutions, such as Universal Basic Income.

—Following a presentation by the county’s Public Health Department on Monday, Lena Tam asked if there is enough data yet showing that Universal Basic Income is successful in limiting structural inequities among low-income families and the youth.

—Research has shown that Universal Basic Income, in tandem with expanded child tax cuts have shown improved birth outcomes in early years, said George Ayala, deputy director of the Alameda County Public Health Department. “We’re quite keen in understanding why that is.”

—Universal Basic Income and expanded child tax cuts, along with a focus on high-need young people and neighborhoods of color were among the Public Health Department’s recommendations to the board.

—“Every time we see Guaranteed Basic Income and tax credits we see upticks on any of the health outcomes you see today,” Ayala said.

—Improvements in outcomes, however, have been incremental over the past few decades, Supervisor Keith Carson said. What needs to be done to see noticeable outcomes on these issues? he asked.

—Better coordination across multiple public systems is needed to “move the dial on some of these issues,” Ayala replied.

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