HOUSE BILL NO. 6184

November 26, 2024, Introduced by Reps. Puri, Young, Brenda Carter, Churches, Dievendorf, Brabec, Brixie, Hoskins, Rheingans, Byrnes, Hood, Steckloff, Hope, Breen, Morgan, McFall, Pohutsky, Weiss and Aiyash and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

"Revised judicature act of 1961,"

(MCL 600.101 to 600.9947) by adding section 3845.

the people of the state of michigan enact:

Sec. 3845. (1) A firearm industry member, by conduct unlawful in itself or unreasonable under all the circumstances, shall not knowingly or recklessly create, maintain, or contribute to a public nuisance through the sale, manufacture, importing, or marketing of a firearm-related product.

(2) A firearm industry member shall establish and implement reasonable controls regarding the manufacture, sale, distribution, use, and marketing of the firearm industry member's firearm-related products.

(3) A violation of subsection (1) or (2) is a public nuisance.

(4) A firearm industry member's conduct constitutes a proximate cause of the public nuisance if the harm to the public is a reasonably foreseeable effect of the conduct, notwithstanding any intervening actions, including unlawful actions by third parties.

(5) If it appears to the attorney general that a firearm industry member has engaged in or is engaging in conduct in violation of this section, the attorney general may commence an action to seek and obtain any of the following:

(a) An injunction prohibiting the firearm industry member from continuing the conduct or engaging in the conduct or doing any acts in furtherance of the conduct.

(b) An order providing for abatement of the nuisance at the expense of the firearm industry member.

(d) Compensatory and punitive damages.

(e) Reasonable attorney fees, filing fees, and reasonable costs of the action.

(f) Any other appropriate relief.

(6) A person identified in section 3805 that has been damaged as a result of a firearm industry member's acts or omissions in violation of this section may commence an action to seek and obtain any of the following:

(a) Injunctive relief.

(b) Compensatory and punitive damages.

(7) If a person commences an action requesting relief under subsection (6)(a), the person shall, within 5 days after filing the complaint, notify the attorney general of the filing of the complaint and provide the attorney general with a copy of the complaint and any other documents or pleadings filed with the complaint.

(8) To prevail in an action under this section, the party seeking relief is not required to demonstrate that the firearm industry member acted with the intent to engage in a public nuisance or otherwise cause harm to the public.

(9) This section may not be construed or implied to limit or impair in any way any of the following:

(a) The right of a person to pursue a legal action under any other law, including the Michigan consumer protection act, 1976 PA 331, MCL 445.901 to 445.922.

(b) An obligation or requirement placed on a firearm industry member by any other law.

(10) This section must be construed and applied in a manner that is consistent with the requirements of the constitution of this state and the United States Constitution.

(11) This section is not intended to restrict or alter the availability of an action for relief from or to remedy a public nuisance at common law.

(12) As used in this section:

(a) "Firearm accessory" means an attachment or device designed or adapted to be inserted into, affixed onto, or used in conjunction with a firearm that is designed, intended, or functions to alter or enhance the firing capabilities of a firearm, the lethality of the firearm, or a shooter's ability to hold and use a firearm.

(b) "Firearm industry member" means a person engaged in the sale, manufacture, distribution, importing, or marketing of a firearm-related product.

(c) "Firearm-related product" means a firearm, ammunition, a firearm precursor part, a firearm component, a 3-dimensional printer or computer numerical control milling machine, or a firearm accessory that meets any of the following conditions:

(i) The product was sold, made, distributed, or marketed in this state.

(ii) The product was intended to be sold, made, distributed, or marketed in this state.

(iii) The product was possessed in this state and it was reasonably foreseeable that the product would be possessed or used in this state.

(d) "Firearm trafficker" means a person who acquires, transfers, or attempts to acquire or transfer a firearm for purposes of unlawful commerce.

(e) "Pistol converter" means any device or instrument that when installed in or attached to the slide of a semi-automatic pistol interferes with the trigger mechanism and thereby enables the pistol to discharge a number of shots or bullets rapidly or automatically with 1 continuous pull of the trigger.

(f) "Public nuisance" means a condition that injures, endangers, or threatens to injure or endanger or that contributes to the injury or endangerment of the health, safety, peace, comfort, or convenience of others or that otherwise constitutes a public nuisance under common law.

(g) "Reasonable controls" means reasonable procedures, safeguards, and business practices that are designed to do all of the following:

(i) Prevent the sale or distribution of a firearm-related product to a straw purchaser, a firearm trafficker, a person prohibited from purchasing, possessing, or using a firearm under state or federal law, or a person that the firearm industry member has reasonable cause to believe is at substantial risk of using a firearm-related product to harm the person or unlawfully harm another or of unlawfully possessing or using a firearm-related product.

(ii) Prevent the loss of a firearm-related product or theft of a firearm-related product from a firearm industry member.

(iii) Ensure that the firearm industry member complies with all provisions of state and federal law and does not otherwise promote the unlawful manufacture, sale, possession, marketing, or use of a firearm-related product.

(iv) Ensure that the firearm industry member does not engage in an act or practice in violation of the Michigan consumer protection act, 1976 PA 331, MCL 445.901 to 445.922.

(v) Ensure that reasonable steps to prevent the installation and use of a pistol converter on a firearm-related product are taken.

(h) "Straw purchaser" means an individual who conceals, or intends to conceal, from a firearm industry member that the purchase of a firearm is being made on behalf of a third party. Straw purchaser does not include a person who purchases a firearm as a bona fide gift to a person who is not prohibited by law from possessing or receiving a firearm-related product. For purposes of this subdivision, a gift to a person is not a bona fide gift if the person has offered or given the purchaser a service or thing of value to acquire the firearm for the person.

(i) "Three-dimensional printer" means a computer-aided manufacturing device capable of producing a 3-dimensional object from a 3-dimensional digital model through an additive manufacturing process that involves the layering of 2-dimensional cross sections formed of a resin or similar material that are fused together to form a 3-dimensional object.

Enacting section 1. This amendatory act does not take effect unless Senate Bill No.____ or House Bill No. 6185 (request no. 06802'24 a) of the 102nd Legislature is enacted into law.