Task force studies firearm storage

Summary#

SCR 88, “Creates the Task Force on Secure Firearm Storage,” is a Louisiana Senate concurrent resolution. If adopted, it would create a temporary task force; it does not amend an existing law or change firearm-storage rules. Its stated goal is to study home firearm storage to help prevent accidental shootings by children age 13 or younger and recommend possible legislation.

  • The task force would study storage methods and recommend legislation that promotes or requires secure home storage, including through incentives or criminal penalties.
  • It would have eight members: a senator from District 15 as chair; a House member appointed by the House criminal justice committee chair as vice chair; and representatives of the Louisiana Sheriffs’ Association, State Police, a Louisiana firearms retailer, Moms Demand Action’s Louisiana chapter, the Board of Regents for the Community of Christ Outreach Center, and the Louisiana Shooting Association.
  • Member names must be submitted by August 1, 2026. The chair must call a first meeting by September 1, 2026; if that meeting is not held by then, the task force is terminated.
  • The task force must report its findings to the Legislature by March 1, 2027, and ends when it submits the report or on that date, whichever comes first. Members serve without compensation, subject to possible per diem or expense reimbursement through their organizations.
  • The supplied status says the resolution is introduced and has not been adopted. The stated August and September deadlines have passed as of October 9, 2026; no later status or information about whether the task force met is provided.

What it means for you#

  • Firearm owners: The resolution itself would not require you to change how you store a firearm, and it creates no new penalty or incentive. Those could be considered in recommendations for future legislation.
  • Named organizations and agencies: They would select or designate some members. The task force could choose to receive staff support from one or more of the entities represented by its members.
  • Louisiana residents: The direct change would be a study and report, not a new front-line service or a storage-law change. The resolution does not specify a process for public input.

Money#

No publicly available information on estimated costs is included in the supplied material.

  • The task force must receive staff support from one or more represented entities, but the resolution gives no staffing level or cost estimate.
  • Members serve without compensation, but may be entitled to per diem or expense reimbursement through their organizations. The amount and who would pay are not stated.

What is unclear#

  • The resolution does not define “safe and secure” storage or explain how the task force should judge storage methods.
  • It does not set rules for public input, study methods, or what findings the report must include beyond recommendations relevant to reducing accidental shootings.
  • It does not specify how much staff support, funding, or reimbursement would be available.
  • The resolution’s supplied status does not establish whether it was later adopted, or whether the task force met before the stated deadline.

Case for#

  • The task force would examine ways to prevent children age 13 or younger from accessing firearms in the home before the Legislature considers new rules.
  • It could recommend different approaches, including incentives or criminal penalties, rather than requiring one approach in the resolution itself.
  • Its membership includes law enforcement, a retailer, firearm and gun-safety organizations, and elected officials, bringing several perspectives into the study.

Case against#

  • The task force may recommend criminal penalties, but the resolution sets no standards for what storage would count as secure or what conduct should be penalized.
  • It does not provide a clear way for families, affected children, or the public to take part in the study.
  • The report deadline and task force end date leave a limited period for study, and the resolution does not specify the staff or resources available to do the work.