Orange County Clerk Annie Rabbitt is reminding pistol permit holders who acquired their permits before January 15th, 2013 that they must recertify it by January 31st, 2018 as per New York State rules.

“I want to make sure that all of the County’s pistol permit holders are aware that there are only a few days left to comply with the state’s recertification rules,” Rabbitt said. “There may be people who aren’t aware of the process and we want to make sure that they have the opportunity to recertify.”

The recertification requirement was passed in 2013 as part of the New York Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act, which mandates that permit holders recertify every five years. Prior to the SAFE Act, license holders did not have to recertify. According to the New York State Police, if your permit was issued on or after January 15, 2013, the deadline to recertify is five years after the date the permit was issued.

If a pistol permit holder fails to recertify, their license could be revoked and firearms confiscated.

Thirty-thousand Orange County residents hold licenses and 16,000 of those are up for recertification. Rabbitt said that approximately 9,800 of those holders have recertified. Pistol permit holders can recertify for free at troopers.ny.gov/Firearms/ and they will receive an email confirmation, enabling them to print out necessary documents.

For more information on the recertification process, contact the State Police at 855-529-4867.

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