Under New York state’s so-called SAFE Act, pistol permit holders may file opt-out forms with county clerks to ensure their permit information isn’t disclosed through public records requests. In the past, media outlets have used such disclosures to publish the names and addresses of N.Y. pistol permit holders.
Monroe County Clerk Adam Bello recently revealed that some 20,000 opt-out forms—from nearly half the pistol permit holders in his county—are currently unprocessed and simply stored in a filing cabinet, a backlog Bello says is leftover from his predecessor, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reports.
It’s bad enough that New York gun owners have to file forms simply to exercise a constitutional right in privacy and in peace. Adding insult to that injury, now Bello wants $25,000 more to hire two part-time clerks to help him get those forms filed straight.
Nice work if you can find it.
