Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/19pdf/18-280_ba7d.pdf
Page Number: 7

4 

NEW YORK STATE RIFLE & PISTOL ASSN., INC. v. 
CITY OF NEW YORK 
ALITO, J., dissenting 

the constitutional violation that petitioners suffered. 

I 
A 
1 
New York State has strict laws governing the possession 
of firearms.  With only a few exceptions, possession without 
a license is punishable by imprisonment and a fine.  N. Y. 
Penal  Law  Ann.  §§60.01(3),  70.15,  265.01–265.04, 
265.20(a)(3) (West Cum. Supp. 2020).  Local authorities ad-
minister the licensing program, §400.00(3)(a), and in New 
York City, this is done by the New York City Police Depart-
ment’s (NYPD’s) License Division.  See 38 N. Y. C. R. R. §5–
01 et seq. (2020); N. Y. Penal Law Ann. §265.00(10); N. Y. C.
Admin. Code §10–131 (2020). 

New York State law contemplates two primary forms of
handgun  license—a  premises  license,  which  allows  the  li-
censee to keep the registered handgun at a home or busi-
ness,  and  a  carry  license,  which  permits  the  licensee  to 
carry a concealed handgun outside the home.  N. Y. Penal 
Law Ann. §§400.00(2)(a), (b), (f ).  In this case, only premises 
licenses are at issue. 

State law imposes an exacting standard for obtaining a 
premises license, and the NYPD License Division subjects 
applicants to rigorous vetting.  Licenses may be issued only 
if, among other things, an applicant is “of good moral char-
acter”  and  “no  good  cause  exists  for  the  denial  of  the  li-
cense.”  §§400.00(1)(b), (n); see also App. 95–109 (“Instruc-
tions  to  Handgun  License  Applicants”)  (capitalization 
omitted).

New York City residents must submit their applications 
in-person at One Police Plaza in Manhattan.  An applicant
must pay a fee of $431.50; must provide proof of age, citi-
zenship, and residence; and must produce an original Social 
Security card.  Id., at 95–96, 98.  A completed application
must  specify  the  particular  handgun  that  the  applicant