Overview
- Owners face a March 31 deadline to declare banned firearms for compensation, with 52,000 guns reported so far against funding set for about 136,000, and the amnesty ends Oct. 30.
- Public Safety plans collections at police stations or through mobile units staffed by retired or off-duty RCMP members, with no door-to-door pickups.
- The National Police Federation urges formal risk assessments for mobile drop-off sites to avoid 911 surges and on-site hazards.
- Several police services, including the Ottawa Police Service, say they will not participate because the work would strain resources and hinder core policing.
- Saskatchewan proposes exemption certificates that keep prohibited guns in owners’ custody on behalf of the province until federal payments arrive, while gun-control group PolySeSouvient presses Ottawa to challenge such tactics.