3. a. A manufacturer or other entity seeking to include a handgun on the approved personalized handgun roster established pursuant to P.L.2019, c.164 (C. 2C:58-2.7 et al.) may apply to the commission for a determination of whether the make and model of a handgun proposed by the applicant would meet the personalized handgun performance standards established pursuant to section 2 of P.L.2019, c.164 (C. 2C:58-2.8). The commission’s determination shall be based upon testing conducted by an independent laboratory proposed by the applicant which has been accredited for the testing of firearms by the National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program or other national certifying body approved by the commission or, if the applicant does not propose an independent laboratory or if one is not approved or available, by the Division of State Police.

b. The commission shall approve an independent laboratory proposed by an applicant to perform the determination pursuant to subsection a. of this section if the commission is clearly convinced that the laboratory is capable of performing the determination and will be sufficiently objective making the determination, provided that the laboratory shall not be owned or operated by a handgun manufacturer or any other organization that seeks to promote or restrict handgun ownership.

The application for approval of an independent laboratory to perform the determination pursuant to subsection a. of this section shall be in a form prescribed by the Attorney General, in consultation with the commission, and shall provide information regarding the laboratory’s capabilities and objectivity.

c. If the commission approves the application, the laboratory shall utilize testing methods formulated by the commission to determine whether a handgun meets the personalized handgun performance standards and qualifying criteria established pursuant to section 2 of P.L.2019, c.164 (C. 2C:58-2.8).

The independent laboratory or Division of State Police, as the case may be, shall test a handgun within a reasonable amount of time following approval of the application by the commission. The test shall be conducted:

(1) in accordance with the testing requirements formulated by the commission; and

(2) at the expense of the manufacturer or other entity seeking to include the handgun on the approved personalized handgun roster established pursuant to P.L.2019, c.164 (C. 2C:58-2.7 et al.).

The independent laboratory or Division of State Police, as the case may be, shall issue a final test report to the commission at the conclusion of the test. The report shall state whether the handgun meets the performance standards and qualifying criteria established by the commission.

d. The commission shall review the final test report and based on the report’s findings shall issue, within 45 days of receiving the report, a final decision by majority vote as to whether the handgun should be included on the roster.

e. Upon making a final determination pursuant to subsection d. of this section, the commission shall notify, in writing, the applicant as to whether the handgun has been approved or denied for inclusion on the roster. A notification informing the applicant that a firearm has been denied shall be provided along with a written description of the reasons for which a handgun failed to meet the performance standards and qualifying criteria established by the commission as documented in the independent laboratory’s report. Any alteration to the design of a make and model of handgun that has been approved for addition on the roster shall require a determination that the handgun continues to meet the performance standards and qualifying criteria established by the commission in accordance with the requirements of this section in order to include the altered design model of the handgun on the roster.

L.2019, c.164, s.3.