I know the ivory restrictions pretty well. I make it a point to follow that nationally & also California.
There are 3 types of commerce: intrastate, interstate & international. For the purposes of this post,
let’s confine it to domestic commerce since the International ban has been discussed and settled.
States can enact any law that is constitutional. It cannot enact laws which modify or supersede any
federal law. However, states can enact a more stringent and expansive version of any Federal statute.
If you live in a state that has enacted a ivory ban, you cannot sell or even attempt to sell ivory, or in this
instance pool cues, to any other persons or entities that reside in your own state. Just attempting to sell
is a violation of the law. However, you can sell your cue when you are physically outside the geographical
boundaries of your own state. As an example, I cannot sell any of my cues while I’m physically in the State
of California but once I cross the border into Nevada, I can sell my cues and even buy more that have ivory.
State regulations pertain to that state only, no others. So every buyer and seller are respectively obligated
by the laws of the state in which they reside. No one is going to ever confiscate your pool cue because it
simply contains ivory. But if you go to illegally sell it, well, that’s an entirely different proposition. Remember
all laws in America are enacted de facto. Laws are never enacted retroactively. The simple example of this
Is the Volstead Act, i.e., Prohibition. Everyone bought as much liquor as possible before the law was passed.
After enactment, you couldn’t still buy liquor any longer. But all of the liquor you already owned, i.e., purchased
or possessed, was perfectly legal to have and drink. Laws in America are enacted as of a specific date, ergo
De Facto. I’ve extensively researched the ivory issue and FYI, all my cues are legal but can’t be sold while I
reside in CA. But if I attended a cue show in say Las Vegas, I can sell them or buy any cue I want and it’s legal.
Possession of ivory is not against the law as long as you acquired it, the item or for the purposes of this thread,
the pool cue legally. Since July 1, 2016, it has been against the law to buy or attempt to sell items with ivory in CA.
Bob Owen and Jerry Rauenzahn both were building custom cues for me in 2015. When CA passed the ivory ban
in December 2015, I spoke with both and my cues were scheduled for completion for the Fall of 2016. That would
be after CA’s ivory ban and meant breaking the law for them and also me. So they accelerated completion of my
cues to make sure I received the cues before July. Of course, they did it & both cues arrived Memorial Day Weekend.
As a further precaution. I had them sign & date my cues and of course, all my paperwork reflects the purchase dates.
Ivory and pool cues is still largely misunderstood. The final responsibility rests with the buyer and the cue maker. You
cannot plead ignorance of the law and expect to escape the fines and legal expenses and even confiscation of any
pool cue(s) involved. The law is real and you can’t argue around it in court either. So just abide by your local state law.