If you haven’t personally purchased any ammunition since July 1, 2019, you may want to try during your next visit to the Academy/LAPRAAC. On that date, a new law (part of California Proposition 63) became effective, requiring vendors to run a background check when anyone, including peace officers, purchases ammunition. You are charged $1 to run the check. According to LAPRAAC staff, there has been a 50% denial/rejection rate.
Most of the denials seem to be due to not having a current Automated Firearms System (AFS) record (i.e., you haven’t purchased a firearm in several years), or your current info (i.e., address) not matching AFS records.
If you receive a denial, you can subsequently find the reason with your transaction number (called DROS number), which LAPRAAC (or any authorized vendor) will provide so you can fix the issue.
As this information was posted in the LAPD Reserve Police Officers group on Facebook, Dennis Wong commented that you “do not need a ‘Real ID,’ just not a license that has ‘Federal Limits Apply,’ on it which I doubt applies to anyone here (https://oag.ca.gov/firearms/apfaqs#3). Also you can make sure your info is updated in AFS by creating a CFARS account: https://cfars.doj.ca.gov/login.do.”
Steve Fazio added: “A footnote to this is: when you purchase a new firearm you can — after the waiting period, when you are picking up your weapon — purchase as much ammo as you’d like as you’ve already endured the DOJ background check and been fingerprinted.”