Montgomery County residents who hold state wear-and-carry permits would regain the right to travel on public roads that pass near schools, parks, and other public assembly sites if the County Council approves a firearms bill on Tuesday.
Expedited Bill 23-26 rewrites the county's gun laws to comply with an April Maryland Supreme Court ruling that found Montgomery County overstepped its authority when it banned permit holders from carrying firearms within 100 yards of dozens of categories of public places.
The bill would keep restrictions the court upheld, including bans on ghost guns near minors and on firearms in or within 100 yards of parks, schools, libraries, places of worship, courthouses, polling places and recreational facilities.
Councilmember Dawn Luedtke, a former assistant attorney general who sits on the Public Safety Committee, is the lead sponsor. Seven colleagues co-sponsor the bill: Council President Natali Fani-González, Council Vice President Marilyn Balcombe, and Councilmembers Kristin Mink Stewart, Andrew Friedson, Sidney Katz, Evan Glass and Laurie-Anne Sayles Evans. That's nine of the council's 11 members.
What the court struck down
The state's highest court ruled in Engage Armament LLC v. Montgomery County that the county could not restrict firearms near hospitals, community health centers, long-term care facilities, childcare facilities, certain government buildings or gatherings of people exercising their right to assemble. The court also found the county could not bar permit holders from simply passing through a 100-yard buffer zone on a public highway.
Mark Pennak, president of the gun rights group Maryland Shall Issue, told Bethesda Today in a May 2 interview that the county's earlier laws "created thousands of de-facto gun-free zones that basically made it impossible to carry in the county, because you couldn't move around with a firearm."
What the new bill does
Beyond removing the provisions the court invalidated, Expedited Bill 23-26 would:
- Define firearm-related terms in the county code
- Regulate the sale or transfer of ghost guns involving minors
- Revise exceptions for carrying firearms near places of public assembly
- Update regulations governing gun shops
The Public Safety Committee unanimously recommended approval with amendments after a June 9 public hearing, the MoCo Show reported. Those amendments revise exemptions for firearms kept inside vehicles to more closely match state law and preserve a grandfather clause allowing gun shops that operated before Jan. 1, 1997, to remain exempt from the places-of-public-assembly restrictions.
How to watch or weigh in
The council is scheduled to take its final vote during Tuesday's meeting. Residents can watch live on the council's YouTube channel (youtube.com/user/100marylandave) or follow updates on X at @MoCoCouncilMD.
