The Montgomery County Council voted 10-1 on Tuesday to rewrite the county's ghost gun ban and firearms restrictions near public places, removing hospitals, childcare facilities and long-term care facilities from the list of locations where guns are prohibited. The vote on Expedited Bill 23-26 brings county law into compliance with the Maryland Supreme Court's April 28 ruling in Engage Armament LLC v. Montgomery County.
Councilmember Dawn Luedtke (D-Dist. 7), the bill's lead sponsor, framed the legislation as a cleanup at Tuesday's meeting in the Stella Werner Council Office Building in Rockville.
"The sole purpose of this bill is to bring into conformity our local laws that were passed by the prior council to match what was issued in the Maryland Supreme Court's decision," Luedtke said.
Councilmember Laurie-Anne Sayles (D-At-large) cast the lone dissenting vote. Sayles, who was listed as a cosponsor of the bill, broke ranks after questioning council staff about enforcement. She said she worried the law could lead to stop-and-frisk encounters and greater surveillance of everyday citizens.
What changed
The court ruled that the county lacks authority to restrict firearms in and around hospitals, community health centers, long-term care facilities and childcare facilities. Those locations are now removed from the county's definition of "place of public assembly." Gun regulation in those settings falls to the state.
People are still prohibited from bringing firearms within 100 yards of a park, place of worship, school, library, recreational facility, multipurpose exhibition facility, polling place, courthouse or legislative assembly.
The bill also added an exemption for state wear-and-carry permit holders traveling on public highways that pass within 100 yards of a place of public assembly. Permit holders who approach those locations via private drives or other modes of transportation remain subject to county restrictions.
On ghost guns, the court upheld the county's ban but carved out an exception: firearms originally manufactured without a serial number that are later serialized by a federally licensed dealer are no longer covered by the restriction. The bill also regulates the sale or transfer of ghost guns involving minors and updates rules for gun shops.
Background
The original ghost gun ban passed in April 2021. Nine plaintiffs, including Engage Armament LLC, challenged it in May 2021. In November 2022, the council passed a second law barring even state wear-and-carry permit holders from possessing firearms within 100 yards of a place of public assembly. That law was folded into the same lawsuit.
The Public Safety Committee unanimously recommended approval of the amended bill after a Tuesday, June 9 public hearing. Amendments revised exemptions for firearms kept inside vehicles to more closely match state law and preserved a grandfather clause allowing gun shops operating before January 1, 1997, to remain exempt from the public-assembly restrictions.
Sponsors and the dissent
Luedtke introduced the bill on Tuesday, May 12. Cosponsors include Council President Natali Fani-González, Council Vice President Marilyn Balcombe, and Councilmembers Kristin Mink Stewart, Andrew Friedson, Sidney Katz, Evan Glass, and Sayles.
The bill is designated "expedited," though the specific effective date was not stated in available council documents. Residents can track the legislation and future council action at montgomerycountymd.gov/council.
Sayles' vote stood out given her name on the bill. She told colleagues she could not support a law she feared would be enforced unevenly across communities.
