I saw this notice displayed on the doorway of a Gallatin County MT county building the other day.
What does this mean? Do these signs have the force of law? I thought MCA 45-8-351 prevented local governments from restricting firearms?
Let’s take a look at MCA 45-8-351:
(2) (a) For public safety purposes, a city or town may regulate the discharge of rifles, shotguns, and handguns. A county, city, town, consolidated local government, or other local government unit has power to prevent and suppress the carrying of unpermitted concealed weapons or the carrying of unconcealed weapons to a publicly owned and occupied building under its jurisdiction.
The answer is “Yes, they can.” But one of the exceptions is if you have a concealed carry permit. While Montana is permitless carry, it is not constitutional carry. There are still some places you can’t carry without a permit. There are also exceptions for gun shows.
There are a lot of reasons to get a permit even though we’ve gone to permitless carry. Being able to carry in some county buildings is just one of them. My guess is a lot of people haven’t looked into this closely and just assume their permit doesn’t allow them to carry in a county building. You’re welcome.
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