Posted on 03/14/23
| News Source: WBAL TV
Major changes are in the making for Maryland's "concealed carry" law.
The Maryland State Senate made the Gun Safety Act less restrictive before sending the measure to the House for its consideration.
According to the bill's sponsor, the changes make it more constitutional. Second amendment advocates agree but will likely be pushing for the house to make even more changes.
Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee Vice-Chair Jeff Waldstreicher, D-District 18, said the revisions were necessary.
"The bill, as introduced, may have been written too broadly, and it was a challenge to defend constitutionally. So, we came back, we redrafted the bill in a way, I think, is simultaneously both narrower and stronger," he said.
Proposed changes include dropping the prohibition on carrying a firearm within 100 feet of a public space. Restricted spaces have been narrowed to schools, health facilities, polling places, live theater, stadiums, concert venues or government buildings, including those leased.
Second amendment advocates like Mark Pennak consider the restrictions on restaurants with liquor licenses unfair.
"That's all the restaurants right now, pretty much, short of McDonald's, and people need to eat. So right now, they could be sent to prison for merely going into a restaurant that may serve alcohol," Pennak said.
Waldstreicher stands by that decision.
"We drew the line, saying, 'Guns and alcohol don't mix,'" he said.
Law enforcement, including retired police in good standing, and military are exempt. The legislation also prohibits taking a firearm into someone's private property without permission.
The Senate bill is now in the hands of the House, which is already considering legislation to increase requirements to get a concealed carry permit, and double the fees associated with the application to get one or renew one.
Senate President Bill Ferguson, D-District 46, said there is an overall idea behind the new legislation.
"At the end of the day, this bill is about less guns. We have to make a decision as a people. Do we want everyone in a society where everyone has to be armed to the hilt in order to feel safe? Or do we want to create a society where we don't need a gun to feel safe," he said.
First offenders would face a misdemeanor that carries 90 days in jail and a $3,000 fine. Subsequent offenses carry a 15-month prison sentence and $7,500 fine.