In light of the recent horrific shooting spree in Arizona, some cities might be wondering how they can tighten up city ordinances on the regulation of firearms. Unfortunately, there is not a whole lot a city can do by ordinance to prevent firearms in public buildings.
State law extensively regulates firearms. (See Chapter 624; see also Chapters 97A and 97B on hunting). This means cities are very limited in how they may regulate firearms. In fact, state law explicitly preempts cities from regulating firearms, ammunition, or their respective component. (Minn. Stat. § 471.633) There are only two exceptions to the preemption. First, a city may regulate the discharge of firearms. Second, the city may adopt regulations identical to state law. If the city does decide to adopt an ordinance that is outside the scope of these two exceptions, the inconsistent provisions are considered void.
In adopting an ordinance that regulates the discharge of firearms, cities may take different approaches. One example of this type of ordinances comes from the Minnesota Basic Code:
Section 130.02 DISCHARGING FIREARMS.
(A) Shooting upon, over or near a cemetery. Except as provided by M.S. § 97A.137, for wildlife management areas that are 40 acres or greater, no person shall, without permission from the proper officials, discharge a firearm upon or over a cemetery or within 100 yards thereof, unless the person is upon his or her own land.
(B) Hunting near a city park. Except as provided by M.S. § 97A.137, for wildlife management areas that are 40 acres or greater, no person shall hunt, shoot, or kill game within 2 mile of a city park unless the City Council has granted permission to kill game not desired within the limits prohibited by this division.
(C) Discharge of firearms prohibited in certain places. No person shall discharge a firearm on a lawn, park, playground, orchard, or other ground appurtenant to a school, church, or an inhabited dwelling, the property of another, or a charitable institution. This section does not prevent or prohibit the owner thereof from discharging firearms upon his or her own land.
(D) Discharging firearms on highways prohibited. No person shall discharge a firearm upon or over a public road or highway.
(E) Exceptions. This section shall not prohibit the firing of a military salute or the firing of weapons by persons of the nation's armed forces acting under military authority, and shall not apply to law enforcement officials in the proper enforcement of the law, or to any person in the proper exercise of the right of self defense, or to any person otherwise lawfully permitted by proper federal, state or local authorities to discharge a firearm in a manner contrary to the provisions of this section.
If the city does adopt an ordinance regulating firearms, the city may prosecute violators of the ordinance. However, the maximum penalty could only be a misdemeanor because a city has no power to provide for ordinance violation penalties greater than a misdemeanor. (Minn. Stat. § 412.231) On the other hand, if a person is prosecuted for a violation of state law (instead of city ordinance), the penalty could potentially be a gross misdemeanor or felony.
Generally, state law prohibits carrying firearms unless there is statutory authority. One such authorization is the state’s “conceal and carry” law that allows people with the proper permit to carry firearms in public places. (Minn. Stat. § 624.714) Cities sometimes want to prevent people from bringing firearms into city buildings even if they have the proper permit. There is no authority for a city to pass an ordinance or take other actions that could prohibit people with proper permits from bringing firearms into city hall. As I read the conceal and carry statute, only private establishments can ban firearms on their premises. A “private establishment” is defined as “a building, structure, or portion thereof that is owned, leased, controlled, or operated by a nongovernmental entity for a nongovernmental purpose.” Since this definition does not include cities or governmental entities, it does not seem to authorize the city to ban firearms at city hall or other public property. (There is a limited exception to this rule is if city hall is attached or part of a court house.)
In addition to the conceal and carry law, there are other provisions that allow a person to have a firearm in a public place. Two examples come to mind. Minn. Stat. § 624.7181 gives a list of situations that are not considered “carrying” and are therefore acceptable. Some examples include carrying a rifle to a firearm repair shop or to a lawful shooting range. Another example is found in Minn. Stat. § 97B.045, which provides limitations (and exceptions to those limitations) for transporting a firearm. In 2009, this law was amended to allow a person under certain situations to transport an unloaded, uncased firearm in a motor vehicle traveling to or from a site where the person intends to hunt (or has hunted) lawfully that day.
Conclusion. Because of state law preemption issues, cities are limited in their ability to regulate firearms by city ordinance. However, cities can rely on state law and, in addition, may be able to take other safety and security measures that may help to minimize concerns over firearms in public buildings.
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