§ 57-12. Sale of fixed ammunition.

(a) Legislative intent. The purpose of this section is to provide support to state and local law enforcement officials in their efforts against crime and violence by placing controls on the flow of dangerous ammunition, in addition to those provided by federal law, and to encourage compliance with the state police department's program of voluntary firearm registration. It is not the purpose of this section to place any undue or unnecessary restrictions or burdens on law-abiding citizens with respect to the acquisition, possession, or use of firearms appropriate to the purpose of hunting, trapshooting, target shooting, personal protection, or any other lawful activity, or to discourage or eliminate the private ownership or use of firearms by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes. It is not the purpose of this section to create, nor does it permit the creation of, any separate system of county registration of firearms or ammunition, or the levying of any county fee in connection with any registration of firearms or ammunition. It is specifically not the intent of this section to serve as a revenue generating measure.

(b) Registration of ammunition dealers. Any ammunition dealer (as defined in 18 United States Code, section 921 et seq.) who conducts business in Montgomery County is required to register with the Montgomery County department of police by maintaining on file with that department, at all times, a valid, current copy of his federal ammunition dealer's license.

(c) Conditions for sale. No ammunition dealer may sell fixed ammunition to any other person, unless:

(1) The sale is made in person;

(2) The purchaser exhibits, at the time of sale, a valid registration certificate or, in the case of a nonresident, proof that the firearm is lawfully possessed in the jurisdiction where the purchaser resides;

(3) The fixed ammunition to be sold is of the same caliber or gauge as the firearm described in the registration certificate, or other proof in the case of a nonresident; and

(4) The purchaser signs a receipt for the ammunition which shall be maintained by the licensed dealer for a period of one (1) year from the date of sale.

(d) Exceptions. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the sale of fixed ammunition:

(1) Which is suitable for use only in rifles or shotguns generally available in commerce, or to the sale of component parts of these types of ammunition;

(2) To any person licensed to possess fixed ammunition under an act of Congress and the law of the jurisdiction where the person resides or conducts business; or

(3) To any law enforcement officer of federal, state, local or any other governmental entity, if the officer has in his possession a statement from the head of his agency stating that the fixed ammunition is to be used in the officer's official duties.

(e) Penalties. Any ammunition dealer who sells fixed ammunition in violation of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a class C violation, pursuant to section 1-19 of the Montgomery County Code, punishable only by a civil penalty in the amount of fifteen dollars ($15.00).

(f) Exception for incorporated municipalities. This section shall not be effective in any incorporated municipality which by law has authority to enact a law on the same subject. If any such incorporated municipality adopts this section and requests the county to enforce the adopted provisions thereof within its corporate limits, the county may thereafter administer and enforce the same within the incorporated municipality. The county executive is authorized to enter into agreements with incorporated municipalities to enforce and administer the provisions so adopted and to collect the administrative costs of implementation from such municipalities. (1983 L.M.C., ch. 50, § 2.)

Editor’s note--The above section was held to be invalid by the Court of Appeals in Montgomery County, Maryland, et al. v. Atlantic Gunds, Inc., et al., 302 Md. 540, 489 A.2d 1114 (1985). The above section is interpreted in Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission v. Elgin, 53 Md.App. 452, 454 A.2d 408 (1983).