MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The mayor of Alabama’s state capital signed a local ordinance into law on Friday requiring anyone carrying a concealed firearm to also carry a photo ID, saying Republican lawmakers’ decision to toss permit requirements for concealed guns had hindered police officers’ abilities to fight crime and seize illegal guns.
The new Montgomery ordinance drew immediate outrage from state GOP officials who had supported a 2023 law granting gun owners the right to carry a concealed gun without a permit. A spokesperson for Republican Attorney General Steve Marshall called the local measure illegal, but did not say whether Marshall planned to file a lawsuit.
According to the ordinance, Montgomery police can confiscate a concealed gun if the gun holder is not also carrying a photo ID. The firearm would remain in police custody until the gun holder pays a fine and provides proof of purchase to the local precinct within 30 days.
The measure is the latest signed by a local official in the South in frustration over the expansion of what gun rights advocates call “constitutional carry,” a reference to the Second Amendment right to “keep and bear arms.” When the Alabama bill was being debated during the 2022 legislative session, it was decried by local officials and many in law enforcement, especially those in the state’s largest cities already struggling with crime, who said that it would worsen public safety.