As our readers who hold any type of licenses, permits or registrations issued by the State of Maryland may be aware, on March 12, 2020, Governor Hogan issued an executive order suspending the expiration of “all licenses, permits, registrations, and other authorizations.” These “Covered Authorizations,” issued by the State of Maryland, its agencies, or any political subdivisions thereof until the 30th day after the end of the state of emergency and catastrophic health emergency caused by COVID-19.
I am writing today to tell you that those indefinite extensions are coming to an end. On March 9, 2021, the Governor issued an amended executive order providing that those Covered Authorizations that would, 1) expire prior to June 30, 2021 during the state of emergency and catastrophic health emergency, or, 2) be renewable during the state of emergency and catastrophic health emergency have their expiration extended to June 30, 2021. The order also authorized the head of each unit of state or local government to exclude a Covered Authorization from the extension to June 30th, in favor of an earlier date, provided that reasonable public notice of the exclusion be provided.
On March 19, the Maryland State Police released Bulletin LD-CS-21-001 on the Reinstatement of Legal Time Authorizations for Licenses, Permits, Registrations and Authorizations. All licenses, permits, registrations, or authorizations issued by the Maryland State Police that expired after March 12, 2020 are current until June 30, 2021. This includes Wear and Carry Permits, MD New Resident Registrations, MD Regulated Firearm Dealer Licenses, Machine Gun Registrations/Renewals, and several other types of licenses (you can view a longer, but still non-exhaustive list in the MSP Bulletin linked above).
If you hold a Covered Authorization issued by the Maryland State Police that expired, or expires, between March 12, 2020 and June 30, 2021, you will need to go through the renewal process to ensure it remains valid after June 30. The MSP recommends that you submit your renewal application as soon as possible to avoid a flood of applications delaying processing times at the deadline.
If you or someone you know would like to speak with an attorney regarding your legal rights and responsibilities relating to firearms law in Maryland or Pennsylvania, contact us today!
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