AN ACT REVISING THE LAW RELATED TO THE OFFENSE OF CARRYING A CONCEALED WEAPON; PROVIDING THAT THE LAW DOES NOT APPLY TO A PERSON WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO POSSESS A HANDGUN UNDER STATE OR FEDERAL LAW; CREATING THE OFFENSE OF CARRYING A FIREARM IN A PROHIBITED PLACE, EXCLUDING PERSONS WITH VALID CONCEALED WEAPON PERMITS AND SWORN PEACE OFFICERS; AND AMENDING SECTION 45-8-317 and 45-8-328, MCA.
 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
 
     Section 1.  Section 45-8-317, MCA, is amended to read:
     "45-8-317.  Exceptions. (1) Section 45-8-316 does not apply to:
     (a)  any peace officer of the state of Montana or of another state who has the power to make arrests;
     (b)  any officer of the United States government authorized to carry a concealed weapon;
     (c)  a person in actual service as a member of the national guard;
     (d)  a person summoned to the aid of any of the persons named in subsections (1)(a) through (1)(c);
     (e)  a civil officer or the officer's deputy engaged in the discharge of official business;
     (f)  a probation and parole officer authorized to carry a firearm under 46-23-1002;
     (g)  a person eligible to possess a handgun under state or federal law, a person issued a permit under 45-8-321, or or a person with a permit recognized under 45-8-329;
     (h)  an agent of the department of justice or a criminal investigator in a county attorney's office;
     (i)  a person who is outside the official boundaries of a city or town or the confines of a logging, lumbering, mining, or railroad camp or who is lawfully engaged in hunting, fishing, trapping, camping, hiking, backpacking, farming, ranching, or other outdoor activity in which weapons are often carried for recreation or protection; or
     (j)  the carrying of arms on one's own premises or at one's home or place of business.
     (2)  With regard to a person issued a permit under 45-8-321, the provisions of 45-8-328 do not apply to this section."

     Section 2.  Section 45-8-328, MCA, is amended to read:
    45-8-328.  Carrying concealed a weapon firearm in prohibited place inside city limits  -- penalty. (1) A person commits the offense of carrying a concealed weapon firearm in a prohibited place if the person purposely or knowingly carries a concealed weapon firearm inside the incorporated limits of a city or town in:
    (a)  portions of a building used for state or local government offices and related areas in the building that have been restricted;
    (b)  a bank, credit union, savings and loan institution, or similar institution during the institution's normal business hours. It is not an offense under this section to carry a concealed weapon firearm while:
    (i)  using an institution's drive-up window, automatic teller machine, or unstaffed night depository; or
    (ii)  at or near a branch office of an institution in a mall, grocery store, or other place unless the person is inside the enclosure used for the institution's financial services or is using the institution's financial services.
    (c)  a room in which alcoholic beverages are sold, dispensed, and consumed under a license issued under Title 16 for the sale of alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises.
    (2)  A It is not a defense that the person had who has a valid permit to carry a concealed weapon or who is a sworn peace officer is exempt from [this section]. A person convicted of the offense shall be imprisoned in the county jail for a term not to exceed 6 months or fined an amount not to exceed $500, or both.

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