Savannah cannot enact local firearm ordinances — Georgia O.C.G.A. Section 16-11-173 reserves to the General Assembly all regulation of gun shows, firearm possession, ownership, transport, carry, transfer, sale, purchase, licensing, registration, and firearms dealers.
Under O.C.G.A. Sec. 16-11-173, no Georgia county or municipality — Savannah included — may regulate 'by zoning, ordinance, resolution, or other enactment' the possession, ownership, transport, carrying, transfer, sale, purchase, licensing, or registration of firearms, ammunition, components, gun shows, or firearms dealers. Savannah's narrow remaining authority covers discharging firearms inside the city (a customary local regulation under state law), restricting carry by its own employees on duty, and applying generally applicable zoning and business ordinances to firearms dealers as long as the standards are not stricter than those applied to comparable commercial activities. Statewide, Georgia became a permitless (constitutional) carry state in 2022 (HB 218 / SB 319) — adults 21+ who are eligible for a Georgia Weapons Carry License may carry openly or concealed without a permit.
Any Savannah ordinance conflicting with O.C.G.A. Sec. 16-11-173 is null and void. The statute gives any person whose rights were violated a private cause of action for actual damages, declaratory and injunctive relief, and reasonable attorney fees.
See how Savannah's local firearms preemption rules stack up against other locations.
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