Citation(s) from the GunPolicy.org literature library
Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. 2024 ‘Location Restrictions in Kentucky.’ Guns in Public. San Francisco, CA: Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. 24 December
Relevant contents
Other Location Restrictions in Kentucky
Kentucky law prohibits possession of a loaded firearm in a room where alcoholic beverages are being sold at a retail establishment licensed to sell alcohol "by the drink." This prohibition does not apply to restaurants that are open to the public, have dining facilities for at least 50 people, and receive at least 50 percent of their gross annual income from the sale of food.
Kentucky law explicitly prohibits a concealed deadly weapon license holder from carrying a concealed firearm into any:
- Police station or sheriff's office;
- Detention facility, prison or jail;
- Courthouse, solely occupied by the Court of Justice courtroom, or court proceeding;
- Meeting of the governing body of a county, municipality, or special district, or of the General Assembly or a committee of the General Assembly, unless the licensee is a member of that body;
- Portion of an establishment licensed to dispense alcohol for consumption on the premises, where that part of the establishment is primarily devoted to such purpose;
- Elementary or secondary school facility, without the consent of the school authorities;
- Child-care facility, day care center or certified family child-care home, unless the licensee is the owner of a certified family child-care home operated out of his or her residence;
- Area of an airport to which access is controlled by the inspection of persons and property; or
- Place where the carrying of firearms is prohibited by federal law.
Kentucky law provides that a license holder generally may not carry a concealed deadly weapon into any private business if prohibited by the owner, manager or employer. If the carrying of concealed weapons is prohibited in a building or premises open to the public, the employer or business must post signs to that effect. A license holder who carries a concealed deadly weapon into a private business where prohibited may be denied access to, or removed from, the premises. If the license holder is an employee of the business, he or she may be subject to disciplinary measures by his or her employer.
Units of state, city, county, urban-county, or charter county government may prohibit the carrying of concealed weapons by licensees in portions of buildings actually owned, leased, or occupied by that unit of government. Such ordinances must "exempt any building used for public housing by private persons, highway rest areas, firing ranges, and private dwellings owned, leased, or controlled by that unit of government from any restriction on the carrying or possession of deadly weapons." The Kentucky Attorney General has interpreted these provisions to mean that a county legislative body may prohibit or limit the carrying of concealed weapons in buildings in parks or portions of buildings in parks that it owns, leases, or controls. The county judge or executive (the chief elected official of counties in Kentucky) does not qualify as a "legislative body" and thus cannot regulate the carrying of concealed deadly weapons. That authority instead falls to the fiscal court of a county, which is the legislative body of a county.
Kentucky has no statutes prohibiting firearms in:
- Hospitals;
- Places of worship;
- Sports arenas;
- Gambling facilities; or
- Polling places…
[Editor's note: The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence regularly updates its webpages with new data as US gun regulation evolves state by state. For the most up-to-date information on US gun laws, please refer to the Giffords URL below]