Montgomery County

Full Year-Round BanYear-round gas ban

Ban status

Countywide year-round ban on use of handheld, backpack, and walk-behind gas-powered leaf blowers under Bill 18-22. Sales ban effective July 1, 2024; use ban effective July 1, 2025. Only exemption is for agricultural producers on agriculturally zoned property.

Enacted: 2023-09-26In effect since: 2025-07-01

Adopted by County Council 10–1 (sole dissenter: Councilmember Gabe Albornoz, who later sponsored a failed 2025 exemption bill). Signed by County Executive Marc Elrich on October 9, 2023. $500 citations per violation. December 1, 2025 amendment removed the photo-evidence requirement after CASA / ICE concerns about Latino landscape workers; enforcement now requires two-witness testimony. Limited rebates available via the Sustainability Office; Rockville stacks an additional $100 rebate on top.

Last updated: Jun 2, 2026

Timeline

2026-07-01Enforcement resumed — Montgomery County Reminds Residents of Leaf Blower Ban; $500 Fines Begin July 1
2025-12-01Amended — Ordinance amended to remove photo-evidence requirement; now requires two-witness testimony
2025-07-01Effective date reached — effective
2024-07-01Effective date reached — Phase: Sales ban begins
2023-10Signed by executive — County Executive Marc Elrich signed

Advocacy

Petition: Banning Gas Leaf Blowers in Urban Parts of Montgomery County, MD— Change.org, 2020
Pre-Bill-18-22 pro-ban petition (~7,000 signatures — among the largest US pro-ban totals). Addressed to County Executive Marc Elrich. This long-running campaign helped drive the eventual 2022 phase-out legislation in MoCo. Active.
Petition: Amendment to MOCO Gas Leaf Blower Ban— Change.org
OPPOSES the Montgomery County MD gas leaf blower ban (Bill 18-22) as written. 2,226 signatures from a 25+ landscape-company consortium. Asks for a 6-8 week fall-season carve-out to allow gas blowers during peak leaf cleanup. Active.
Petition: Overturn the Gas Leaf Blower Ban in Montgomery County— Change.org
OPPOSES the entire Montgomery County MD gas leaf blower ban. "Save our freedom of choice" framing — argues for education and incentives instead of prohibition. Active.
Quiet Clean Montgomery County — flagship advocacy

Research & citations

Montgomery County Reminds Residents of Leaf Blower Ban; $500 Fines Begin July 1— gas leaf blowers, 2026-05-02T18:26:44.000Z
Montgomery County, MD is reminding residents that its gas-powered leaf blower ban is in effect and that violations will carry a $500 fine starting July 1, 2026. The ban aims to reduce harmful emissions and decrease reliance on gas-powered equipment.
Montgomery County, MD — Gas-Powered Leaf Blower Law (DEP)— Montgomery County Dept. of Environmental Protection, 2025-07-01
Countywide prohibition on the use of gas-powered handheld, backpack, and walk-behind leaf blowers, in full effect July 1, 2025 (Bill 18-23). Applies to all properties, including the County's incorporated villages and special tax districts.
The Movement to 'Make America Rake Again' — Reasons to be Cheerful— Reasons to be Cheerful, 2024-01-18
Hannah Wallace profiles the national push to ban gas-powered leaf blowers, opening with Quiet Clean PDX co-chair Michael Hall (Portland, OR) and noting more than 100 US cities have enacted bans alongside 45+ Quiet Clean Alliance member groups. Calls Washington D.C.'s 2022 phase-out the "gold standard" — three-year ramp-up, citizen-affidavit enforcement via DLCP, fines up to $500. Surveys California's CARB AB-1346 zero-emission rule (effective Jan 2024) plus the state's $30M CORE voucher program; cites bans in Burlington VT, Evanston IL, Oakland, Beverly Hills, Santa Barbara, and Montgomery County MD; flags rebate/discount programs in Colorado (30% statewide point-of-sale discount, eff. Jan 2024) and Dallas. Quotes Seagraves Landscaping (West Linn, OR — a Lake Oswego Parks contractor) on crews preferring electric blowers. Closes by linking the movement to the Xerces Society's Leave the Leaves campaign.
Montgomery County MD — gas leaf blower ban (Bill 18-22)
Bill 18-22 enacted Sep 26 2023; sale ban Jul 1 2024, use ban Jul 1 2025.
Bill 18-22 (full text PDF) — Montgomery County Council

Maryland context

Failed in legislatureHB 701 Clean Air Quiet Communities Act — died in committee

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