Culpeper Supervisors Reaffirm 2019 and 2020 Second Amendment Resolutions in 6–1 Vote

The Culpeper County Board of Supervisors voted 6–1 Thursday to reaffirm two previously adopted resolutions from 2019 and 2020 that declare the countya commitment to protecting the Second Amendment.

County staff read the text of the 2019 resolution, which cites the Code of Virginia and the oath of office language in section 49-1, and says the board "expresses its commitment by any and all legal means to respect, preserve, uphold, and enforce the Second Amendment" to the extent permitted by law. The 2020 resolution, adopted in August 2020, states the county "shall not exercise any authority granted to it by section 15.2-9(e) of the Code of Virginia to regulate or prohibit the otherwise legal purchase, possession, or transfer of firearms or ammunition," as read into the record.

One supervisor objected to the item being included without separate discussion, calling the measure "divisive" and saying it was not relevant to routine county business; that speaker said they would support other consent items but would vote against reaffirming the resolutions. Other board members defended the prior votes and expressed concern about perceived constitutional encroachments cited in the resolutions.

After the resolutions were read, a motion to reaffirm both was made and seconded and the board took a roll-call vote. The motion passed 6–1.

The vote is a reaffirmation of previously adopted declarations and does not by itself change county ordinance or administrative code; the text read during the meeting cited state constitutional provisions and referenced Code of Virginia sections as presented during the reading. There was no subsequent formal direction to staff to change county code or to seek litigation; the resolutions direct staff to forward copies to elected representatives and appropriate state and federal officials as had been done previously.

The board moved on to subsequent agenda items after the vote.