November 10, 2026 — Informational legal-news update.
The U.S. Department of Justice sued the City of Glendale, California, on Monday, November 9, 2026, in federal court in Los Angeles, alleging that the city’s concealed-carry permit fees and procedures violate the Second Amendment. This is a newly filed lawsuit, not a court ruling. As of this writing, available reporting indicates the city has not commented.
According to the Justice Department’s November 9 press release, Glendale’s total cost for a first concealed-carry permit ranges from $1,971 to $2,106. Renewals, required every two years, run from $1,271 to $1,406. Those totals include the city’s application fee plus a required psychological exam, training, and fingerprinting.
How the fees jumped
The city’s own initial application fee rose from $100 to $1,078. The renewal fee is now $826. The Department’s own documents do not agree on the prior renewal amount: an October 28 notice letter from then-Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet K. Dhillon says the renewal fee increased from $50 to $826, while the November 9 press release says the previous fiscal year’s renewal fee was $25. Either way, the prior renewal charge was a small fraction of what the city now collects.
The Daily Caller News Foundation, quoting the complaint, reports that DOJ puts the cost at about $54.17 a month and notes that the Supreme Court struck down a $1.50 poll tax. DCNF also says it confirmed the prices listed on the city’s website and that, with the psychological evaluation, fingerprinting, and training course, the first-permit total comes to at least $2,106.
More than the price tag
DOJ is not challenging only the fees. The press release says the Glendale Police Department also requires applicant reference interviews, psychological exams, interviews of the applicant, and a review of public statements, including social media, and that the department publishes no objective standards for those checks.
The Department relies on the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen. In a footnote, the Court said shall-issue licensing regimes can still be challenged when they are “put toward abusive ends”—for example, when “exorbitant fees deny ordinary citizens their right to public carry.” The complaint also invokes the federal pattern-or-practice statute, 34 U.S.C. § 12601.
Dhillon’s October 28 letter, addressed to Glendale’s mayor, police chief, and city attorney, called the system “one of the most expensive CCW application schemes in the nation” and gave the city until 5:00 p.m. Eastern on November 4 to say whether it wanted to enter pre-suit settlement talks. The lawsuit followed on November 9.
What it means for Pennsylvania gun owners
Pennsylvania’s system does not work the way Glendale’s does. Under 18 Pa.C.S. § 6109, a License to Carry Firearms costs $20—a $19 fee plus a $1 Firearms License Validation System fee—and is valid for five years. That fee is set by state statute, so a Pennsylvania city cannot raise it on its own the way Glendale raised its local charges. The Pennsylvania State Police firearms-information page discusses the fee and the $1 remittance to PSP, and PSP’s carrying-firearms guidance confirms the five-year term.
The case is still a marker. It shows how far a shall-issue system can be pushed with fees and discretionary paperwork before courts are asked to step in, and it shows a federal government now suing local governments over those practices. The Bruen standard is not limited to California. It would apply to any future change in Harrisburg that used fees or open-ended discretion to restrict ordinary citizens’ right to public carry.
Bottom line: DOJ has sued Glendale over concealed-carry costs that it puts at roughly $2,000 for a first permit and more than $1,200 every two years to renew, citing Bruen’s warning on “exorbitant fees.” The suit has been filed; it has not been decided. Glendale had not commented in the reporting reviewed here.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Justice press release, November 9, 2026
- DOJ Civil Rights Division notice letter, October 28, 2026
- Daily Caller News Foundation, November 9, 2026
- MyNewsLA, November 9, 2026
- Pennsylvania State Police, Firearms Information
- Pennsylvania State Police, Carrying Firearms in Pennsylvania
- 18 Pa.C.S. § 6109
This article is informational, not legal advice. Sources reviewed November 10, 2026 (ET).