2023 Gun Bills (updated 29 Jan)
There are 15, 16, now 17 gun bills so far in this session which will end on March 3rd. And FOUR MORE new bills have been requested! A very busy session!
There are several bad gun bills, all from Democrats, which are similar to anti-gun bills being run in other states by Democrats. These must be stopped. Several good bills protecting and expanding gun rights have also been introduced. A few bills with minor tweaks to current law are in the mix as well. Check the list below. USSC will send alerts on important bills so YOU can help make Utah safer and protect your rights.
YOUR QUICK ACTION helped defeat on of the worst bills (SB50) on January 19th, but be ready to act again to defeat bad bills and pass good ones.
Thank you for taking action on every USSC ACTION ALERT last year, but your action is just as important this year.!
BILL DETAILS- Click on the bill number in the first column for full text and status. This opens the official state page with full text of the bill.
Bill Number
Bill Title
Bill Sponsor
USSC Position
USSC Comments/ Status
Drug Possession Penalty Amendments
Rep. Gay Lynn Bennion (D)
Neutral
Makes possession of a firearm by someone with a medical marijuana authorization a lesser punishment than if in possession of other drugs, or without ad medical marijuana card.
Passed House committee 7-5 on 1/23/2023.
Awaiting action by full House.
Firearm Reporting Requirements
Rep. Brian King (D)
Neutral
Requires BCI to collect statistics on the source of firearms recovered from restricted persons.
Nice, but will local government bother to submit the info to BCI to compile the reports? Will prohibited persons in possession of firearms actually be prosecuted? Rep King's bill from a few years ago to collect data on domestic violence abusers who illegally tried to buy a gun has been a dismal failure, with only partial reports submitted, and a small percentage of people committing this easily proven crime have been charged or convicted.
Why pass more gun laws when the current ones are not being enforced?
Awaiting committee assignment.
WAITING PERIODS ("Gun Safety Amendments")
Rep. Andrew Stoddard (D)
OPPOSE
Imposes a 5 day waiting period after purchase before the gun can be delivered. "A right delayed is a right denied." Federal waiting periods started in 1968 ended when the "instant background checks" became possible. If passed, you can be sure that anti-gun folks will push to increase it from 5 days to much longer times, why not 30 days, or a year? TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!
Awaiting committee assignment.
HB103
Weapon Possession Under the Influence
Rep. Jason Kyle (R)
Under review
Under review
Awaiting action by full House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee
1/25 not considered
CWP Permit Fee Waiver For School Employees
Rep. Karianne Lisonbee (R)
SUPPORT
Good policy. But, why should ANY Utah resident be required to "pay a poll tax" to exercise a right?
Awaiting committee assignment.
Weapon Possession Amendments (misdemeanor assault clarification)
Rep. Karianne Lisonbee (R)
SUPPORT
Clarifies that a misdemeanor assault conviction which has been expunged and rights restored no longer restricts a person from legal firearms purchase.
Approved by House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee 11-0-2 on 1/25/2023
Awaiting action by full House.
Firearm Amendments (Laundry list of bad ideas!)
Rep. Brian King (D)
OPPOSE
Many unrelated gun control nuisance provisions we oppose, far outweigh one good provision to have BCI report to local law enforcement when a prohibited person attempts to buy a gun.
Why pass more gun laws when the current ones are not being enforced?
Awaiting committee assignment.
Firearm Discharge on Private Property
Rep. Trevor Lee (R)
SUPPORT
Clarifies that a person discharging a firearm on private property is liable for the consequences, not the property owner.
Awaiting committee assignment.
Voluntary Firearm Safekeeping Amendments
Rep. Paul Cutler (R)
SUPPORT
Clarifies process if a household member turns over a firearm for safekeeping by law enforcement, and ensuring it is not returned if the owner is prohibited person.
1/25/2023- Awaiting action by House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee.
Firearm Regulations (Sanctuary state)
Rep. Karianne Lisonbee (R)
Under Review
Under review.
"Declares that the state and its political subdivisions will not enforce federal laws that purport to restrict or ban certain firearms, ammunition, or firearms accessories."
Fully support the sentiment, but unintended consequences may be a problem.
(Does this include BCI conducting "Brady checks" for gun purchases? If so, that stops all dealer gun sales in Utah.)
Awaiting committee assignment.
Firearm Possession Amendments (restricted person provisions)
Rep. Ryan Wilcox (R)
SUPPORT
Clarifies provisions regarding several types of prohibited persons.
1/25 passed by House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee 11-0-2
Awaiting action by full House.
Firearm Sale Amendments ("Private sale" background checks)
Rep. Cory Maloy (R)
Under Review
Under review. We like the idea of a private seller being able to confirm a buyer is not a prohibited person, and also a way to confirm a gun is not reported as stolen. However, the privacy safeguards in this bill are weak, and there is a danger of a "optional" process being made mandatory.
1/25 passed by House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee 12-0-1
Awaiting action by full House.
Voluntary Firearm Restrictions Amendments
Rep. Steve Eliason (R)
Support
Revisions to the program which allows people to VOLUNTARILY place their name on a list to prohibit purchase or possession of a firearm.
Awaiting committee assignment.
Juvenile Justice Revisions
Rep. Karianne Lisonbee (R)
Support
Revisions to the various juvenile justice issues.
Awaiting committee assignment.
Weapon Purchase Amendments ("Assault Weapon" waiting period)
Sen. Kathleen Riebe (D)
OPPOSE
Defeated for this session!
THIS BILL IS DEFEATED FOR THE SESSION.
Totally unacceptable both as a waiting period of any sort, and any sort of demonization of "scary looking guns."
DEFEATED Jan 19th by Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee on a vote of 2 in favor and 6 against. Thank you to all USSC members and supporters who contacted legislators to oppose this bill!
Restricted Person Possession Amendments (Adds ban on ammunition possession)
Sen. Stephanie Pitcher (D)
Under Review
Under review. Expands ban on prohibited person possession of weapons to include ammunition of any ammunition components.
What about other dangerous weapons- baseball bats, kitchen knives, gasoline, etc. Adding ammunition may be a step too far into the weeds.
Thursday Jan 19 Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee- not considered
Firearm Identification (Altered markings)
Sen. Stephanie Pitcher (D)
OPPOSE
76-10-522 provisions regarding altered serial numbers are UNCONSTITUTIONAL per U.S. District Court ruling, so this section should simply be REPEALED, not amended.
Thursday Jan 19 Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee- not considered
None assigned
Firearm Possession Revisions
Rep. Phil Lyman (R)
???
details unknown
None assigned
Restricted Persons Amendments
Rep. Andrew Stoddard (D)
???
details unknown
None assigned
Firearm Access Amendments
Rep. Andrew Stoddard (D)
???
details unknown
None assigned
Concealed Firearm Review Board Sunset Extension
Sen. Jerry Stevenson (R)
???
details unknown
None assigned
Safe Storage of Firearms Education Requirements
Rep. Sahara Hayes (D)
???
details unknown
None assigned
Shooting Range Requirements
Rep. Doug Owens (D)
???
details unknown
None assigned
Firearm Purchase Amendments
Sen. Derek Kitchen (D)
???
details unknown
BILL DROPPED FOR THIS SESSION.