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Utah lawmaker: recent gun recodification clarifies rights, did not expand open-carry for 18-to-20 age group
Summary
Rep. Carrie Ann Lisenby said a recent recodification of Utah's firearms statutes was designed to clarify existing rights and align state law with federal definitions, not to broadly expand open-carry by 18-to-20-year-olds. She said a separate bill’s language was folded into another measure that passed after initial committee failure.
Carrie Ann Lisenby, majority whip of the Utah House of Representatives, told the God and Country podcast that recent changes to Utah’s firearms code were a recodification intended to clarify existing rights rather than to create a new, broader entitlement for 18-to-20-year-olds to carry loaded firearms.
"I really appreciate the question, and I'm glad for the opportunity to address. So that headline does not represent the actual policy that is in the gun recod bill," Lisenby said. She noted that under existing law 18-year-olds in Utah can already openly carry a pistol but cannot lawfully purchase one until age 21 under federal law; the recodification focused on clarifying what possession and carrying mean and aligning state definitions with federal restrictions on National Firearms Act (NFA) items.
Lisenby described legislative process details: a stand-alone bill (HB133) failed in a Senate committee after media attention and misreporting, but its language was later incorporated into another measure that passed. She and other lawmakers framed the effort as a cleanup of conflicting and confusing statutes so that Utahns and attorneys can clearly read the code and understand what is and is not permitted.
The bill also clarified NFA-device treatment in state law to align with federal law and added enumerations so state statute reflected existing federal prohibitions and requirements.
Ending: Lisenby said the purpose of the effort was to provide clarity to Utah residents about their rights. "In order to exercise your right to defend yourself or your family or others, you need to know what that right is and isn't," she said.
