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Utah House advances dangerous-weapon amendments, narrowly approves school-cost recovery amendment
Summary
Lawmakers adopted technical corrections and a contentious amendment to First Substitute House Bill 75, narrowing the school-area prohibition and allowing boards to recoup lockdown costs from individuals convicted of disorderly conduct; the amendment passed 37–35 and the bill was circled for follow-up.
First Substitute House Bill 75, a measure amending dangerous-weapon statutes, drew sustained debate in the Utah House on Feb. 14 as members considered clarifying amendments and new school-focused language.
Representative Ron Oda, the bill sponsor, moved Amendment 3 to correct drafting errors in the substitute bill; the change was adopted unanimously, and the floor then turned to a contentious proposal to add school-cost recovery language. Representative Sealy (mover of the amendment) said the amendment was not about gun rights but about “the community responsibility of the impact of those rights,” arguing that when individuals deliberately provoke lockdowns by brandishing weapons, local boards should be able to recover costs associated with school lockdowns through rulemaking and legislative oversight. “For each instance of gun waving, there is an equal and opposite reaction,” Sealy said.
Opponents, including Representative Oda, called the amendment “extremely unfriendly,” warning that disorderly-conduct standards could be applied too broadly. Oda said the long-term penalties for criminal acts were unchanged but urged caution about how the new rulemaking authority might be used. During debate sponsors and opponents discussed the narrowness of the proposal — which focuses on public and private school grounds — and whether the statute’s disorderly-conduct language provided sufficient safeguards against overreach. Representative Oda also noted the bill would not change the statutory penalty enhancements tied to crimes near school property.
The amendment allowing school boards to recover costs when a person is charged and convicted of disorderly conduct that caused a lockdown passed by a close 37–35 vote. Members also approved a separate amendment inserting “including one half of a public street, right-of-way, or easement” to clarify the scope of school grounds.
After the amendment votes the House voted to circle HB 75 — a procedural action that pauses further consideration so sponsors and interested members can reconcile concerns and drafting questions.
What’s next: HB 75 was amended and circled for further work; no final passage vote was recorded on the House floor during the Feb. 14 session.
