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Utah Senate defeats bill that would have required firearm-safety training for people under 18
Summary
After floor debate about safety, exemptions and enforcement, the Utah Senate voted down Senate Bill 59, which would have required people under 18 to complete a Department of Public Safety–accredited firearms-safety course to possess a firearm. The measure failed 10–18 with one absence.
The Utah Senate on the floor debated and then rejected Senate Bill 59, a proposal to require anyone under 18 to complete a Department of Public Safety–accredited firearms-safety course before possessing a firearm.
Senator Montgomery, sponsor of Senate Bill 59, said the measure extends the state's hunter-safety model to non-hunters and insisted it would save lives over time. "If it passes, those of you who vote for it can be very happy to know that in the future, you're going to save lives," he said in summation, citing decades of reduced hunting accidents after mandatory hunter-safety courses were adopted.
Opponents raised enforcement and rights concerns. Senator Taylor said he supports safety education but warned the bill could create a permitting-style bureaucracy and might criminalize legitimate acts of self-defense by minors. "Do you make a fundamental unalienable right as the subject of a permitting process?" Taylor asked, saying he was uncomfortable with that approach.
Debate also focused on implementation details: sponsors said the course would be short (about two to three hours), would not require students to bring firearms or attend live-fire ranges, and that law enforcement, scouting groups, schools or other organizations could be accredited by the Department of Public Safety to instruct. The sponsor said the department could publicize the new requirement to law enforcement and schools and estimated roughly nine months between enactment and implementation. A fiscal note of about $42,000 was discussed on the floor.
The bill includes limited exemptions discussed during debate: sponsors described exemptions for minors accompanied by a parent, and an amendment introduced during floor discussion would exempt minors who are accompanied by someone over 21 with written parental permission. The sponsor and other senators also stressed that the hunter-safety program would remain available and that existing hunter-safety certification would satisfy the new requirement for those already compliant.
After the final motion to advance first substitute Senate Bill 59 to third reading, the clerk announced the vote tally: 10 yea, 18 nay, 1 absent. The motion failed and the bill did not advance.
The Senate also discussed scheduling and committee assignments before adjourning until the next scheduled business day.
