The Colorado chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, both part of Everytown for Gun Safety, released the following statements after lawmakers in the Colorado Senate State, Veterans, & Military Affairs Committee advanced SB21-256, a bill that would repeal provisions of the state’s burdensome preemption law and allow localities to adopt locally tailored solutions to gun violence. SB21-256 would also allow localities and colleges to regulate where concealed handguns may be carried.
This bill is part of a suite of gun violence prevention measures introduced last month with the intention of preventing tragedies like the recent mass shooting in Boulder, in which ten people were shot and killed, as well as the hundreds of lives taken and forever changed by gun violence every day. The vote comes just two days after a mass shooting in Colorado Springs in which six people were shot and killed at a birthday party on Sunday morning.
“Our state has now endured two deadly mass shootings in less than two months,” said Nicole LiaBraaten, volunteer with Colorado Moms Demand Action. “There is nothing that will bring back the lives that have been taken by gun violence in Colorado, but I’m grateful that our lawmakers recognize how deadly this crisis is. This bill would finally let communities make their own decisions about how to best prevent the gun violence that impacts them the most.”
“We’re living tragedy to tragedy right now,” said Hannah Sanders, a volunteer with Students Demand Action at University of Colorado Boulder. “This weekend’s shooting further proves just how urgent our gun violence crisis is. Our comfort now lies in knowing that our lawmakers are with us in this fight and are working to repeal the preemption law that has handcuffed our communities from making the public safety choices best for them.”
What to know about SB21-256:
- SB21-256 would repeal Colorado’s firearm preemption law and allow localities to adopt solutions to gun violence that are best for their communities.
- Colorado’s preemption law currently prevents localities from taking certain actions to help prevent gun violence. This dangerous policy ties the hands of local officials and prevents leaders who know their communities best from implementing public safety laws.
- Just ten days before the mass shooting in Boulder, in which an assault weapon was used, a judge ruled that Boulder’s local assault weapons prohibition was prohibited by Colorado’s statewide firearm preemption law. That case is being appealed.
Statistics about gun violence in Colorado are available here, and information on how Colorado’s gun laws compare to other states’ overall is available here.
To speak with a policy expert or Colorado Moms Demand Action and/or Students Demand Action volunteers, please do not hesitate to reach out.
