SALT LAKE CITY — Utah lawmakers voted for the third straight year against a Democrat-led bill addressing the safe storage of firearms on Friday. A proposal to hold adults accountable in some circumstances if they fail to lock up a firearm used by a minor to commit a crime was shot down.
Rep. Andrew Stoddard, D-Sandy, has proposed similar bills in previous years, though his latest attempt has been watered down from what he previously pushed. In 2023, he ran a bill that would have required firearm owners to securely store weapons when they were not being used and imposed a fine for those who failed to comply. After that failed to clear an initial vote, he proposed the same legislation last year, with the same result.
Stoddard changed his approach during the 2025 legislative session and sponsored HB132, which creates a class C misdemeanor charge for adults who don't secure a firearm — but only if a minor uses it to commit a crime. The bill has carve-outs that protect a firearm owner if the minor obtains the firearm by unlawfully accessing the storage area, if it is used in self-defense or if the person reports to police that a minor obtained their firearm.
It also allows owners an affirmative defense to prosecution if they "took reasonable precautions to ensure that the firearm was properly secured and not accessible to a minor."
"This statute is really the lowest level we can go," Stoddard told the House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee Friday. He said it's unlikely the statute would be used often, but said it's a necessary accountability tool in cases where kids take a parent's gun to school or use it to commit other crimes.
If we're not willing to support this low level of firearm responsibility, we just have to say, 'OK, we're fine with these kids committing these crimes with the firearms.'
"If we're not willing to support this low level of firearm responsibility, we just have to say, 'OK, we're fine with these kids committing these crimes with the firearms,'" he added.
State law already has a section that says parents can be held accountable if they give their child a firearm, but Stoddard said a different section provides an exception and makes it difficult to charge under the statute.
The bill was supported by the Utah Parent Teacher Association and the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office. Brett Robinson, a senior attorney in the office, said gang crimes are often committed by minors who obtained a firearm from a parent or guardian.
"It's better for us to respond to these crimes at a lower level and make sure we have that responsible gun ownership in the homes," he said. "A lot of the times they're getting these guns from home and I think this is an appropriate way to address that and perhaps cut down on the more serious crimes that we are asked to look into."
The bill was opposed by the Utah Shooting Sports Council, a gun rights organization, which argued that the existing code already addresses the issue and further legislation is unnecessary.
HB132 ultimately failed after a 4-4 vote. Two Republicans — Reps. Melissa Ballard, R-North Salt Lake, and Lisa Shepherd, R-Provo — joined Stoddard and Rep. Sandra Hollins, D-Salt Lake City, in favoring the bill. Three members of the committee — all Republicans — were absent.
The full House of Representatives voted to approve another firearm safety bill later Friday. HB104 requires that schools provide firearm safety instruction to students, which the sponsor said will reduce the number of accidental shootings. Three such shootings occurred during a several-week span last summer resulting in the deaths of two children, aged 5 and 8.
"It's important that these kids that don't have firearms in their homes — realistically this ought to be taught by their parents — but a lot of times when they don't have any firearms in their homes or do any hunting or shooting, these kids are not taught what to do when they come in contact with a firearm," said Rep. Rex Shipp, R-Cedar City.
He said the school instruction could take "five or 10 minutes" and could be done by video or other similar means. The bill requires two firearm safety trainings per year for elementary school students and one for middle and high schoolers.
