Sen. Tim Neville on opening day of the 2012 session.
Colorado lawmakers launched into their first Second Amendment debate of the session Wednesday, as a Senate panel voted along party lines to advance a bill that would gun owners to carry a concealed weapon without a permit.
State Sen. Tim Neville, R- Littleton, is the measure’s sponsor and it dovetails with his agenda in the U.S. Senate race, where he is one of a dozen candidates vying for the GOP nomination.
Neville called the ability to carry a firearm “a God-given, inalienable right” and suggested that it “enables people to defend themselves in a better fashion.” Supporters call the measure “constitutional carry,” and point to states such as Arizona and Wyoming that have similar laws.
The Colorado bill would remove the requirements — first enacted in 2003 — for in-person training and a fingerprint background check in order to carry a concealed firearm in public. Residents would still need to pass a less rigorous background check to purchase a firearm. The current concealed firearm permit process would remain in place for those seeking reciprocity rights in other states.
The measure won approval in the Senate State Affairs committee on a 3-2 vote with the chamber’s Republican majority pushing it forward. The bill goes to the Finance Committee before the full chamber, but it most certainly faced demise in the Democratic-controlled state House.
Even with its future largely predetermined, gun rights and gun control advocates spent more than two hours debating the bill in testimony that drew relatives of victims from recent mass shooting tragedies. The witness testimony overwhelming opposed the measure.
“For common sense gun safety, I think we should be voting no,” said Sen. Matt Jones, D-Louisville, one of two Democrats to vote against the bill.
