Everytown, Utah Moms Demand Action Applaud Failure of Legislation That Would Have Allowed Untrained, Unlicensed People to Carry Hidden, Loaded Guns in Public

New Polling Revealed 89 Percent of Utah Residents – Including 87 Percent of Gun Owners – Support Existing State Concealed Carry Permit Requirements

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, part of Everytown for Gun Safety, today applauded the failure of House Bill 237, legislation that would have dismantled Utah’s current concealed carry licensing system and would have allowed the public carry of hidden, loaded handguns with no permit and no safety training, including by people known to law enforcement to be a threat to public safety.

Utah’s current permitting system will stay intact; it ensures that certain core public safety standards are preserved, including requiring applicants to have taken a safety training course and to have undergone a criminal background check before obtaining a permit to carry, and providing law enforcement the authority to deny a permit to people who pose a danger to the community.

Recent Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund polling (available here), conducted by SurveyUSA, found that an overwhelming majority of Utahans – 89 percent, including 87 percent of gun owners – support requiring gun buyers to get a permit to carry hidden, loaded handguns in public places.

STATEMENT FROM TERRI GILFILLAN, A VOLUNTEER WITH THE UTAH CHAPTER OF MOMS DEMAND ACTION FOR GUN SENSE IN AMERICA:

“Moms Demand Action volunteers applaud the failure of House Bill 237, a reckless policy that would have allowed people with no permit, no safety training and even certain people convicted of violent crimes to carry hidden, loaded guns in our communities. Utahans support our state’s current concealed carry permitting requirement and recognize that common-sense safety standards go hand-in-hand with Utah’s long history of responsible gun ownership. Our elected leaders – in the state house and those we send to Washington to represent us – should be more focused on keeping our communities safe instead of peddling gun lobby priorities.”