DENVER — HB21-1106, or the Safe Storage of Firearms bill, concerns measures to secure firearms to prevent the use of firearms by those that are not permitted to do so.
The bill was introduced into the House on Feb. 16, 2021, and is under consideration. It is sponsored by Rep. Monica Duran (D) District 24, Rep. Kyle Mullica (D) District 34, Senator Jeff Brides (D) District 26, and Senator Chris Hanson (D) District 31. It would take effect July 1, 2021, and would apply to any offense committed on or after this date.
The bill requires that firearms be responsibly and securely stored when they are not in use to prevent access by unsupervised juveniles and other unauthorized users.
According to documents attached to the bill, securely storing a firearm for an individual means:
- carrying it on his or her person
- keeping it in a locked gun safe
- keeping it in another secure container which a reasonable person would believe to be secure
- installing a locking device when a person knows or reasonably should know that a juvenile or a resident who is ineligible to possess a firearm can gain access to the firearm; or
- possessing a personalized firearm with activated safety characteristics.
The safe storage requirement would not apply if the firearm is an antique firearm.
The bill defines a locking device as, " a device that prohibits the operation or discharge of a firearm and that can only be disabled with the use of a key, combination, or biometric data."
Were the bill to pass, unlawful storage of a firearm would be a class 2 misdemeanor. Additionally, if the bill were to become law, it would require licensed gun dealers to include a locking device with every purchase or transfer of a firearm. Failure to provide a locking device would be an unclassified misdemeanor punishable by a maximum $500 fine.
The fine for a class 2 misdemeanor is $250 to $1,000, and the fine for an unclassified misdemeanor can be up to $500.
Locking devices would not be required for the transfer of an antique firearm.
In addition, the bill would require the state office of suicide prevention to include on its website, and in materials provided to firearms-related businesses and health care providers, information about the offense of unlawful storage of a firearm, penalties for providing a handgun to a juvenile or allowing a juvenile to possess a firearm, and the requirement that gun dealers provide a locking device with each firearm transferred.
Read the bill in full here: HOUSE BILL 21-1106
