Gun fee break passed for police | The Salt Lake Tribune

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With the blessing of a powerful gun lobby, a bill giving police a break on the cost of background checks when purchasing guns passed unanimously out of a Senate committee Wednesday.

Rep. Brad Galvez, R-West Haven, ran into problems earlier this week when HB99 stalled after the Utah Shooting Sports Council opposed the measure because it appeared it would place an extra burden on the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification by requiring them to run more background checks resulting from the price break offered to current cops in good standing.

But Galvez changed the bill and got the shooting group to sign off on the measure by allowing gun store owners to run the background checks through the National Instant Criminal Background Check system.

The bill already passed the House 69-0 and now moves to the Senate.

dmontero@sltrib.com

Twitter: @davemontero