Utah House rejects rural-only plan for concealed gun right

By David Montero The Salt Lake Tribune

Published: February 27, 2013 9:56 am
This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

An attempt to amend a bill to grant residents in rural Utah counties the right to carry a concealed weapon without a permit failed in the House of Representatives Tuesday.

But the original version of HB76 — which seeks to make Utah a so-called constitutional carry state — didn't get to a vote after an hour of debate and culminated with House Majority Leader Brad Dee holding the measure.

Dee said he planned to have a meeting with the bill's sponsor, Rep. John Mathis, R-Vernal, and Gov. Gary Herbert before seeing the proposal go to the House floor again.

Herbert, in past comments, has signaled he's comfortable with Utah's existing concealed-weapons permit system and sees no need for change.

Mathis said he wanted to have the vote on the floor, but didn't challenge Dee when it was held.

The measure would allow individuals who are legally able to carry a firearm openly to also carry it concealed without having to obtain background checks or take a course to obtain a concealed weapons permit.

dmontero@sltrib.com

Twitter: @davemontero

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