Democrats in the Colorado State Senate have pushed through an amended version of Senate Bill 25-003, which has been described as “watered down” from the original text, yet it still drew stiff opposition from Republicans, who argue banning the manufacture and sale of certain types of semiautomatic rifles and shotguns is unconstitutional.
Fox News is reporting the amended bill “would prohibit the manufacture, sale and purchase of them going forward. In addition to its ban on new sales and purchases of AR-15s and other rifles that hold high-capacity magazines, the new bill also prohibits the sale or purchase of certain after-market gun accessories that increase a firearm’s rate of fire.”
In a statement to Fox News Digital, NRA/ILA Executive Director John Commerford asserted, “Anti-gun radicals in Colorado continue their attacks on law-abiding gun owners by restricting access to commonly owned firearms. This bill is more about optics than public safety, which was recognized by the bipartisan group of senators who voted against it. The NRA will continue to fight this unconstitutional legislation to protect the rights of peaceable Coloradans.”
The same report quoted Alan Gottlieb, founder and executive vice president of the Second Amendment Foundation, explaining that modern semi-autos such as the AR-15 come from the factory with magazines which hold 15 rounds or more.
According to KOAA News in Denver, Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen, a Republican, reminded his colleagues about the Second Amendment: “This is not a privilege granted by the government, it is a right inherent to who I am and enshrined in the United States Constitution.”
No Republican voted for the bill.
Perhaps the biggest news to come from the bill’s passage was that two Democrat co-sponsors withdrew their names as co-sponsors because of intense grassroots pressure from constituents in El Paso County. Senators Tony Exum and Marc Snyder both backed away from the bill, reportedly for different reasons. They were joined in their “no” votes by Majority Whip Nick Hinrichsen, a Pueblo County Democrat.
According to KMGH/Denver7 News, Exum was matter-of-fact about his reversal: Political survival.
“I couldn’t risk the fact of possibly losing my seat through a recall,” Exum was quoted as stating.
His seat, which is up for challenge in 2026, is vulnerable, and he was worried he could lose.
Snyder reportedly changed his mind because the nature of the bill changed and, as he explained, “it became more and more of another, you know, burden upon law-abiding, lawful gun owners.”
The most fervent proponent of the legislation is gun control advocate Sen. Tom Sullivan, father of one of the victims at the 2012 Aurora theater mass shooting.
As it stands now, SB3 allows for semi-autos to be sold to people who take a training course approved by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. They must pass a background check, and the safety course must include information about gun laws and suicide prevention/mental illness.
KUSA/9News in Denver, Sullivan acknowledged his intent is to place a “speed bump” in the way of gun buyers who want semi-automatic firearms with detachable magazines.
The Rocky Mountain Gun Owners group has been fully involved in opposing the measure, and it was that group’s pressure which helped convince the three Democrats to change their positions.
Gun control has made some advances in the Centennial State, but it has also suffered setbacks. Democrats could not pass a ban on so-called “assault weapons” over the past two years, and they also reportedly had to “modify” a bill regarding “sensitive places” that was introduced last year.
