House Democrats push “most outrageous” SB25-003 forward after 12-hour hearing

By / / Top Stories, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

By RMV Staff | Rocky Mountain Voice

The sheriff in town may be tasked with the administrative burden of weighing in on your future firearm purchase, if Democrat lawmakers have their say. Although sheriffs from El Paso, Lake, Mesa and Weld counties testified that Senate Bill 25-003 is both unconstitutional and difficult to enforce, the House Judiciary Committee advanced the legislation after twelve hours of testimony.

The bill started as a full ban on manufacturing and selling semiautomatic guns but has since been watered down. 

The latest version still imposes severe restrictions, requiring would-be buyers to navigate an onerous and bureaucratic process, including an additional background check, training requirements and even sheriff approval.

House Republicans took to Twitter/X, urging Coloradans to stand up for their Second Amendment rights. 

Ahead of the hearing, Rep. Ty Winter called on Coloradans to speak out. “The skinny of this bill is it’s totally unconstitutional. They’re trying to take an unalienable God-given right and make it a privilege to get it over from the Senate.”

Winter criticized Democrats’ determination to push the bill forward, making sweeping changes in an effort to win support. 

“They had to put sixteen amendments on paper just to make it palatable enough for their House colleagues to even consider it. We need good, solid grassroots patriots like you to show up at the Capitol today and testify against this horrible piece of legislation.”

Three hours into the hearing, Rep. Ryan Armagost provided an update, emphasizing the stark divide between supporters and opponents of the bill.

“The support we’ve seen so far comes from the same people who show up every time, telling the same stories about gun violence and insisting this bill will save lives,” Armagost said.

In contrast, he pointed out that most of the opposition has come from law enforcement officials and firearms industry leaders. “Law enforcement leaders have specifically said that this bill will not prevent crime. It will only hinder law-abiding citizens from buying guns,” he noted.

Industry experts, he added, have flagged significant technical flaws that make the bill “unenforceable” and warned it could devastate local businesses. 

“We will be chasing businesses out of Colorado. We will be chasing people out of Colorado to purchase firearms and other devices,” he said.

Beyond the economic impact, Armagost cautioned that the legislation could trigger legal challenges. “This is going to be a colossal waste of time, resources and money because if this bill makes it into law, it will open up lawsuits,” he warned.

The bill gives sheriffs broad power to deny applications based on vague criteria, like a ‘reasonable belief’ that someone might be dangerous. This creates a system where officials can arbitrarily decide who gets to exercise their constitutional rights.

Even those who pass the excessive vetting process must complete up to 12 hours of training and secure a five-year permit—just to buy a legal firearm. After five years, they’d have to repeat the training to stay eligible.

The bill targets commonly owned firearms such as  AR-15s, tactical shotguns and semiautomatic handguns. Supporters claim the restrictions will result in more safety, but neglect to address how it will stop criminals. Gun owners argue the bill punishes responsible, law-abiding residents with burdensome bureaucracy, while doing nothing to curb crime.

Six hours in, Rep. Matt Soper pushed back against testimony from the left, challenging claims that the legislation would make Colorado safer. 

“There’s nothing in this bill that will do anything to make Colorado safer,” he said. “It just adds a bureaucratic list of regulations to get to the point where you can buy certain firearms with magazines that are contemplated by the bill.”

Soper also expressed gratitude to the many sheriffs who traveled to testify, emphasizing their firsthand knowledge of law enforcement challenges. 

Soper criticized arguments in favor of the bill, calling them “ridiculous.” He dismissed the idea that it would improve public safety.

According to Soper, when pressed with questions about the bill’s effectiveness, proponents failed to provide clear answers. 

“What we’ve heard back is, ‘Let’s pass it and see,’” he said. “And that’s, of course, not a good answer.”

After nearly ten hours of testimony, Rep. Jarvis Caldwell expressed gratitude to Coloradans who voiced their opposition. “Thank you to everyone who has signed up to testify today and have your voices heard in front of this committee.” 

He stressed the range of perspectives, from police and safety experts to crime victims and gun owners. 

A clear theme emerged, he said: if passed, this bill would be “the most restrictive anti-Second Amendment bill in the history of the nation.”

Caldwell vowed to continue pushing back against the legislation, particularly a provision requiring gun safety training as a condition to exercise Second Amendment rights.

“For one, that’s a poll tax to me,” he said. “But for two, we’re not having a problem in this state with accidental discharges, which would at least make the argument for gun safety classes understandable. That’s not what this is. They want to prevent mass shootings and gun violence—but how does gun safety training stop deranged criminals from committing crimes? It just makes no sense.”

He made clear his opposition, saying, “I’m going to be a hard no on that.”

After 10 hours of testimony, House Republicans blasted Democrats for rushing through last-minute amendments.

Democrats passed the bill through the House Judiciary Committee on a party line vote of 7-4. It now heads to the Finance Committee and then to the full House.

After 12 hours of testimony, Representatives Caldwell, Soper, Winter and Armagost stood together to deliver a final update, acknowledging their defeat but vowing to keep fighting.

Representative Ryan Armagost expressed disappointment that no Democrats broke ranks. “We thought we might be able to get one Democrat, but every single one voted in favor of the onslaught of horrible amendments and everything else pushed through this hearing.” 

Calling the process “atrocious,” he condemned both the policy and the procedure. “That was definitely the most outrageous thing I’ve seen in my three years of legislation.” 

Despite the setback, Armagost remained hopeful. “I’m hoping we can get it killed in finance.”