Editor's note: An update has been made to reflect specific ordinances Lafayette is considering.
As conversations of gun reform dominate the national discussion, Colorado lawmakers find themselves at a stalemate when it comes to passing additional gun laws. But for four Boulder County municipalities, six new gun ordinances are expected to pass next Tuesday — measures local lawmakers believe the state should have passed following the Boulder King Soopers mass shooting last year.
Governor Jared Polis signed three gun bills into law after the Boulder King Soopers shooting, which expanded background checks, reversed a ban on prohibiting local governments from creating their own gun regulations and prohibited local jurisdictions from creating laws less lenient than the state's.
The cities of Boulder, Louisville, and Lafayette, along with the Town of Superior, took advantage and began drafting their own ordinances.
The ordinances for consideration in Boulder, Louisville and Superior include:
- banning the sale and possession of assault weapons
- banning magazines containing more than 10 rounds
- raising the firearm purchasing age from 18 to 21
- outlawing open and concealed carry in sensitive places like hospitals, schools and places of worship
- instituting a 10-day waiting period to purchase a firearm
- requiring firearm dealers to post signs outside of their stores explaining the dangers of firearms
According to Lafayette spokeswoman Debbie Wilmot, Lafayette will be considering the following ordinances:
- Expressing the City Council’s Strong Support for Colorado Local Governments Enacting and Enforcing Local Firearms Regulations, and Imploring the Colorado General Assembly to Enact Statewide Laws to Address Gun Violence and Prevention
- Regulate the Possession of Unfinished Frames and Receivers and Unserialized Firearms
- Require All Firearm Dealers to Post Signs at All Locations Where Firearm Transfers Take Place
- Prohibit the Open Carrying of Firearms in Public Places
- Prohibit the Carrying of Firearms on City Property
At the state level, there are major challenges with passing gun reform.
"The urgency couldn't be greater for measures like this," Boulder Mayor Aaron Brockett said.
He believes these measures are ones the state should consider as well.
"I think there are additional steps that they could take," the Boulder mayor said.
Louisville Mayor Ashley Stolzmann agrees, but says she's also aware of the challenges that surround enacting broader action.
"At the state level, there is just a real divide of thought, and it's really hard to have a conversation about this topic at the state house right now," Stolzmann said.
Meantime, Superior Board of Trustees member Tim Howard believes the ordinances, which are expected to be approved by all four municipalities, may serve as a wake up call for state lawmakers.
"My hope is that with municipalities adopting these type measures, that the state legislature will take forward a number of these for potential statewide adoption, and more importantly, that Governor Polis will look and recognize this is what the people of Colorado want," Howard said.
The ordinances will be considered by city and town council members during meetings Tuesday.
