Proposal To Bar Gun Discharge On Private Property Advances In This State

Lawmakers in Colorado have approved a bill which would allow counties to bar discharging weapons on private properties. The legislation has brought into sharp focus the rural and urban divisions withing Colorado’s ruling body. Rep. Judy Amabile, D-Boulder, who sponsored House Bill 1165, says that she is “increasingly getting complaints from residents that neighbors are discharging firearms in a manner they claim is unsafe or create a nuisance.” “People move to rural communities for peace and quiet,” she said, adding they aren’t getting it.

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Rural areas in Colorado are becoming more populated and this is leading to more conflicts over firearm discharges, Amabile says.

According to Colorado Politics:

Under the bill as amended, the definition of a “designated area” is 35 dwellings per square mile. Amabile said another amendment, which will come later, would allow people to hunt on their private property or manage livestock, such as shooting an injured cow, she said. Nothing in the bill would prohibit someone from defending themselves from other people or wildlife predators, such as wolves or mountain lions.

In many of the state’s cities and towns, people aren’t allowed to discharge firearms, she said, even she acknowledged that many counties won’t want to take advantage of the change in law.

Republican Ty Winter says that the problem is that the new people moving to rural Colorado expect the longtime residents to change their way of life. Other Republicans note that the law would not be enforceable and would only lead to more disputes and calls to sheriffs.