Rep. Trevor Lee, R-Layton, speaks on the House floor at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)
The list of people who can’t own a gun in Utah includes those convicted or on probation for violent felonies and immigrants living in the United States illegally. After the 2025 legislative session, people with a pending asylum case or waiting for a decision on their Temporary Protected Status application may join them.
That’s if HB183, sponsored by Rep. Trevor Lee, R-Layton, passes. The House Judiciary Committee voted unanimously Thursday to advance it to the full House for consideration.
While presenting the bill to the House committee, Lee said he wants to expand Utah’s definition of those who are prohibited from owning dangerous weapons.
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People with pending applications for asylum or TPS would not be allowed to “possess, purchase, transfer or own dangerous weapons,” the bill reads.
The legislation was discussed after Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem revealed plans to terminate Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans starting on April 7 of this year.
While the bill would impact people of all nationalities, Lee said he expects his bill to have “a massive impact” on the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which has been the focus of several government officials, including Gov. Spencer Cox, though public safety officials don’t believe the gang’s presence is extensive, according to KSL.
Lee said that the bill would close “a loophole” that allows asylum seekers to own guns, since they are in the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ system, unlike someone who is in the country without documentation.
The legislation was drafted after a recent court ruling, denying a motion to dismiss charges against Juan Ochoa-Colchado, a person who owned multiple firearms and had entered the country illegally, but had filed an “Application for Cancellation of Removal and Adjustment of Status,” Lee said.
The legislation would also put Utah more in line with federal law, Lee told the committee. According to the Gun Control Act, it is unlawful for anyone in the country without legal permission to “ship, transport, receive, or possess firearms or ammunition.” The code doesn’t mention other immigration statuses, such as seeking asylum and TPS.
Jeril Bills, the sole public commenter, criticized the fact that Lee is sponsoring a gun restrictions bill, since Lee is a gun rights defender.
“If the Second Amendment enshrines the right to self defense, doesn’t that right also extend to asylum seekers and TPS applicants?” Bills said. “So this bill violates the gun control logic of its own supporters, and it doesn’t promote safety, then what does it do? It gives people who don’t like immigrants one more way to have them deported. I believe that that’s what this bill is really about.”
Lee’s proposal joins a sweeping bill sponsored by House Majority Whip Karianne Lisonbee, R-Syracuse, which loosens gun restrictions and allows 18-year-olds to openly carry firearms.
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