"We said, 'Hey, we're not going to make a deal until that gets dismissed,"' he said.

The measure does have its opponents, including Rep. Carl Wimmer, R-Herriman, who declined to co-sponsor the legislation after working with the group of legislators and university leaders.

"I'm just not willing to compromise. I'm one of the people on the committee who really was just not willing to compromise the Second Amendment," he said.

Wimmer said he is not convinced of a need to restrict guns on campus, particularly when there has been no evidence of accidental discharges of weapons or gun assaults on campus.

"Quite frankly, it's a perception among members of the faculty that they felt unsafe by having concealed weapons on campus. The reality and the perception are completely different and we as legislators have an obligation to deal with reality," Wimmer said.

While Wimmer said university leaders seemed pleased with the compromise, he added he doesn't think all of the faculty will be happy "until all the guns are banned from the university campus."

Rep. Mark Walker, R-Sandy, also has two gun-related bills this session. HB355 would allow hotel guests to bring legal weapons into their rooms. Currently, hotels can deny guests the right to bring in any "firearms or explosives."

That means, Walker said, hunters and others might have to leave their legal firearms in their vehicles, making them vulnerable to theft. "By no means do we want to allow a firearm into a hotel unless it is legal," he said.

Walker said the issue of private property rights "needs to be debated. We don't want to infringe on the rights of the hotel owner." Still, he said, "we still want to allow room for the hunters to bring in their firearms. ... I'd like to see if some middle ground can be reached."

Walker also sponsored HB354, which would allow a person with a concealed weapons permit to bring guns on a bus. He said now, "a person with a concealed weapons permit could enter a terminal of a bus station ... but couldn't go onto the bus."

Gun-related bills:

• SB201. Gives Utahns the right to carry guns in a state of declared emergency even without a permit.

• SB251. Prohibits guns in certain areas of college campuses.

• HB355. Allows hotel guests to bring legally permitted weapons into their rooms.

• HB354. Allows those with concealed weapons permits to bring their guns on a bus.

---

Contributing: Nicole Warburton

E-mail: lisa@desnews.com; estewart@desnews.com