Lawmaker wants U. gun ban shot down

As expected, lawmakers this year will get a chance to clarify what many thought was already clear — the Utah Legislature, and no one else, has the absolute right to enact gun laws throughout the state.

Sponsored by Sen. Michael Waddoups, SB48 responds to a state court ruling that said the University of Utah could enforce a decades-old ban of concealed weapons on its campus.

Under SB48, no local authority or state entity could establish or enforce a rule prohibiting concealed weapons permit-holders from carrying their guns. The bill specifically applies to public school districts, public schools and state institutions of higher education, Waddoups, R-Taylorsville, said. It would not apply to private colleges or universities such as Brigham Young University.

"My intention is that this bill makes it very clear that the University of Utah is part of the state of Utah and that they are going to have to adhere to the state law regarding concealed weapons on their campus," said Waddoups.

University officials were not pleased to hear about Waddoups' proposal.

"We're sorry to see that this issue has come up again," said Fred Esplin, the U.'s vice president of university relations. "When we prevailed in state court, we hoped that would have been the end."

Should the bill pass, the U. would be the only public institution in the country without a campus gun ban, he said.

In 1996, legislators passed a concealed-carry law, allowing Utah's 50,000-plus permit-holders to carry weapons without restriction except in designated secure areas. Those areas include airports, courthouses, jails and prisons, all of which provide security protection for the public.

Waddoups said he did not know how the university could not understand the 1996 law, which was designed to protect law-abiding citizens and target criminals.

"Now we have the University of Utah restricting law-abiding citizens and doing nothing to protect them from criminals," he said. "You have to allow people to protect themselves on your campus, unless you have a way to protect them."

He suggested the U. could become a secure facility by placing magnetometers at the entrances to buildings or by encircling the campus with a fence.

That would be both unrealistic and cost prohibitive to any institution, Esplin said.