It's SHALL issue. I just finished reading the bill and the Colorado Shooting Association is also backing the Bill. We would all like a "Vermont" CCW Bill but the liberals and the dems have made too many inroads in Colorado. We can't even get a 'Vermont" in Texas.
Here's why this is a bad – may issue - law. Article XX, Section 20, paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Colorado Constitution state:
The people of each city or town of this state, having a population of two thousand inhabitants as determined by the last preceding census taken under the authority of the United States, the state of Colorado or said city or town, are hereby vested with, and they shall always have, power to make, amend, add to or replace the charter of said city or town, which shall be its organic law and extend to all its local and municipal matters.Such charter and the ordinances made pursuant thereto in such matters shall supersede within the territorial limits and other jurisdiction of said city or town any law of the state in conflict therewith
Any Colorado legislative act that does not specifically address this preemption possibility is consequently at risk. A state concealed carry law that can be tossed by a county like Denver isn't really of value to the preponderance of the population that experiences their greatest jeopardy when away from home, say inside Denver’s borders. To make matters worse, preemption was discussed in the legislature and not addressed in the bill. Legislative intent to not address this issue directly in the bill would be successfully argued before courts as grounds to preempt. Denver may decide not to issue any of their own permits, or recognize permits issued in other jurisdictions. As a Colorado citizen, you may be allowed to apply for a permit. HB1410 fails here.
Say you complete the prescribed steps, pay for your fingerprints (price not established and also not capped,) take your training, and file and pay fees for your application. Any possible reason the sheriff can muster is sufficient for denial. You’ve got a sheriff that doesn’t believe the Second Amendment applies to citizens? I deny the application because I believe this person could be a danger to himself or others. Your redress? Hire a lawyer and appeal under Rule 106. The catch is that the only evidence before the judge is supplied by the sheriff. You cannot respond, question witnesses, or correct erroneous statements. In fact, a Rule 106 hearing is simply to answer if the sheriff exceeded his authority based on the facts before him. You cannot address the facts and few judges will countermand a sheriff's decision. As a Colorado citizen, you may jump through enough hoops and lay out enough cash to overcome a leftie or corrupt (but I repeat myself) sheriff. HB 1410 fails again.
These issues have been beat to death in the ColoradoRKBA eMail discussion group. CSSA is a wholly owned subsidiary of the NRA. In this case both would rather beat their chest and falsely claim a victory than explain how they failed to manage the process and ended up supporting a shoddy bill. Both are guilty of wasting significant political capital and making enemies of their core constituencies.
As of 11:30 this morning, HB1410 was on the agenda of the Senate Judiciary Committee, if time allowed. As of this evening, there is no update on the Senate or House website. There’s a lot to be done if these drones want to finish their session by tomorrow night. I hope and expect that if HB1410 gets out of judiciary it will die in the next committee.