SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah students in as early as kindergarten would be required to learn about firearm safety in the classroom under a bill that passed the state House with overwhelming support Friday.
The Republican-controlled chamber approved the measure in a 59-10 vote and sent it to the Senate, despite concerns from some gun violence prevention advocates that it places an undue burden on children.
Under the proposal, public school students would receive mandatory instruction throughout their K-12 years on how to respond if they encounter a gun. The lessons, which could be presented in a video or by an instructor displaying an actual firearm, would demonstrate best practices for safely handling and storing a gun to prevent accidents.
Elementary age children would learn about gun safety on at least three occasions by the time they reach sixth grade, with the possibility for that instruction to begin in kindergarten, when kids are around five years old.
The bill’s Republican sponsor, Rep. Rex Shipp of Cedar City, said it's aimed at preventing accidental shootings by and of young children. The lessons, he said, will be age-appropriate for each grade level, with younger students learning to avoid touching a gun and alert an adult immediately.
“A lot of times when they don't have any firearms in their homes or don't do any hunting and shooting, then these kids are not taught what to do when they come in contact with a firearm,” Shipp said.
One other state, Tennessee, has a law on the books requiring firearm safety training in public schools, but it lets education officials determine in which grade they think it's appropriate for students to start receiving that instruction. The lessons, set to begin next school year, will be annual and cannot include live firearms or ammunition.
A Utah statute already allows firearm safety to be taught in schools, but Shipp said teachers don't currently do so. His bill makes it mandatory but allows parents to opt their kids out of the instruction.
If it passes the similarly Republican-led Senate and is signed into law, the lessons would begin next school year.
The effort comes a year after Gov. Spencer Cox signed a bill funding tactical training for teachers who want to defend their classrooms with guns. Republican sponsors said it was aimed at incentivizing teachers to carry firearms in schools to protect students. Opponents worried it would increase the likelihood that a student could gain access to a gun.
Gun violence prevention advocates have applauded Utah Republicans this year for growing gun safety education programs, but some argue those lessons should only be aimed at adults.
The proposal unfairly places the responsibility of gun safety on children rather than their parents, said Barbara Gentry of the Gun Violence Prevention Center of Utah.
“Guns and gun safety are the responsibility of the adult gun owner, not school children," Gentry said. "We support schools sending home materials to parents outlining the importance of safe storage in keeping our families and schools safe from gun violence."
Jaden Christensen, a volunteer with the Utah chapter of Moms Demand Action, said lawmakers should instead look to grow programs that teach parents the importance of keeping firearms away from children.
“The burden should always be on adults,” Christensen said.
Hannah Schoenbaum, The Associated Press
