A bill increasing penalties for gun theft narrowly cleared its first hurdle on Tuesday, passing through the House Judiciary Committee by one vote.  

House Bill 1062, sponsored by Majority Leader Monica Duran, D-Wheat Ridge, and Rep. Ryan Armagost, R-Berthoud, would exempt firearms from the state’s sentencing structure for theft, making it a Class 6 felony, regardless of the firearm’s value. 

The bill passed on a 6-5 vote and will move on to the Appropriations Committee, as it carries a fiscal note of nearly $400,000 for the 2025-2026 fiscal year and nearly $1 million for 2026-2027.

The state imposed a similar sentencing structure for car theft in 2023 by decoupling the offense from the vehicle’s value. The state has since seen a decrease in stolen vehicles, and officials at both local and state levels have attributed that decline to the new law and more vigilance on the part of the public and the police.    

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Duran called gun theft an epidemic, pointing to a study by Everytown for Gun Safety that found the rate of gun thefts has tripled in the last decade. All guns have the potential to cause serious harm, regardless of whether they cost $150 or $2,000, she said. 

A gun is stolen from a vehicle every nine minutes, according to FBI data. In Denver alone, 1,221 firearms were stolen in 2023.

Firearms are easy to steal and easy to sell, Duran said, adding more than 90% of the guns used in violent crimes were obtained illegally. 

“This bill is about public safety,” said Duran. “It is about siding with the families who have seen the devastating effects of gun theft when their parents or their child is murdered.”

Armagost, who sponsored last year’s bill before it stalled in the Judiciary Committee, said he thinks the bill has a better chance of passing this session because it has the support of Duran.  

“This is not a partisan issue,” he said. “This is definitely a bipartisan issue. There are no partisan politics when it comes to safety, and I think when we’re addressing gun safety, we need to address it from the root source, which is where we’re seeing an uptick in thefts of firearms throughout our state.”

Every witness who testified in front of the committee supported of the bill, but several Democrats on the committee are skeptical that increasing penalties would reduce crime. 

‘Criminals are not stealing firearms to put them out of sight and out of mind’

Because Colorado has a high rate of gun ownership, more firearms are available for theft, said Stephanie Greenberg of Colorado Faith Communities United to End Gun Violence. 

“Gun theft has great social impact and extremely grave consequences for our communities, so I think it’s essential that the gravity of the crime and the consequences are well-matched,” she said. “Having gun theft defined as a petty offense or a misdemeanor doesn’t satisfy the requirement that the consequence meet the seriousness of the crime.”

Sterling Simms of Colorado Ceasefire said the bill takes a critical step in addressing firearm theft. 

“This is a reasonable and necessary measure to combat illegal gun trafficking and enhance our public safety,” he said. 

Several county sheriffs testified in support of the bill, saying increasing the penalty would allow them to prioritize gun theft. 

Greg White of the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said approximately 500 guns are stolen from the Pikes Peak region each month. Since most departments prioritize investigating crimes with the highest penalty, passing the bill would lead to law enforcement devoting more time and resources to going after gun theft in their communities, he said. 

“Criminals are not stealing firearms to put them out of sight and out of mind. They’re being used in furtherance of other crimes,” said White. “House Bill 1062 would allow us to charge those dangerous individuals with a felony commensurate with a crime for each stolen firearm, enhancing sentencing and keeping criminals off the streets and out of our communities for an appropriate amount of time.”

‘Ratcheting up criminal penalties does not solve our problem’

Assistant Majority Leader Jennifer Bacon, D-Denver, said she doubts the bill would do anything to reduce gun thefts. As a former educator, she said she has lost students and family members to gun violence but she believes this is the wrong approach to curtailing it. 

The biggest deterrent to crimes of opportunity like theft is presence, Bacon said, and she would rather see increased police presence than tougher sentences. Rep. Javier Mabrey, D-Denver, agreed that public safety is a priority for every lawmaker but that his views on the bill haven’t changed from last year. 

Colorado is among the states that determine punishment for firearm theft on the weapon’s value, Mabrey said, but he has not seen any evidence that states with different approaches experience lower rates of gun violence.

“Ratcheting up criminal penalties does not solve our problem and it does not get guns off the streets,” he said, claiming the vast majority of people aren’t even aware of when penalties for crimes change.

He cited research saying the longer individuals are incarcerated, the more likely they are to reoffend. 

“Our communities deserve a holistic and thoughtful way to address gun violence,” he said. 

Every Republican on the judiciary committee voted in favor of the bill. Democratic Reps. Chad Clifford of Greenwood Village and Cecelia Espenoza of Denver joined them, while Reps. Bacon, Lorena Garcia, D-Denver, Yara Zokaie, D-Fort Collins, Michael Carter, D-Aurora, and Mabrey voted against it.