Utah Bill Encourages Teachers To Carry Firearms

What’s the story?

• This week, Utah’s Gov. Spencer Cox signed a bill that encourages teachers to carry a gun in their classrooms. 
• The legislation will fund tactical training for teachers to learn how to use firearms in a school setting to defend their classrooms against active threats. 
• Another state law enacted last year waives concealed-carry permit fees for teachers. Utah’s government intends for these two acts to incentivize teachers to bring guns to their classrooms. 
• Utah is one of 16 states that allow employees to carry guns on school grounds. 

The bill 

• The new legislation does not require teachers to attend the training—those who do not participate are authorized to own guns as long as they have a permit. 
• Attending the training allows teachers to be shielded from civil liability if they use their firearm at school while “acting in good faith.” 
• Teachers participating in the program can either carry their gun on their person or store it in a biometric gun safe, requiring either a fingerprint or retinal scan to enter. 
• The bill will cost the Department of Public Safety around $100,000 annually. 

What they’re saying 

• Gov. Cox, a Republican, told reporters that he is “very worried about school safety” and the training would allow teachers to “respond very quickly if the worst does happen.”
• Many have voiced concerns about the bill, stating that more guns on school grounds may only lead to more violence. Some educators, including retired teacher and U.S. Army veteran Stan Homles, fear that the half-day training would not be enough to prepare teachers to use their guns in the classroom. Holmes said he had taken a similar tactical training course offered by Utah, which he referred to as “a joke.” He said:

“I left unconvinced that all graduates could handle themselves in a crisis situation. Parents of children in Utah schools have no reason to trust that the so-called educator-protector program training would be any better.”

• Rep. Tim Jimenez (R), the bill’s primary sponsor, said the legislation takes a “strictly defensive” approach, which would benefit teachers who cannot afford tactical training. He continued:

“What we’re looking at here isn’t having teachers running around the hallways trying to act like police officers. What we’re going to be training them to do specifically is how to defend their classroom, gym or whatever room they happen to be in with the students.”

• A volunteer with Utah’s Moms Demand Action chapter, Jaden Christensen, said in a statement: 

“Let’s keep our educators centered on what they do best - teaching. We should be working on finding ways to keep guns out of the wrong hands and out of the classroom - not inviting them into our schools.”

The big picture

• While Utah’s public schools have never experienced a mass shooting on campus, three students were shot - two succumbing to fatal injuries - outside of a high school in Jan. 2022.
• As of early March, there have been at least 16 school shootings in the U.S so far in 2024 – 13 of which were on K-12 school grounds. These incidents killed nine people and injured 23. 

Do you support the bill?

-Jamie Epstein

(Photo Credit: Flickr/Utah National Guard)