Colorado Gun Barrel Background Check Bill Fails on Final Day of Session

A bill requiring buyers of gun barrels to go through background checks conducted by an FFL will not become law this year, though it took a last-minute procedural move by House Majority Leader Monica Duran to render the legislation moot. 

Wednesday was the last day of the 2026 legislative session in Colorado, and as the session was gaveled in SB 43 was still pending a vote on the House floor. In fact, the bill had been there for several weeks without advancing to a full vote by the House of Representatives, and Wednesday afternoon Duran effectively killed the bill by delaying a vote until no earlier than today… after the session had gaveled to a close. 

The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Meg Froelich, had said she hoped for a final vote on the measure before adjourment, and when Duran announced SB-43’s death, Froelich sat back in her chair in disappointment.

Had it passed, the bill would’ve required people who buy or sell detachable gun barrels to do so in person, and sales could generally only be conducted by a licensed firearms dealer.

The Senate passed the measure in early March and it cleared initial votes in the House shortly after. But it rolled along on the House calendar for weeks. Its initial vote was delayed because key supporters were absent, Froelich said. The vote was then further delayed, in part, because Republican opposition meant it would take hours to debate — and in part because Gov. Jared Polis intended to veto the measure, Froelich said.

While the Denver Post says Duran made the decision to boot the bill from floor debate, Colorado Politics reports that the bill’s sponsors pulled the bill from consideration after “they were all but told that Gov. Jared Polis would veto the measure.

Sponsored by Sen. Tom Sullivan, D‑Centennial, and Reps. Kyle Brown, D‑Louisville, and Meg Froelich, D‑Englewood, Senate Bill 043 would have required firearm dealers to keep records of all barrel sales and transfers for at least five years.

Brown said the measure was intended to address what he called “a growing concern in our state” — the rise of untraceable “ghost guns” and 3D‑printed firearms.

“By requiring in‑person sales and maintaining basic purchase records, we are closing a loophole that allows dangerous firearms to be assembled anonymously,” he said during March floor debate. “The bill balances public safety with responsible gun ownership, ensuring that hobbyists, collectors, and firearm owners can continue to legally purchase and replace barrels without unnecessary restrictions.”

Hogwash. The background check and registry wouldn’t have closed any “loophole.” It would simply have made it more burdensome for individuals to build their own firearms; a practice that is allowed under federal law and is part of the longstanding tradition of gun ownership in the United States. 

Criminals would have been able to easily bypass the restrictions simply by purchasing barrels from another state. Even if someone will nefarious intent went through a background check and the record of sale was kept for five years, none of the bill’s sponsors could explain how that information would prevent crime or even help police determine a suspect in a shooting. It’s not like barrels are serialized, so even if police were to discover a privately-manufactured firearm at a crime scene there would be nothing to trace the barrel back to a particular buyer. 

The governor’s office hasn’t said why Polis indicated he would veto the legislation. I’d like to think it’s because SB 43 was a worthless piece of garbage, but Polis has signed multiple gun control measures that are equally inane, so I doubt that was it. Polis is rumored to be interested in running for president in 2028, so maybe he just didn’t want to be saddled with signing a bill that is too extreme even for anti-gunners in states like New York and California. 

Whatever the reason, Colorado gun owners don’t have to worry about this idiotic piece of legislation becoming law this year. Sadly, though, the legislature adopted several other infringements on their Second Amendment rights this session, including an expansion of the state’s “red flag” law that will make it even easier to falsely accuse someone of being so dangerous their guns need to be taken away. The defeat of SB 43 is a win, but freedom still took a hit in Denver this session, and we know that Democrats will be back for more next year. 

Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their radical gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.

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