Colorado Democrats Want Another Expansion to State’s ‘Red Flag’ Law

When Colorado first adopted a “red flag” statute in 2019, it allowed family and household members, along with law enforcement, to file for an Extreme Risk Protection Order with the courts. Not many petitions were filed, though, so Democrats expanded who could file for petitions four years later. Starting in 2023, licensed medical care providers, licensed mental health-care providers, licensed educators, and district attorneys could also file ERPO petitions.

Still, the number of petitions that have been filed across the state (164 in 2024) isn’t enough for the anti-gunners, so they’re back at it again. 

Introduced by Sen. Tom Sullivan, D-Centennial, and Rep. Meg Froelich, D-Englewood, SB 26-004 seeks to expand the existing Red Flag law by adding “institutional petitioners” including health care facilities, behavioral health facilities, schools, and colleges/universities to the list that can ask a court for an ERPO.

“We have and will continue to work to make the Colorado ERPO legislation a vital, life-saving priority,” Sullivan said in an email statement to The Center Square. “The petitioners added in SB26-004 have asked to be included in the legislation, and we have worked with the Attorney General’s office to make it happen.”

It was bad enough that individual educators and medical providers were allowed to file these petitions, but if SB26-004 becomes law then accountability for these petitions will decline even further. 

Under Colorado law, filing a false petition can result in a class 3 misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. But how will that apply to institutions like the University of Colorado-Boulder or other “institutional petitioners”? The text of the bill doesn’t include any provision relating to false claims filed by institutions, which greatly expands the potential for abuse and misuse of these petitions. 

I’m opposed to “red flag” laws in general, but allowing institutions and not just individuals to file Extreme Risk Protection Orders is a dangerous overreach, in my opinion, and it’s being done simply because the politicians and advocates who support the use of ERPOs want to see more of them. 

If family and household members, law enforcement, district attorneys, licensed medical care providers, licensed mental health-care providers, and licensed educators aren’t rushing to court on a regular basis seeking to disarm a particular gun owner, I find it hard to believe that the institutions some of those people work for are going to be in a better position to identify someone who legitimately poses a threat to themselves or others. And on the rare occasion where that might be the case, those institutions already have the option of talking to their local police or prosecutor about their concerns and presenting any evidence they might have. 

This bill is also another attempt by Democrat lawmakers to avoid addressing the real crisis in mental health care in Colorado. A report by Axis Integrated Mental Health released in October, 2025 shows the state is 41st in the nation in terms of mental health. 

Colorado doesn’t just have a mental health problem; we have a mental health crisis. As of 2024, we have the second-highest prevalence of mental illness in the United States. In 2025’s rankings, we placed 50th for overall prevalence, meaning more Coloradans are struggling than in nearly every other state except for Oregon.

• Colorado ranks #47 for adults with serious thoughts of suicide (282K)
• Colorado ranks #48 of all states for Adult Mental Health
• #50 for the Prevalence of Mental Illness
• Colorado ranks #50 for adults with a substance abuse disorder
• 1 in 11 women in Colorado suffer from postpartum depression or anxiety
• Construction workers die by suicide nearly 2x the rate of average workers
• Suicide was the #1 cause of death for 10–18 year olds between 2015-2019, yet 47 out of 64 Colorado counties don’t have a single practicing child psychiatrist
• 41% of LGBTQ youth considered suicide and 12% attempted suicide in 2024
• It’s not because we lack resources. Colorado ranks #14 for access to care and #10 for mental health workforce availability.
• Mountain communities face a “Paradise Paradox”: places like Aspen and Telluride experience suicide rates two to three times the national average due to isolation, lack of care, and financial instability.

These issues aren’t going to be addressed by expanding the state’s “red flag” law. Colorado is ranked 47th in terms of per capita spending on mental health resources, according to this report. If lawmakers like Sullivan are really interested in saving lives, they should be doing everything they can to ensure that those who pose a danger to themselves or others get the treatment they need instead of just making it easier to take their guns away and declare the danger has gone away. 

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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