Health facilities, behavioral health facilities, K-12 schools, and colleges can petition courts for extreme risk protection orders—temporary gun confiscation before hearings. Senate Bill 26-004 passed third reading February 3. Sen. Tom Sullivan (D-Centennial) and Rep. Meg Froelich (D-Englewood) sponsor it.
Current law allows family members, law enforcement, healthcare providers, district attorneys, and teachers to petition for extreme risk protection orders. This bill adds entire institutions as petitioners.
Colorado filed 164 extreme risk protection orders in 2024. Red flag laws remove firearms before hearings. Owners must prove they’re not dangerous to get guns back.
More petitioners equals more confiscation orders. Institutions don’t have personal knowledge of individuals’ mental states like family members do. Schools can petition against parents. Health facilities can petition against patients. Colleges can petition against students.
The 2019 red flag law was controversial. Douglas County Sheriff refused to enforce it. Multiple sheriffs declared counties “Second Amendment sanctuaries.” This bill expands the law rather than addressing constitutional concerns.
The bill creates no relationship requirement. Previous law limited petitioners to people who know the gun owner. Institutions don’t have that personal knowledge. Schools don’t know parents’ mental states. Health facilities see patients briefly.
Parents who mention depression during medical visits could face gun removal petitions from the facility. Stress management discussion becomes petition grounds. Schools staffed by administrators hostile to gun rights have power to petition for removal from parents based on children’s behavior or statements.
Colorado State Shooting Association opposes. With Democrat supermajorities, passage is likely. Constitutional challenges on Second Amendment and due process grounds will follow.
Sources: SB26-004 bill text, Colorado gun violence prevention data, Senate calendar Feb 3
Support Independent Local Journalism — High Country Advocate was created as a real alternative to regional media that too often silences dissenting voices while taking sides in the political struggle. Producing in-depth, unflinching reporting like this series and others is expensive: servers, editing, research time, and legal review all add up quickly. If these articles have informed you or given you new perspective, please consider supporting HCA with a paid subscription — every subscriber helps keep this reporting strong and independent. 