Gov. Herbert’s veto of gun bill to stand

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) – Gov. Gary Herbert’s veto of a bill to allow Utah adults to carry a hidden, unloaded gun without a permit will stand.

Both houses of the Legislature failed to obtain the two-thirds vote needed by Friday’s deadline to convene a special session to override the veto.

House Speaker Becky Lockhart said lawmakers had various reasons for opposing the special session, including the estimated $30,000 cost to hold it.

“We knew going into the poll that it was going to be close,” the Provo Republican told the Deseret News. “It appears more people than were anticipated changed their vote.”

In the Senate, 16 of 29 members favored the session _ four short of the 20 needed. In the House, 41 of 75 members supported it _ nine short of the 50 needed.

Two-thirds of both houses voted for the bill.

Senate President Wayne Niederhauser, R-Sandy, was among those who initially voted for the bill but voted against an override session.

“I don’t think passion was there for the bill,” he told The Salt Lake Tribune. “A lot of them thought, `I’ll vote for it, but I’m not coming back to an override session for it.’ There was a lot of that sentiment.”

Herbert, a Republican, has said existing laws on the issue work well and provide an important tool for law enforcement agencies. Dozens of mayors and police chiefs around Utah urged Herbert to veto the measure, as did the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City.

Currently, an individual must take a training course, pass a background check and obtain a concealed-weapons permit to carry a hidden firearm. Utahns can openly carry an unloaded weapon without a permit.

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