Colorado bill would require most police agencies to join federal gun-tracing system by 2026
HB26-1265 would require most Colorado law enforcement agencies to register with the federal tracing system and share trace information with state investigators, while exempting voluntary relinquishments and non-criminal recoveries.
Colorado’s HB26-1265 would require each law enforcement agency in the state to register with the federal National Electronic Tracing System and opt in to its collective data-sharing feature by Sept. 1, 2026, creating a statewide firearms-tracing mandate for local police and sheriffs.
The bill defines covered agencies broadly as municipal police departments, county and city-and-county sheriff’s offices, campus police departments, town marshal’s offices and police officers employed under state law. It also exempts agencies that already have a preexisting relationship with another law enforcement agency that allows them to submit firearms to the system, including the Colorado State Patrol and Colorado Bureau of Investigation, the bill says.
The reporting requirement would apply when an agency recovers or confiscates a firearm in connection with a criminal case, including seizures tied to criminal proceedings, domestic-violence cases, abandoned or discarded firearms, and firearms otherwise believed to be connected to a crime. The measure says agencies would not have to transmit information for firearms that are voluntarily relinquished or recovered and determined to be unrelated to a criminal investigation or criminal activity, according to the bill text.
The Colorado General Assembly’s bill summary says agencies must also share with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation all information shared with and received from the tracing system. In a news release, Colorado House Democrats said the bill would help investigators identify firearms and generate leads in gun cases.
The bill passed the legislature and was sent to the governor on May 29, according to the General Assembly’s bill page. The public record reviewed for this story did not show the governor’s final action. It also did not include detailed public statements from police chiefs, sheriffs or other local agencies about whether the mandate would change investigative workflow or require new resources.