State Representative Quang Nguyen (R-Prescott) and State Representative Selina Bliss (R-Prescott) are challenging an ordinance in Sedona that bans firearms on “any trail or open space area.” The legislators said they believe the law infringes on the right to keep and bear arms since Arizona has some of the most Second Amendment-friendly laws in the country.
They submitted a request to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office (AGO) to investigate, known as an SB 1487 request for investigation, which prompted Sedona city officials to put it on the agenda for the December 10 city council meeting.
Nguyen, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee and has held positions with the Arizona State Rifle & Pistol Club, said in a joint statement with Bliss after submitting the 1487 request, “I urge the City of Sedona to review Ordinance 12.30.090 to ensure it complies with Arizona law. It’s important that local ordinances do not infringe upon the constitutional rights of Arizonans or conflict with state statutes.”
✅Representatives @QuangNguyenAZ & @SelinaBliss Seek Attorney General’s Investigation Into Sedona Firearms Ordinance
“The City of Sedona has had ample time to address these concerns and has chosen not to act. We are left with no choice but to seek the Attorney General’s… pic.twitter.com/krrM4fOUf3
— Arizona House Republicans (@AZHouseGOP) November 18, 2024
Nguyen originally sent the city a letter on October 9 expressing his concerns.
Nguyen told The Arizona Sun Times that he never actually spoke to anyone at the city after the letter was sent, so well over a month later, he and Bliss filed the SB 1487 request on Monday. They said, “The City of Sedona has had ample time to address these concerns and has chosen not to act. We are left with no choice but to seek the Attorney General’s involvement to ensure the rule of law is followed.”
He said the city took action to put the issue on the agenda only after filing the SB 1487 request.
In his letter to the city outlining the problem, Nguyen said Arizona state law “generally preempts cities and other political subdivisions of this state from enacting ordinances relating to the possession, carrying, and discharge of firearms.”
An exception to that is that cities may limit or prohibit the discharge of firearms in parks and preserves “when certain statutory conditions are met,” he said.
Thee ordinance states, “It shall be unlawful to carry or discharge into any park, trail, or open space area firearms or projectile weapons … or other device capable of causing injury to persons or animals or damage or destruction to property.” It exempts individuals who have a concealed carry permit.
Nguyen said that the ordinance went beyond what the law authorizes. First, he said it treats gun owners who have concealed carry permits differently than those who do not. Arizona law changed in 2010 to allow gun owners to carry concealed without a permit.
According to Red Rock News, Sedona City Attorney Kurt Christianson said the ordinance was adopted before 2010.
Second, Nguyen said the ordinance “purports to regulate places other than parks and preserves (i.e., trails and ‘open space areas’ — a broad, vague, and undefined phrase.”
Nguyen told The Sun Times that he’s seen the proposed revisions to the ordinance the city suggests and said, “the language is still vague.”
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Rachel Alexander is a reporter at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Rachel on Twitter / X. Email tips to [email protected].
