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A bill to ban the sale and transfer of semi-automatic firearms was nixed in Colorado鈥檚 Democratic-controlled Legislature on May 7 as lawmakers pressed forward with a slew of other gun control bills on the聽25th anniversary year聽of the Columbine High School massacre.

The western state has a deep history with firearms that is pockmarked by some of the most high-profile mass shootings nationwide. Both factors loom large over gun control debates in the Legislature, complicating attempts at such bans that nine other Democratic-controlled states have in place, including California and New York.

The Colorado House passed the ban in a historic first and what proponents see as a 鈥渢remendous achievement鈥� after roughly the same proposal was swiftly nixed last year. But some Senate Democrats are wary of the efficacy and breadth of the ban, which prohibits the sale, transfer, and manufacture of semi-automatic firearms.

Colorado鈥檚 blue shift is evident in part by a number of聽successful gun control measures聽passed last year, including raising the buying age for a gun from 18 to 21. Some half-dozen proposals are nearing passage this year, including a bill to put a measure on the November 2024 ballot to tax sales of guns and ammunition. Another would give the Colorado Bureau of Investigation more power to investigate gun sales that are already illegal.

The state鈥檚 purple roots have frustrated attempts at a broader ban.

A decade ago,聽two lawmakers were ousted聽in the state鈥檚 first recall elections over their support for bills that set limits on ammunition magazines and expanded background checks.

鈥淭hat history, I think, lingers,鈥� said Democratic state Sen. Julie Gonzales, one of the semi-automatic ban bill鈥檚 sponsors. She added that the proposal鈥檚 success in the House 鈥渟ignals that there is a new space for us to have different conversations.鈥�

But for now, at a sparsely attended committee hearing May 7, Ms. Gonzales asked that the legislation be put to rest in the face of opposition from Senate Democrats.

On that committee sits Democratic state Sen. Tom Sullivan, who would have been a 鈥渘o鈥� vote, along with Republican lawmakers who have decried the bill as an encroachment on Second Amendment rights.

Mr. Sullivan鈥檚 son, Alex, was one of 12 killed in the 2012 Aurora theater shooting at a midnight screening of 鈥淭he Dark Knight Rises.鈥� The tragedy catapulted Mr. Sullivan into activism around gun control and then public office, where he has spearheaded many bills on the issue.

Mr. Sullivan said the weapons that the bill seeks to curtail are involved in only a small fraction of gun deaths and injuries. Those firearms include a聽long list聽of semi-automatic rifles, along with some pistols and shotguns, with certain characteristics such as a threaded barrel or detachable stock.

Their prohibition wouldn鈥檛 make much of a dent in gun violence, Mr. Sullivan argued, and the proposal takes up immense political oxygen in the state capitol 鈥� energizing the opposition and detracting from more effective and less controversial gun control measures.

鈥淭he narrative is all wrong,鈥� Mr. Sullivan said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what they want you to believe, that it鈥檚 assault weapons and schools. It鈥檚 not. ... It鈥檚 suicides and it鈥檚 domestic violence.鈥�

Democratic state Rep. Tim Hern谩ndez, one of the bill鈥檚 sponsors, said he鈥檇 had many discussions with Mr. Sullivan in the preceding months.

鈥淲e both agree that an assault weapons ban is not a silver bullet to the epidemic of gun violence,鈥� Mr. Hern谩ndez said. 鈥淔or us to get to a place where we are interrogating all the ways that gun violence shows up, we have to run policies for all the ways it manifests itself.鈥�

The proposal is expected to be revived next year.

Meanwhile, other bills nearing the governor鈥檚 desk include a proposal to require more rigorous safety training for someone seeking a concealed carry permit. And one would require firearm dealers to obtain a state permit, not just a federal one, to give regulators greater power to enforce state gun laws.

This story was reported by The Associated Press.