Rep. Candice Pierucci is abandoning her bill that would have required guns to be allowed in the Delta Center and other venues.<\/p>\n
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Fans chant as the Utah Jazz host the Golden State Warriors, NBA basketball in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026.<\/p>\n
Fans of the Utah Jazz and Utah Mammoth will need to leave their guns at home \u2014 at least for the remainder of this season.<\/p>\n
Rep. Candice Pierucci, R-Herriman, introduced legislation earlier this month that would require private entities that take more than $1 million in public funding to allow concealed firearms permit holders to bring their firearms into the venues<\/a>.<\/p>\n The idea, Pierucci said, was brought to her by a constituent who wanted to be able to bring his firearm when he came downtown to watch the Jazz. <\/p>\n But the NBA has a league-wide policy banning guns<\/a> from its premises and numerous NHL arenas, including the Delta Center<\/a>, prohibit firearms, as well. <\/p>\n So Pierucci changed her bill to require venues that take public money to provide gun lockers where patrons can check their guns<\/a>.<\/p>\n (Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Rep. Candice Pierucci, R-Riverton, speaks during a press conference at the Utah Capitol on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026.<\/p>\n Now, Pierucci is shelving the bill for this session. The problem, she said Monday, was finding a place where the lockers could be located. The gun check could not be on the Delta Center property, the lawmaker said, and she didn\u2019t want to do anything that could potentially drive the Jazz out of the Delta Center.<\/p>\n Barring an unexpected solution presenting itself before the end of the legislative session on March 6, she plans to let the bill die this year and try to work with Smith Entertainment Group \u2014 which owns the Jazz and Mammoth \u2014 to come up with a workable compromise for the 2027 session.<\/p>\n Two years ago, the Legislature allocated nearly $1 billion in public financing<\/a> for Salt Lake City\u2019s sports and entertainment district in hopes of luring an NHL team to Utah \u2014 which was successful \u2014 and to pay for renovations to the Delta Center and other improvements to the area.<\/p>\n Had Pierucii\u2019s bill passed, it would have also impacted other private venues that have accepted public money, including: Real Salt Lake soccer matches<\/a>; Major League Baseball games<\/a>, if a team is lured to the state; and the Utah State Fair<\/a>.<\/p>\n