Governor signs target shooting, wildfire bill

Utah Gov. Gary Herbert has signed legislation that aims to combat wildfires by allowing the state forester to restrict target shooting when fire danger is high.

The law gives the state forester authority to temporarily restrict target shooting, smoking and other activities on lands threated by wildfires, as long as the sheriff of any affected county agrees to the restriction.

The law also requires a formal review of those restrictions every 14 days.

Target shooters started a small percentage of the Utah’s fires last year, but one of those fires was a 5,507-acre blaze near Saratoga Springs in June that caused thousands to flee homes and cost $2.1 million to battle.

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