‘If not this, what?‘: Assembly drops plan to hold parents liable for students with guns in schools
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - After facing pushback, East Anchorage Assembly member Karen Bronga will postpone indefinitely her ordinance making parents legally responsible if their student brings a deadly weapon to school.
The ordinance was scheduled for public testimony Tuesday night as part of the Assembly’s regularly-scheduled public hearings.
“I was not going to see support from my peers to get it across the line,” Bronga said.
She said she was “disappointed” and hopes to create partnerships with several groups, including the Anchorage Police Department, to try to curb guns being brought to school.
That also includes finding more ways to pay for counselors in schools.
“If not this, what?” Bronga said rhetorically.
For other members of the assembly, it was a question of legality.
“We did receive an opinion from the municipal attorney’s office that they believe it isn’t within the state late to take action in this way,” said Chair of the Anchorage Assembly Christopher Constant.
The ordinance reads in part: “The parent or guardian of a minor possessing a weapon in violation of this section may be prosecuted as a principal if the weapon was originally in possession of the parent or guardian and the parent or guardian either authorized the minor to possess the weapon or stored the weapon in a criminally negligent manner.”
Bronga’s ordinance links national, statewide and Anchorage statistics to support her position:
- Anchorage Police Department reported five handguns were confiscated at Anchorage schools in both 2023 and 2024, among 35 other deadly weapons.
- In 2023, 5.6% of Alaska students and 3.5% of Anchorage students reported having carried a weapon to school on at least one of the previous 30 days.
- From 2018 to 2022, firearms were the leading cause of death for children ages 1-17 in Alaska.
- If passed, the ordinance would have made the offense a class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and/or a $25,000 fine.
Members of the public also engaged in the conversation.
“I think the government is trying to take too much control of the public and the parents and stuff, and I don’t agree with it at all,” Tim Estep said.
“They should be held liable for whatever the kids take to school. I mean, school kids are dependents of the parents, and the parents should be responsible,” Basilo Gonzales Jr. said.
“I think it’s a complicated matter with all issues pertaining to gun control and what parents are responsible. I think it depends on the age of the child and other circumstances, mental health of the child and their accessibility to weapons,” Amy Smith said.
The Anchorage School Board wrote a letter last month to the Assembly in support of the issue.
“ASD currently serves roughly 43,000 students, and the health and welfare of each of the students is important to us,” reads the letter by the board. ”Keeping our community, and especially our youth, safe from the threat of gun violence should be the responsibility of all adult stakeholders."
The NAACP of Anchorage also supported the ordinance, saying: “These ordinances are aligned with national NAACP priorities centered on public safety, gun violence prevention, and the protection of our most vulnerable our children.
“It does not mandate punitive measures but instead encourages families to take proactive steps to prevent such incidents. This ordinance supports a culture of shared responsibility, something we believe is essential for community well-being and educational equity,” the group wrote in a letter.
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