Colorado will not ban the sale, transfer or manufacturing of a variety of firearms described as “assault weapons” after state lawmakers rejected the idea on Tuesday.

The bill’s demise came after one of its prime sponsors, Sen. Julie Gonzales, a Denver Democrat, asked for it to be postponed indefinitely.

“I decided that more conversations need to take place outside of the pressure cooker of the Capitol during the last weeks of the legislative session,” she said during a committee hearing.

House Bill 1292 faced a narrow path in the statehouse after a similar bill was rejected last year and questions remained over whether the idea had enough support to pass the legislature. While the bill from last year didn’t survive its first committee hearing, this version made it through the House committee and the full chamber with a 35-27 vote. This time, it was rejected in its first Senate committee hearing.

The bill would have banned the purchase and sale of certain types of semi-automatic rifles, pistols and shotguns under its definition of assault weapons, including those with fixed large-capacity magazines and the ability to accept detachable magazines. It also names specific models of guns that would be banned, including AR-15s and AK-47s. Possession of those firearms would have been permitted under the bill.

The bill’s sponsors, Reps. Tim Hernandez and Elizabeth Epps and Gonzales, all Democrats, said the legislation would have made Colorado safer by reducing the amount of high-powered firearms in the state. Republicans were vehemently opposed to the concept, calling it a violation of the Second Amendment.

It’s possible the concept will return in the next legislative session.

“I look forward to renewing and continuing those discussions over the interim,” Gonzales said. “It is clear that survivors of devastating gun violence, responsible gun owners and local and national policy advocates remain committed to doing the work necessary to save lives — and an assault weapons ban will do just that.”

The bill was assigned to the five-person State, Veterans, & Military Affairs Committee, which has a Democratic majority. Two of those Democratic senators have expressed support for the general concept of the bill but the third, Sen. Tom Sullivan, a Centennial Democrat, was expected to be the swing vote.

Sullivan’s son, Alex, was killed in the Aurora theater shooting in 2012 and he has been a vocal supporter of tightening gun laws ever since. But he’s often expressed skepticism for a statewide assault weapons ban.

Even if Sullivan had voted in favor of the measure, Senate President Steve Fenberg, a Boulder Democrat, said he was unsure the bill would have enough votes to pass the chamber. And beyond that, Gov. Jared Polis has hinted he may veto such a measure if it ever made it to his desk.

Western Slope lawmakers had mixed views on the legislation . House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon, voted in favor of the policy, saying she thought it was better than the one brought last year. Rep. Meghan Lukens, D-Steamboat Springs, was one of a few Democrats who joined all the House Republicans in voting against the bill.

The legislature is considering several other bills related to firearms this session, including one brought by Rep. Elizabeth Velasco, a Glenwood Springs Democrat, that requires safe storage of firearms in vehicles. That measure, House Bill 1348 was still being debated as of Tuesday afternoon.

Other firearms bills would create a new merchant code for firearms purchases, ask voters to create a new tax for gun sales and ammunition and increase requirements for concealed carry licenses.

The legislative session ends Wednesday at midnight.