A coalition of firearms dealers and gun rights organizations has filed a federal lawsuit challenging a newly enacted Colorado law that expands state oversight of gun retailers, arguing the measure authorizes unconstitutional warrantless inspections and could lead to the creation of a gun registry.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, names Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, Attorney General Phil Weiser, and Department of Revenue Executive Director Heidi Humphreys as defendants.

Plaintiffs include Centennial Gun Club, five federally licensed gun dealers, and several gun rights organizations, according to court records.

The challenge centers on House Bill 26-1126, the "Requirements for Firearms Dealers" law, which Polis signed June 2 after it passed the Democrat-controlled Colorado Legislature.

The statute requires federally licensed firearms dealers, known as Federal Firearm License holders, to obtain a state firearms permit before transferring firearms and expands record-keeping requirements to cover all retail firearm transactions.

Under the law, dealers must maintain records containing "the name of the person that received the firearm and the recipient's age and address." The statute authorizes law enforcement officers to inspect those records and provides that "the dealer shall make the records ... available at all times for inspection by a duly authorized peace officer.”

Dealers that refuse to provide access to the records can face a class 2 misdemeanor charge.

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs argue the inspection provisions violate protections against unreasonable searches under the Constitution.

"The Fourth Amendment broadly protects businesses from warrantless searches, including businesses engaged in commerce with customers who exercise no independent constitutional rights," the complaint states.

The lawsuit also asserts that the statute infringes on the privacy rights of gun buyers.

"The regime ... injures plaintiffs' customers, who face the prospect that their lawful firearms purchases will be surveilled without warrant protections, chilling the exercise of constitutionally protected rights," the complaint states.

The legal challenge marks the latest battle over Colorado's increasingly expansive gun regulations.

Supporters of HB 26-1126 said the measure is intended to strengthen oversight of gun dealers, improve security standards, and help prevent guns from being diverted into criminal markets.

In addition to expanding transaction record requirements, the law authorizes significant penalties for dealer violations, requires security plans for businesses, and prohibits state agencies from using dealer records to create or maintain a registry identifying gun ownership.

Colorado lawmakers have enacted a series of gun control measures in recent years, including expanded background-check requirements, restrictions on certain firearm purchases, and increased regulatory requirements for dealers. Democratic lawmakers have argued the measures are necessary to reduce gun violence and improve public safety.

Gun rights advocates, however, have increasingly challenged those laws in court, citing recent Supreme Court rulings that expanded constitutional protections for gun ownership and emphasized a historical-tradition test for evaluating firearms regulations.

The lawsuit seeks to block enforcement of the inspection provisions and other portions of the law that the plaintiffs contend violate constitutional protections.

Court records do not yet indicate when a hearing will be held on the request for relief.