Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper signed new gun laws on Wednesday, banning ammunition magazines with more than 15 rounds and expanding background checks.

The Democratic governor defended the legislation in a press conference on Wednesday. Hickenlooper said he had found widespread support among state residents for broadening background checks, and dismissed the idea that politicians had been pressured from outside the state.

“This didn’t come from the White House,” Hickenlooper said. […]

The state has been scarred by some of the deadliest incidents of mass gun violence in recent U.S. history, including the 1999 shooting at Columbine High School and the Aurora movie theater shooting that killed 12 last July. The state’s gun control bills have gained national attention since they were first proposed, drawing the ire of those who oppose any new restrictions on gun purchases or ownership.

Even before Hickenlooper signed the bills, some Colorado sheriffs said they do not plan on enforcing the laws in their districts.

“Why put the effort into enforcing a law that is unenforceable?” Weld County Sheriff John Cooke told the Colorado paper on Monday. “With all of the other crimes that are going on, I don’t have the manpower, the resources or the desire to enforce laws like that.”

The new legislation also makes Magpul Industries’ decision to move out of state official. On Tuesday, the company wrote on its Facebook page, “We will have no choice but to leave if the Governor signs this into law.” Although the laws do not take effect until July 1, Magpul has said they will begin their transition out of Colorado almost immediately—taking hundreds of jobs with them.