A vote on Friday in Utah's House of Representatives has brought execution by firing squad closer to reality.

The bill now moves to the state senate, where it could pass and reinstate an execution method banned a decade ago.

The bill, introduced by Republican Rep. Paul Ray, passed with a slight majority, according to Reuters, having gathered 39 votes in support with 34 against.

Utah stopped using firing squads in 2004 when the state adopted lethal injections; however, recent concerns of the drugs' effectiveness has beckoned the return of the firing squad.

"With a firing squad, the individual dies within three to five seconds. It's a quick bleed-out," said Rep. Ray.

Rep. Ray added that lethal injections can be ineffective since "it takes a while to shut down the lungs and the kidneys, shuts down the heart.

"It's definitely slower, and more painful," he continued.

Rep. Ray also cited recent botched lethal injection executions in Oklahoma, Arizona and Ohio.

The bill faced a stiff debate on the House floor, reports the Salt Lake Tribune, from both Democrats and Republicans.

Minority Leader Brian King, D-Salt Lake City, argued a firing squad would be expensive and not cost-saving, as Rep. Ray argued.

"This is not just a conversation about different ways of the state putting people to death," King said on the House floor. "It's a question about moral and fiscal responsibility and whether the state of Utah chooses, or not, to be a moral and fiscal leader on such a controversial topic."

Republican Rep. Stephen Handy said he feared the state's reputation would suffer if the firing squad returned.

"If we do this, if you think that we have problems with air quality and other things with the image of the state of Utah, to bring back the firing squad would be going down that path," he said.

A NBC News poll found that the majority of those interviewed still favored the death penalty.

Utah's last execution by firing squad happened in 2010 when Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed for the murder of a lawyer in 1985.

Related