Five states bought one-third of guns in record-smashing year. Did Idaho bring the heat?
America locked and loaded in 2020.
Whether it was the pandemic, social protests, political fears, unemployment despair — or just an overwhelming sense of dread — United States citizens armed themselves to the gritted teeth.
Using data from the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) and trackable gun purchases, online retailer TacticalGear.com created a report about firearm sales and trends. While the methodology isn’t bulletproof, “it’s also not too far off from realistic firearm sales figures,” according to the article.
Key findings:
▪ Gun sales were up 60 percent nationwide over 2019.
▪ Sales figures topped the prior record year, 2016, by 34 percent.
▪ Gun sales nearly doubled over 2011.
▪ Five states were responsible for one-third of all guns sold.
▪ Nearly half of all firearms sold were in Southern states.
▪ First-time gun owners accounted for 40 percent of gun purchases.
Idaho clearly cherishes guns. In 2019, analytics-loving website WalletHub named it the U.S. state most dependent on the gun industry.
For every 100 adults living in the Gem State, 12 guns were sold in 2020, according to TacticalGear.com. That’s near the top. But a handful of other states brought — er, bought — more heat: Wyoming (15 guns), Alabama (14), Alaska (14) and Montana (13).
Idaho’s population size separated it from the elite when it came to total firearms sold. Ringing up almost 2 million, Texas was the national gun goliath. Florida, California and Pennsylvania all topped 1 million. A comparatively miniscule 207,014 guns were sold in Idaho — No. 31 on the list. Gun-happy Wyoming had just 84,147 firearms sold.
A record-high 39.7 million background checks were run for gun purchases in 2020, according to the NICS. That’s up 40 percent over the prior record of 28.3 million in 2019, according to background check provider Employment Screening Resources.
The pace is already brisker in 2021. With a Democrat in the White House, there were 4,317,804 gun-purchase background checks in January — yep, another new record.
Did someone say, “triggered”?