In what shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone, the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) has reported that 2016—the last year of President Barack Obama’s administration—recorded a new high in totals for concealed handgun permit holders. That’s the fourth consecutive record-breaking year.
The 1.83 million permits issued last year bring the total to 16.3 million concealed-carry permit holders in America. Some of the biggest increases were by women and black people. Of the states that provide data by gender, women comprised 36 percent of permit holders. For the states providing data by race, the number of permits for black gun owners rose 30 percent faster than for white gun owners.
In all, 6.53 percent of American adults have permits. Excluding the highly gun-controlled states of California and New York, that figure jumps to 8 percent. The highest rate among individual states is found in Alabama at 20 percent. Eleven more states have more than 10 percent of adults possessing permits.
CPRC is a research and education organization dedicated to providing objective information on both the costs and benefits of gun ownership. You can view the full report here.
