Connecticut is a state with strict gun laws and a notoriously anti-gun leader. Gov. Dannel Malloy’s latest proposal calls for raising the handgun permit fee from $140—already twice the national average—to $370. If you want to renew in five years, be prepared to cough up another wad of cash—$300 to be specific.
With proposals like these on the table, perhaps it’s no surprise that the number of firearm permit applications jumped sharply over the past year. According to statistics provided by the state police and reported by the The Norwich Bulletin, the number of applications processed nearly doubled from 2015 to 2016. In 2015, permits issued totaled 17,327. That number spiked to 29,941 last year, an increase of 72 percent.
"With Malloy potentially raising the cost of the pistol permits, people are trying to get it done before that passes," surmised firearms instructor Nicholas Brisson. For new permit holders like Lauren Rugh, 25, self-defense is the driver. “I won't go down as a helpless victim,” she declared.
