U.S.A. — A dramatic decrease in the level of firearms sales through the National Instant Background Check System (NICS ) occurred in June 2023. Monthly firearm sales in 2023 have been the third or fourth highest of the 25 years recorded in the FBI NICS records. In June 2023, the adjusted sales dropped 21% from the 2022 figures. The number of gun sales in June of 2022 was about 1.35 million. In June of 2023, it was about 1.06 million.
Despite the drop in gun sales, the month continued the trend of over a million gun sales each month for the past 47 months since September 2019.
The FBI total NICS check numbers for the month were 2.26 million. The background check numbers and the number of gun sales have become less and less correlated as the NICS system is used for more and more purposes. However, the June of 2023 for both was the fifth highest for the month on record.
June and July tend to be low months for gun sales. Hunting seasons are at a low ebb. Christmas is past and yet to be anticipated for the next year. Summer sports take up more time. In 2023, the anti-Second Amendment activism of the Biden administration is offset by the effects of the Supreme Court treating the Second Amendment as an actual part of the Bill of Rights.
The sales of over a million firearms through the NICS system in the last month indicate the floor of gun sales may be approximated by the 1 million figure. Many new gun owners have been created in the past fifteen years as anti-gun Democrats have worked hard to fundamentally transform the United States of America.
The politics of restrictions on firearms sales and gun ownership are likely to become more important as the nation moves into the 2024 political season.
Gun owners are moving toward a majority position among voters. The way gun owners perceive the current administration is important to national politics. As more and more voters find the old media unreliable, the ability to paper over plausible threats to public safety and the Republic decreases.
As a corollary to the fall in gun sales, ammunition supplies are relatively high. Prices of some common calibers have dropped, and some reloading supplies are being seen on gun store shelves and advertised on the Internet. Availability has not reached the levels experienced in 2018, but it is higher than it has been. For the contrarian firearms enthusiast, this offers an opportunity to stock up on supplies which well hold their value during the current inflation.
Some people advise consumers to invest in precious metals such as gold and silver. In the right combination, metals such as copper, brass, and lead can be just as useful. The shelf life of ammunition is at least several decades. It is a known and useful commodity in difficult times.
About Dean Weingarten:
Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of Constitutional Carry was attained. He has degrees in meteorology and mining engineering, and retired from the Department of Defense after a 30 year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.
