Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Choosing Self-Reliance: New NICS Record

Monday, July 6, 2020

Choosing Self-Reliance: New NICS Record

June 2020 set another all-time background check record. The FBI NICS office ran 3,931,607 total background checks last month, breaking the previous record by nearly two-hundred-thousand checks. 

The number of background checks run by the FBI has surpassed 3 million in a month four times. Three of those times have been this year. There have been 38% more checks in January through June of this year than during the same time period last year, and we have already hit 67% of the total number of checks run last year.

Last year, you may recall, was the busiest year for the NICS office, for now. To break that record for checks in a year, the FBI would need to conduct about nine million more checks in the second half of 2020.

Or, about three-quarters of a million fewer checks than were run from April through June.

We have been regularly covering the monthly records set by NICS every month this year. Lets compare June to March 2020, which was the previous record month for the highest number of background checks. March had the all-time busiest week for the NICS office and two additional top 10 highest weeks. This was driven, in part, by five individual days in March that are among the top 10 busiest days.  

June 2020, the new record holder, is different. No individual day in June cracked the top 10 for highest number of background checks for a single day. Every single week in June is a top-six highest week.

This indicates a sustained level of demand for permits and firearms – this was no overnight reaction to an event or last-minute purchases before Christmas.

It was millions of Americans making the choice to keep and bear arms. The gun-owning community is growing, with millions of first-time buyers.

And just what arms are these millions of Americans choosing? Last month saw the second-most background checks related to a handgun purchase all-time (including a small number in U.S. territories) – 1,371,811 to be precise.

The annual record for handgun sales-related checks is just over 8 million. So far this year, the FBI NICS office has run just over 6 million such checks.

There were 611,997 checks for permits last month. A historical comparison is not possible due to the way some states conducted and reported permit checks in the past, but an eyeball test indicates that June is right up there among the monthly leaders. Oh, and dont forget – there are 24 states in which a valid permit is accepted in lieu of a NICS check. Firearms sales to permit holders in such states are not included in the NICS tally.

The numbers dont lie. This isnt a small group of “super gun owners” buying nearly fifty thousand handguns a day. These are your loved ones, your friends, your neighbors who have decided – for one reason or another – that they must be able to rely on themselves.

The National Rifle Association of America is the organization that these gun owners can rely on to protect their rights, as we have for almost 150 years. 

We will not waver.

Judging by the NICS reports for 2020, neither will law-abiding Americans.

TRENDING NOW
Third Circuit Strikes Some New Jersey Carry Restrictions in NRA Case

Thursday, September 11, 2025

Third Circuit Strikes Some New Jersey Carry Restrictions in NRA Case

Yesterday, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion in Siegel v. Platkin, striking some of the carry restrictions New Jersey enacted in response to the NRA’s landmark Supreme Court victory, New York State Rifle & ...

Due Process: The Backbone of Legal Legitimacy

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

Due Process: The Backbone of Legal Legitimacy

Close observers of the gun debate often see references to due process.

Gun Control “Journalist” Says the Quiet Part Out Loud

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

Gun Control “Journalist” Says the Quiet Part Out Loud

Pure gun control. As in disarmament and banning of firearms. It’s rare that anti-gunners get straight to the exact point that we have been warning of for decades. 

The Desperate Deflection to the “Red State Murder Problem”

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

The Desperate Deflection to the “Red State Murder Problem”

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) may have thought he had scored against President Donald Trump in a recent war of words over rampant crime and the deployment of federal law enforcement agents to Democratic-led cities

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Washington’s Magazine Ban

Monday, September 8, 2025

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Washington’s Magazine Ban

Today, the National Rifle Association filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to grant certiorari in a case challenging Washington State’s ban on firearm magazines that hold more than 10 rounds.

Illinois: Governor Signs Mandatory Firearm Storage Law

Wednesday, September 3, 2025

Illinois: Governor Signs Mandatory Firearm Storage Law

Earlier this month, Governor JB Pritzker signed Senate Bill 8 into law. This legislation imposes new mandatory firearm storage requirements on law-abiding gun owners.  

Update: North Carolina House Reschedules Veto Override Vote

Tuesday, August 26, 2025

Update: North Carolina House Reschedules Veto Override Vote

Today, the House rescheduled the veto override vote on Senate Bill 50, Freedom to Carry NC, to Monday, September 22. 

Washington Post Admits that Anti-gun Lawfare “Cannot be the Solution” to Crime

News  

Monday, March 17, 2025

Washington Post Admits that Anti-gun Lawfare “Cannot be the Solution” to Crime

In a turnabout worthy of Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Washington Post (WAPO) published an editorial last Tuesday criticizing the gun control movement for ignoring the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) and pursuing its agenda in ...

Supreme Court Review Sought in NRA-Backed Challenge to California’s Magazine Ban

Friday, August 15, 2025

Supreme Court Review Sought in NRA-Backed Challenge to California’s Magazine Ban

Today, a Petition for Certiorari was filed asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Duncan v. Bonta, a case—backed by the National Rifle Association and California Rifle & Pistol Association—challenging California’s prohibition on magazines capable of holding ...

Minnesota: Senate Gun Violence Prevention Working Group Meeting on Monday

Friday, September 12, 2025

Minnesota: Senate Gun Violence Prevention Working Group Meeting on Monday

On Monday, September 15th, the Minnesota Senate will hold a special working group on "gun violence prevention."

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.