04-10-2024, 03:56 PM
From a journalist, not a 2a activist:
SEATTLE — Gun sales in Washington have fallen dramatically this year, according to federal background check data, as a suite of new state gun regulations took effect.
The drop-off in Washington sales in the first three months of 2024 is much more significant than the modest drop-off seen nationwide in the same period.
The decline follows a nearly unprecedented spike in Washington gun sales at this time last year, as gun buyers rushed to make purchases while state lawmakers debated and ultimately passed a ban on AR-15s and similar semiautomatic weapons that took effect immediately. Washington was the 10th state to ban the high-powered semiautomatic rifles.
On Jan. 1 of this year, a new law took effect requiring a 10-day waiting period and mandatory safety training for all gun purchases in the state.
Gun sales in Washington in January and February, as measured by background checks, were about half what they were in January and February of 2023 — about 19,000 per month this year, compared with about 38,000 per month last year. In March, there were a little more than 22,000 background checks for gun sales in Washington, down more than 70% from the more than 77,000 checks in March 2023.
Nationally, background checks fell by only about 11% through the first three months of the year.
SEATTLE — Gun sales in Washington have fallen dramatically this year, according to federal background check data, as a suite of new state gun regulations took effect.
The drop-off in Washington sales in the first three months of 2024 is much more significant than the modest drop-off seen nationwide in the same period.
The decline follows a nearly unprecedented spike in Washington gun sales at this time last year, as gun buyers rushed to make purchases while state lawmakers debated and ultimately passed a ban on AR-15s and similar semiautomatic weapons that took effect immediately. Washington was the 10th state to ban the high-powered semiautomatic rifles.
On Jan. 1 of this year, a new law took effect requiring a 10-day waiting period and mandatory safety training for all gun purchases in the state.
Gun sales in Washington in January and February, as measured by background checks, were about half what they were in January and February of 2023 — about 19,000 per month this year, compared with about 38,000 per month last year. In March, there were a little more than 22,000 background checks for gun sales in Washington, down more than 70% from the more than 77,000 checks in March 2023.
Nationally, background checks fell by only about 11% through the first three months of the year.