20 Million Americans Are Involved in Target Shooting
Nearly all the folks who frequent this website are target shooters. Count yourself among millions — at least according to a study recently released by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) at SHOT Show 2014. The study states that 20 million Americans enjoy target shooting — with pistols, rifles, and/or shotguns. Our nation’s twenty million target shooters spend an estimated $10 billion dollars a year on target shooting — if you count gun and ammo costs, accessories, transportation, lodging, and range fees. As you might expect, the guns themselves constitute the single biggest expense category — 39% of the ten billion-dollar total. Another 17% of the total is spent on accessories, optic, hand-loading equipment, and reloading supplies. (If we were to poll AccurateShooter.com members, we bet the share of money spent on reloading tools and components would be even higher).
The demographics of target shooting may surprise you. 70% of target shooters are male, while 30% are female, and that distaff segment is growing. By the numbers, target shooting is more popular than many well-known outdoor pastimes, including soccer (14 million players) and skiing (8 million participants).
Does the government benefit from target shooting? Yes indeed. The NSSF estimates that target shooting generates roughly $3,500,000 in local, state, and federal tax revenues each year. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The total impact of target shooting on the American economy is $23 Billion per year according to the NSSF. That works out to $73 for every many woman and child in the USA.
Similar Posts:
- Hunting and Shooting Sales top $3.7 Billion
- Gun Industry Tops $51.3 Billion in Economic Imparct
- Huge Increases in Guns and Ammo Sales — Infographic
- Shooting Sports More Popular Than Tennis, Softball, and Mountain Biking
- The USA Has More Guns Than People — 393 Million Firearms
Share the post "20 Million Americans Are Involved in Target Shooting"
Tags: Economic Impact, NSSF, Rifle Shooting, Target Shooting, Taxes
I would like to know where they are getting their powder. I have had to shut down shooting due to lack of powder, everyone is building rifles and bullets but NO ONE is stepping up powder production or new powder companies starting up.
Wonder how their numbers compare to golfers?
This is great piece and to well a kept secret. Your average joe on the street has no idea of these facts. They think the gun rights folks are all about being able to carry a pistol in there belt were ever they go in case of attack. Although I believe in that right theres a lot more to shooting popularity then defense. As this artical nicely points out.