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September 8th, 2013
 Are target shooters a dying breed? Apparently not according to a new NSSF study. Remarkably, 20% of all target shooters began participating in the past five years. That’s great news. The next generation of target shooters is more diverse and more urban than ever before — and there are more females getting involved in target shooting — a lot more. 37% of new target shooters are female, a big number compared to older generations. The NSSF’s newly-commissioned study shows that, in years ahead, our shooting ranges will see more lady shooters and more participants who come from urban/suburban areas (as opposed to rural communities).
The NSSF report shows that one-fifth of target shooters in America first started participating in the shooting sports between 2008 and 2012. That means 20 percent of all target shooters began participating in the past five years. That’s promising news.
Here Are Some Key Findings:
- Younger: 66 percent of new shooters fall into the 18-to-34-year-old category compared to 31 percent in the same age category for established shooters.
- Female: 37 percent of new target shooters are female compared to 22 percent of established target shooters.
- Urban: 47 percent of new target shooters live in urban/suburban settings versus 34 percent of established target shooters.
Introducing New Shooters to the Sport — Tips from a Champion
In this video, Champion pistol shooter Doug Koenig offers advice on how to introduce newcomers to the shooting sports. With new shooters, Doug says you need to keep the experience safe and fun. Start with low-recoil firearms and use reactive targets to increase the “fun factor”.
Koenig’s Tips for Successful Range Sessions with New Shooters
1. Start off a new shooter with an airgun or a .22 LR. “You don’t want to start them out with the biggest, loudest firearm you have in your collection.”
2. Make sure the shooting is fun. “Use [reactive] targets — steel targets, knock-down targets, clay pigeons sitting on the bank — anything reactive, something they can see happen.” You want to keep people interested, keep them excited.
3. Remember the reason we go to the range — to have a good time. Don’t overload newcomers with stress. “Keep it fun, keep it safe, and keep everything in perspective.” Remember that [newcomers] “are the future of the shooting sports for all of us.”
September 2nd, 2013
 A lead-free “utopia” where bullets are banned and hunting is, for all practical purposes, eliminated — that’s apparently what some legislators want California to become. California Assembly Bill AB 711 would completely ban the use of traditional lead ammunition for hunting anywhere in the state. What’s more, many legislators acknowledge that this ban could, in the near future, be applied to all shooting sports in the Golden State. If you can’t buy bullets, you can’t shoot — and that seems to be the real agenda.
NSSF has purchased billboards in the Sacramento area to urge opposition to AB 711 and has been airing radio commercials that reveal the role of the anti-hunting groups behind this ill-conceived legislation. This week, the opposition to AB 711 was joined by a major state labor organization. NSSF urges all California hunters, target shooters and gun owners to contact their state legislators to oppose AB 711.
To understand more about the issue, read a well-reasoned editorial published in the Outdoor Wire. Even non-Californians should be concerned, because other states might follow California’s lead in the future. And AB 711 is not the only serious anti-gun measure on the table. In addition to AB 711, several other highly restrictive measures are in the works. Proposed legislation would place ALL semi-automatic rifles with detachable magazines on California’s list of banned “assault weapons”. Another bill would block Californians from purchasing long guns unless purchasers pass a state-mandated written test.
August 11th, 2013
New shooters are the future of our sport. If we want to “stem the tide” and resist pressures to close gun ranges and limit firearms use, we need to get new people involved in the shooting sports. And the first step in that process is getting first-timers to the range. One of the most successful efforts for enlisting new shooters is the NSSF First Shots Program. First Shots is a free introductory program of NSSF that teaches newcomers firearms fundamentals, safety and local regulations in a classroom setting, followed by a live-fire session with certified instructors. Around the country, First Shot Seminars provide free instruction by trained firearms instructors, with guns and ammo provided at no charge to participants.
First Shots Hosts 200 New Shooters at Houston Ranges
Last weekend, Houston, Texas hosted a successful series of First Shots seminars, as part of the First Shots “Big City Tour”. Four ranges in the Houston area — The Arms Room in League City, Spring Guns and Ammo in Spring, American Shooting Centers in Houston and High Noon Indoor Pistol Range in Crosby — welcomed more than 200 new shooters for training and some fun shooting. “A big thank you goes out to all of the participating ranges who gave a Texas welcome to the participants and the First Shots team,” said Tisma Juett, NSSF’s First Shots manager. Next stop on the First Shots Big City Tour is planned for Atlanta, Georgia. If your shooting facility is located in that vicinity and you’d like to be a host for this event, please contact Juett at tjuett@nssf.org. To find a First Shots Seminar near you, visit the First Shots Online Calendar Webpage.
August 9th, 2013
While the mainstream media (and many politicians) call for new bans on firearms, ammunition, and magazines, not to mention further restrictions of Second Amendment rights, too little attention is being paid to the actual facts in the debate over gun control. Sponsors of new restrictions on firearms claim that gun crime is increasing. A majority of Americans also seem to believe that firearms-related crimes are on the rise. But is this really the case? You may be surprised….
 In fact, if you look at the hard facts, firearms homicides and other gun-related crimes have been decreasing for decades. That’s right — gun crimes are down significantly over the past twenty years. Since 1993, in the USA, the number of homicides committed with guns has dropped 39% even while gun ownership rates have increased. The number of “all other” crimes with firearms has dropped 69% in the same period. And the number of fatal gun accidents has declined 58% in the past two decades — that’s a big change.
The numbers don’t lie — over the past twenty years, there has been a significant reduction in actual gun-related crime while gun ownership levels have increased. But despite all this evidence that gun-related crimes have declined precipitously in the past two decades, 56% of Americans have the mistaken notion that gun crime is on the rise. Could that be because mainstream media outlets conveniently ignore the facts?
Actual, verified gun crime trends (based on Federal crime statistics) have been presented in an interesting “infographic” chart prepared by the NSSF. Click on the illustration at right to see the full-size version with data charts.
July 27th, 2013
 Americans are buying more guns than ever. FBI NICS Gun Purchase Background Check data (as adjusted by the NSSF), shows that June 2013 gun sales are up 3.0% over the same period Last Year (See Chart 1). This marks the 37th straight month that NSSF-adjusted NICS figures have increased when compared to the same period the previous year. (This year’s January increase was even more dramatic — see Chart 2). What’s even more interesting, in June 2013, Americans purchased more than twice as many guns as they did a decade ago in June 2003 — roughly 870,000 vs. roughly 405,000. That’s a big difference.
CHART 1 — Adjusted NICS Checks in Month of June
CHART 2 — Adjusted NICS Checks in Month of January
Understanding the Numbers
The June 2013 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 872,025 is an increase of 3.0 percent over the NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 846,437 in June 2012. The adjusted NICS data were derived by subtracting out NICS purpose code permit checks used by several states such as Connecticut, Illinois, and Utah for CCW permit application checks as well as checks on active CCW permit databases. Though not a direct correlation to firearms sales, the NSSF-adjusted NICS data provide a more accurate picture of current market conditions. For additional information on NICS or to view a complete set of the current monthly reports, please visit the NICS website.
June 30th, 2013
 A study commissioned by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) reveals that most first-time gun buyers are active in one or more shooting activities and that women purchase their first firearm predominately for personal defense. The study is based on online surveys of consumers aged 22 to 65 who bought their first firearm during the spring of 2012. Key findings include:
— The majority of first-time buyers (60.3%) tend to be active, using their gun once per month or more, with one in five reporting usage of once a week or more.
— Target shooting is by far the most popular shooting activity among first-time gun owners. 84.3% of respondents used their firearms for this purpose, followed by hunting (37.7%), plinking (27.4%), practical pistol shooting (17.3%) and clay-target shooting (14.6%).
— First-time gun owners who have participated in hunting (53.2%), practical pistol shooting (46.3%), clay-target sports (44.0%) and gun collecting (42.4%) said they want to increase their participation in these activities.
First-Time Buyers Acquire Guns for Defensive Use as Well as Sporting Use
The top-ranking factors driving first-time gun purchases are home defense (87.3%), self-defense (76.5%) and the desire to share shooting activities with family and friends (73.2%). Women, in particular, are highly focused on personal defense and self-sufficiency.
Fear of Gun Bans Motivates Older Buyers
Older first-time buyers–the 55 to 65 age group–indicated concern that firearms may no longer be available to them was one of many reasons for their purchase. [Note: The surveys were conducted in March and April of 2012, before the recent wave of anti-gun legislation. We expect that, if the survey was taken in 2013, all age groups would express concerns about restrictions on sales of firearms.]
Many Buyers Make Repeat Gun Purchases
Most first-time buyers purchased their guns through local gun shops (43.6%) and mass retailers such as Walmart and Cabela’s (33.6%). First-time gun buyers spent an average of $515 for their first gun and nearly as much as for accessories ($504). Apparently, one gun is not even for many buyers. Nearly a quarter of first-time buyers bought at least one more firearm within the first year after their first purchase spending more, on average, on the later purchase.
June 23rd, 2013
 Gov. Rick Perry of Texas and Gov. Dennis Daugaard of South Dakota visited Connecticut last week. The two Governors hoped to recruit manufacturers to re-locate operations to their more business-friendly states. Connecticut firearms makers are high on the list of businesses both Perry and Daugaard seek to bring to their respective states. Gov. Perry wants Connecticut gunmakers to relocate to the Lone Star State, while Gov. Daugaard hopes South Dakota can attract these enterprises.
Larry Keane, Senior vice president and general counsel for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, provides a perspective on the recruiting effort. Keane suggests that economic growth in Connecticut is being stymied by official state policies. And Connecticut is no friend of the gun business, though firearms production has been one of Connecticut’s few growth industries in recent years:
The economic report card for the State of Connecticut is in and the results are not good.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis reports that Connecticut was last in the nation in economic growth in 2012, the only state where the combined value of goods and services produced (GDP) was lower than in 2011. In fact, total state GDP fell a quarter of a billion dollars last year, the same amount it fell in 2011.
On the heels of that report, the Manufacturing Alliance of Connecticut released the results of a survey that revealed Connecticut manufacturers predict a bleak outlook for the state’s economy and the health of their industries. The survey reported that a majority of the state’s manufacturers have been recruited to expand or relocate to another state and that they would consider doing so, most citing “government attitude” as the reason.
Connecticut’s firearms and components manufacturers have been the rare exception to the state’s dismal economic performance in recent years. Colt, Mossberg, Stag Arms, Ammunition Storage Components, to name four such companies, have added hundreds of jobs in recent years and, as a result, have contributed more in local and state taxes, even as other industries have cut back and moved facilities and jobs out of state.
We see a direct connection between the state’s nation-trailing GDP performance and the attitude of state government…. Gov. Perry understands all this. So he is coming to Connecticut. So too, is South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard, who next week will also be recruiting these same manufacturers for his state. — Commentary by Larry Keane
June 11th, 2013
In order to promote safe and secure firearms storage, the National Shooting Sportz Foundation (NSSF) has launched its S.A.F.E. Summer Campaign. S.A.F.E. stands for:
- Secure your firearms when not in use.
- Aware of those around you who should not have unauthorized access to guns.
- Focus on your responsibility as a firearm owner.
- Educate yourself and others about safe firearm handling and storage.
NSSF has pledged $1 million to provide firearms safety kits (with a gun lock) to gun owners nationwide. Several lock-distribution events will be announced in the coming weeks. Safety information will be provided through social media and the Project ChildSafe website. NSSF reminds us that firearms owners have many ways to safely store their firearms when not in use. Here are some of your options:
June 3rd, 2013
 In late May, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed a lawsuit filed by the radical anti-hunting Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) and six other groups demanding that the EPA ban traditional ammunition containing lead components. NSSF filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit last August. The court agreed with NSSF that EPA does not have the authority to regulate traditional ammunition under the Toxic Substances Control Act. EPA had already twice denied attempts by CBD to have the agency ban traditional ammunition, and the court had dismissed an earlier case brought by CBD seeking the same relief.
Traditional ammunition (with lead elements) represents 95 percent of the U.S. market and is the staple ammunition for target shooters, hunters and law enforcement, with more than 10 billion rounds sold annually.
“We are gratified that the court has found this second frivolous lawsuit, which is essentially the same as the one dismissed last year, was equally without merit,” said Lawrence G. Keane, senior vice president and general counsel for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association for the firearms and ammunition industry. In addition to NSSF, the National Rifle Association and Safari Club International intervened in the case.
“No sound science [shows that] the use of traditional ammunition has harmed wildlife populations or that it presents a health risk to humans who consume game taken with such ammunition,” said Keane. “Banning traditional ammunition would cost tens of thousands of jobs in America and destroy wildlife conservation that is funded in part by an 11 percent excise tax on the sale of ammunition. The protection and management of wildlife is properly handled by the professional biologists in the state fish and game agencies, as it has been for over a hundred years.”
May 15th, 2013
 Thus far in 2013, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) has distributed 31,000 firearm safety kits through Project ChildSafe. Through this program, NSSF helps prevent unauthorized access to firearms when they aren’t in use. The NSSF launched Project ChildSafe in 2003 to educate gun owners on their responsibility to keep their guns out of the wrong hands, and provide the tools to help them do so.
Through partnerships with law enforcement the NSSF have distributed more than 36 million free firearm safety kits to gun owners throughout the United States. Notably, between 2000 and 2010, fatal firearm accidents dropped 22 percent. Firearms accidents are now less than 1 percent of all fatal accidents in the United States.
Message from Steve Sanetti, NSSF President
This year NSSF has committed $1 million to provide free gun safety kits, including a lock, in partnership with law enforcement agencies across the country, to gun owners, and educate gun owners about responsible firearm handling and storage. Success with this campaign relies on the participation of responsible firearm owners at the local level.
It only takes a few seconds for an accident to happen, and it takes just as few seconds to prevent one. Please join us in this important work.
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