Who Really Keeps Count of Guns? An Empirical Study of Legislation’s Impact on Firearm Purchases in the United States

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is not only to distill any potential relationships between the number of firearms purchased and circulating within the country and legislation regarding gun possession and use, rather its purpose is also to illuminate the lack of statistical research available for running such empirical studies. Due to the void of accessible data revealing the percentages of private gun sales and gun ownership within the United States, we can assume the scarcity of research surrounding the nature of this problem points directly to said consumer behaviors or market invested interests (gunmakers and sellers, in fact). In making policy and relying on an economic and markets­oriented perspective, having adequate literature and data sources is crucial for providing comprehensive and rich analyses of firearm market trends and the legislation that impacts firearm consumers’ behavior. Although there are substantial concerns about the reliability and robustness of models presented in this paper, they are significant enough to present that firearm sales seem to increase with looser state legislation regarding open and concealed carrying policies, and increased in states with higher sentiments toward gun rights over gun control.