A man looks at cases of firearms in the halls of the Indianapolis Convention Center on Thursday, April 25, 2019, where members of the National Rifle Association will be holding its 148th annual meetings in Indianapolis. The group's meetings come at a tumultuous time within the gun-rights organization.
Lisa Marie Pane / AP Photo
Lisa Marie Pane / AP Photo
A man looks at cases of firearms in the halls of the Indianapolis Convention Center on Thursday, April 25, 2019, where members of the National Rifle Association will be holding its 148th annual meetings in Indianapolis. The group's meetings come at a tumultuous time within the gun-rights organization.
(Harrisburg) – After almost a year of record-breaking requests, the number of people seeking background checks for gun purchases or transfers in Pennsylvania is on the decline.
The surge peaked in the first quarter of 2021 when 427,450 used the Pennsylvania Instant Check System or PICS.
The system, established in 1998, is used by sheriffs, chiefs of police, and firearm dealers to determine if a person can purchase or carry a firearm.
Corporal Brent Miller, communications director for the Pennsylvania State Police, said the numbers were driven up by uncertainty in politics, and other events in 2020.
“It was unprecedented times in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, civil unrest, a lot of things kind of all came together,” he said.
In April, May and June of this year, requests declined to 334,108, and then fell again to 303,156 over the next quarter.
Miller said now the numbers are leveling out again.
“We’re kind of going back to pre-pandemic times and almost the new normal,” he said.
The state police have denied 6,548 applications so far this year.
Denials may be issued for people who have warrants out for their arrest or those who have been convicted of a crime like driving under the influence.
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