The National Shooting Sports Foundation has released the 2020 update of its Firearm Production Report to members and it’s an eye-popper, revealing that in 2019, “there were approximately 3.3 million firearms imported into the United States which included 2.3 million pistols and revolvers, 301,000 rifles and 678,000 shotguns.”
There are now an estimated 19.8 million modern sporting rifles—repeatedly mischaracterized as so-called “assault rifles”—in circulation today.
Those semi-auto rifles are included in the estimated 434 million firearms in private ownership today in the United States. Along with those guns, NSSF data estimates about 71.2 million pistol magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition, and 79.2 million rifle magazines that can hold 30 or more cartridges.
“These figures, combined with the record-breaking 17.2 million NSSF-adjusted background checks for the sale or transfer of a firearm in the first ten months of 2020, demonstrates that Americans have a strong desire to continue purchasing firearms for lawful purposes,” said Joe Bartozzi, NSSF’s President and CEO. “The Modern Sporting Rifle continues to be the most popular rifle sold in America today, and with nearly 20 million in circulation, is clearly a commonly-owned firearm that is being used for lawful purposes every day in America. The continued popularity of handguns demonstrates a strong interest by Americans to protect themselves, their family and homes, as well as to participate in the recreational shooting sports.”
Yet, even with all of those firearms in circulation, during the 28-year period covered by the NSSF report (1991-2018), violent crime has declined by 51.3 percent, and unintentional gun-related fatalities have plummeted by 68.2 percent.
