By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
The resurgence of concealed pistol license numbers is continuing in Washington State, with nearly 5,000 more CPLs added back to the rolls during August, according to data from the state Department of Licensing.
Despite having an anti-gun Democrat governor and attorney general, and a Democrat-controlled Legislature, the Evergreen State is definitely roaring back from the coronavirus crash experienced last year and into early spring this year. What has happened over the past four months is proof positive Washingtonians want to be armed.
Blame the COVID-19 pandemic panic of 2020 and early 2021 for the problem, as many law enforcement agencies “suspended” accepting new CPL applications for many months. There is no provision in state law that allowed this, as those agencies blamed the coronavirus for requiring them, in the interest of employee safety, to not process new applications. Fingerprinting is required for new applications, and that’s a hands-on process.
On April 1, 2020, the state Department of Licensing reported more than 650,000 active CPLs. The shutdown beginning in mid-March last year brought a steady decline that continued for the next 11 months. But when the state “re-opened” for basic services, the turnaround began. This past April 1, the decline bottomed out at 619,398, a loss of just over 31,000 active licenses.
But the licensing agency reported Tuesday there are now 636,441 active CPLs, a turnaround of more than 17,000 over the past four months, averaging 4,260 per month.
In August, the state saw 4,983 CPLs added over the number reported last month, which was 631,458.
At this rate, Washington could be fully recovered from the COVID concealed carry decline by the end of the year, and possibly be a well beyond that 650,000 mark.
What makes this so significant is that the Evergreen State has been labeled as “blue” politically because of its tilt toward voting for Democrats for national office. The state has gone to Democrats for the presidency for several years. The state’s two U.S. senators are Democrats—Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell—and the majority of its Congressional delegation are also Democrats.
And Democrats are considered the “party of gun control” if not outright gun confiscation.
But the state, with an overall population of more than 7 million, has the highest number of active resident CPLs of any state in the West (excluding Texas), even surpassing Utah, which had 727,290 active carry licenses as of June 30, but the majority (429,985) were for non-residents. Only 297,305 permits were held by Beehive State residents. The Utah permit is popular among armed citizens because it is recognized by so many states.
In Washington, roughly 20-22 percent of the CPLs are held by women, underscoring the strong interest among women for personal protection. The CPL is valid for five years.
There appears to be keen interest in gun ownership and concealed carry in the state, possibly due to reductions in police numbers amid efforts to defund police agencies. The past 18 months have seen a surge in gun sales, many to first-time buyers.
