GunsHandgun Purchaser Licensing Laws Associated with Lower Firearm Homicides, Suicides

Published 24 August 2020

State handgun purchaser licensing laws—which go beyond federal background checks by requiring a prospective buyer to apply for a license or permit from state or local law enforcement—appear to be highly effective at reducing firearm homicide and suicide rates, according to a new analysis of gun laws.

State handgun purchaser licensing laws—which go beyond federal background checks by requiring a prospective buyer to apply for a license or permit from state or local law enforcement—appear to be highly effective at reducing firearm homicide and suicide rates, according to a new analysisof gun laws in four states from researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

The study, published online August 20 in the American Journal of Public Health, looked at changes in gun laws in Connecticut, Missouri, Maryland, and Pennsylvania and modeled trends in firearm homicide and suicide rates for up to a 22-year period.

Connecticut’s purchaser licensing law, enacted in 1995, was associated with a 28 percent decrease in firearm homicide rates and a 33 percent decrease in firearm suicides from 1996 to 2017. Reductions in firearm suicide rates associated with the law grew over time from 23 percent from 1996 to 2006 to 40.5 percent from 2007 to 2017. During the later period, Connecticut also increased its use of a law allowing police to temporarily remove firearms from individuals threatening to harm themselves or others.

In contrast, Missouri’s repeal of its purchaser licensing law in 2007 was associated with a 47 percent increase in the rate of firearm homicides and a 23.5 percent increase in firearm suicide rates from 2007 to 2016.

The researchers also looked at two states that implemented comprehensive background check laws for handguns that did not include purchaser licensing requirements. Maryland’s implementation of comprehensive background check laws in 1996 was associated with a 17.5 percent increase in firearm homicide rates from 1997 to 2013. The law was not linked with significant changes in firearm homicide rates outside of Baltimore City. Maryland’s background check requirements were associated with a 15 percent decline in firearm suicides; however, nonfirearm suicides also declined.

The study did not examine Maryland’s purchaser licensing law, enacted in 2013, as there were too few years of post-implementation data available.

Pennsylvania enacted a comprehensive background check law in 1996 which was associated with a 21.5 percent increase of firearm homicide rates and a non-significant change in firearm suicides. Like Maryland, it did not have a purchaser licensing requirement during the study period.

The findings contribute to a growing body of evidence that purchaser licensing with comprehensive background checks is a highly effective policy for reducing gun-related deaths.