Arizona's Gun Selling Frenzy Continues

Arizona will put more than 200,000 new weapons in buyers' hands after background checks this year. That figure doesn not include firearms purchased at gun shows and through private transactions. Such non-tracked sales are thought to account for 40 percent of all sales, adding about 150,000 guns purchased annually. The estimated sales total: about 350,000 guns per year, according to the Arizona Republic.

The FBI reports that 123,043 people submitted themselves to background checks to purchase guns in Arizona through June. That puts the state on track to break the record of 215,379 background checks in 2009, the year President Barack Obama took office.

According to the Republic, in June, the ATF reported there were 1,629 licensed dealers, manufacturers and collectors of firearms and ammunition in Arizona. That compares with 1,589 in January 2011 and 1,566 in June 2010.

In Massachusetts and Washington, two states with populations similar to Arizona's, there were, respectively, 492 and 1,155 licensed dealers, manufacturers and collectors of firearms and ammunition, reported the Republic.

To read more: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2011/07/15/20110715arizona-guns-special-report-retail.html#ixzz1SNKkornI