According to a report by Jim Grant of AmmoLand, the total economic impact of the firearm industry went from $19.1 billion in 2008 to $70.52 billion in 2021. Similarly, the total number of full-time equivalent jobs grew from roughly 166,000 to over 375,819 in that same time period, which represented a 126% increase.
These figures were drawn from a report that the National Sports Shooting Foundation recently released.
From 2020 to 2021, the firearms industry’s economic impact grew from $63.5 billion to $70.52 billion. The total number of jobs grew by over 33,000 in the same time frame, going from 342,330 to 375,819.
Grant noted that these firearms statistics aren’t just fancy figures that nerds can obsess over. They have real world implications, which he outlined below:
The firearm industry has broader impacts throughout the economy. It supports and generates business for firms seemingly unrelated to firearms, at a time when every job in America counts. These are real people, with real jobs, working in industries as varied as banking, retail, accounting, metalworking, and printing among others. The firearm and ammunition industry paid over $7.85 billion in business taxes, including property, income, and sales-based levies. An additional $1.1 billion was paid in federal excise taxes, which directly contributes to wildlife conservation.
“The economic contributions of our industry are indisputably contributing to every state and every community. This is the hallmark of the hard-working men and women who prove that the American firearm and ammunition industry is strong,” declared Joe Bartozzi, the President and CEO of NSSF. “The growth of firearm and ammunition manufacturing year after year shows that this industry continues to meet the American demand for lawful firearm ownership. This industry produces the highest quality firearms and ammunition and has been proud to welcome over 5.4 million first-time gun buyers in 2021 alone. These new gun owners are increasingly representative of Americans from all walks of life, including more women and more minority communities that have decided to exercise their right to keep and bear arms and to safely enjoy recreational shooting sports. This growth equals more jobs that add to our local economies, averaging $56,900 in wages and benefits. Since 2008, federal tax payments increased by 206 percent, Pittman-Robertson excise taxes that support wildlife conservation by 214 percent and state business taxes by 151 percent.”
According to Grant, “The NSSF’s annual Firearm and Ammunition Industry Economic Impact Report provides a state-by-state breakdown of job numbers, wages and output covering direct, supplier and induced employment, as well as federal excise taxes paid.”
America’s gun culture is robust. Despite the media psy-ops and constant demoralization campaigns launched by the ruling class, Americans’ strong pro-Second Amendment views cannot be shaken so easily. The right to bear arms is a tradition that’s firmly embedded in the American consciousness.
The past two years of economic upheaval and social unrest witnessed Americans buy firearms by the millions. Even in the most anti-gun of blue states, first-time gun owners flocked to their local gun stores, knowing full well that law enforcement services would not adequately protect them.
As it becomes clear that gun ownership is not going away anytime soon, it would behoove right-wingers to continue using the Second Amendment movement as a launch pad for their campaigns. It’s the easiest way to get on the win column and stick it to the Left.
José Niño is a freelance writer and political analyst based in Austin, Texas. Sign up for his mailing list here https://josealnino.com/newsletter. Contact him via Facebook https://www.facebook.com/josealnino or Twitter https://twitter.com/JoseAlNino. Get his premium newsletter on political strategy here https://www.patreon.com/user?u=10094861. Subscribe to his Substack here https://josbcf.substack.com/.
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