In March 2000, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) released this report giving an "overview of the firearm check procedures in each of the States and their interaction with the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) operated by the FBI." Part of the Justice Department's Firearm Inquiry Statistics (FIST) project, the report delineates statistics on the number of applications for firearms received, the numbers and reasons for rejections, and other information related to reviewing such applications. Given the recent war of words between the NRA and the President on just this issue, such a report provides some needed light to this heated debate.
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