Concealed carry permits and gun ban debates have dominated conversations across America since the horrific tragedy at the Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown. Experts on top of experts are debating the pros and cons of arming teachers, banning semi-automatic weapons, and both the repeal and expansion of concealed carry permit laws.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Texas Governor Rick Perry stated during an address that he feels that trained and licensed concealed carry handgun permits holders in his state should be allowed to pack guns for personal safety anywhere in his state.

Trying to compare violent crime statistics with the number of concealed carry permit holders both nationwide and on a state-by-state basis is a complicated endeavor. As with all statistics, the facts and figures can be interpreted in a variety of ways and framed in a manner to support opposing viewpoints.

The violent crime rate in one state could be above average even though residents are allowed to carry a gun, but would the rate be higher or lower if concealed guns were not allowed? Sifting through the mountain of data on the subject in an attempt to get a clear and concise answer would take weeks and not days, and even then the final analysis might still be foggy, as the State Journal Register aptly notes.

A Reuters report states that United States citizens own 270 million of the world’s 875 million firearms. The gun ownership number is likely quite a bit higher since the report is a bit dated and does not take into account the number of gun purchases since concealed carry permit laws were enacted in several states.

Here is a list of state concealed carry permit statistics compiled via law enforcement agency reports and published by the Legally Armed website. Note that the numbers are approximates due to the ever fluctuating nature of gun purchases and training certification.

 Alaska – 7,568

Alabama – 350,000

Arizona – 178,482

Arkansas – 127,395

California – 35,000

Colorado – 139,560

Connecticut – 176,446

Delaware – 5,000

Florida – 985,143

Georgia – 600,000

Hawaii – The report states that most recent figures supplied show that 183 private security firm employees were issued concealed carry licenses, 3.7 percent of such requests were reportedly rejected. Three private citizens applied for concealed carry licenses in Honolulu and were rejected for not meeting the criteria mandated by the police chief.

Idaho – 77,000

Illinois – The concealed carry ban in the state was overturned earlier this week. Illinois lawmakers reportedly have six months to establish criteria for permit certification.

Indiana – 420,711

Iowa – 243,000

Kansas – 57,804

Kentucky – 216,463

Louisiana – 40,302

Maine – 29,000

Maryland – 47,000

Massachusetts – 251,000 (The state has two tier system, one tier is for possession and another for carrying a firearm. The permit license figure was based on the estimated 80 percent of overall license holders in both tiers who actually legally carry a gun.)

Michigan – 321,599

Minnesota – 112,091

Mississippi – 43,000

Missouri – 155,006

Montana – 27,708

Nebraska – 15,432

Nevada – 56,358

New Hampshire – Non-resident permits issued according to available published data: 6,830. New Hampshire reportedly has a confidentiality of resident permits laws, exact data on the number of resident holders was not available at the time of publication.

New Jersey – 32,000

New Mexico – 22,000

New York – Published data indicates that 93,028 licenses were amended, indicating a 39 percent increase. In New York City, approximately 2,145 concealed carry holders existed when the index report was created.

North Carolina – 228,072

Michigan – 15,937

Ohio – 301,692

Oklahoma – 122,000

Oregon – 147,000

Pennsylvania – 142,477

Rhode Island – 4,148

South Carolina – 148,624

South Dakota – 62,000

Tennessee – 376,050

Texas – 524,000

Utah – 347,000

Vermont – no figures available

Virginia – 279,000

Washington – 359,342

West Virginia – 92,000

Wisconsin – 144,174

Wyoming – 23,000

Concealed Carry Permit Statistics By State Report is a post from: The Inquisitr