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Health & Fitness

Target shooting contributes $104,558,241 to CT economy [update]

According to the NSSF, in Connecticut, target shooting-related spending contributed $104,558,241 to the state's economy and supported 853 jobs.

How much target shooting-related contribution is there to the Connecticut state economy? How about over $104million supporting over 850 jobs statewide! 

In the first quarter of last year, there were many debates in CT about the firearms industry in the state. Many advocates of the shooting sports pointed out the economic contribution to the state of shooters, manufacturers, ranges and the like. When it was every suggested that the state could lose some of those tax revenues and jobs if the environment became more hostile to guns, members of the civilian disarmament cabal said something like "So what?" and "Who cares? They won't be missed." 

Well, in a major new report, the NSSF quantifies what target shooting contributes to the nations economy, down to the state level. Nationally, 21 million active target shooters spend $10 BILLION annually on target shooting and support over 185,000 jobs at the same time. [Update: These shooters also contribute nearly $8mm to CT state tax revenue and almost $10mm to Federal taxes.]

According to the infographic that accompanies the report, those 21mm target shooters compare to 14mm soccer players, 12mm baseball players and 8mm skiers - which kinda puts the lie to the gun control lobby's assertion that gun ownership and shooting is of an interest to only a small number of Americans.

Further, upwards of 30% of target shooting participants are females, again busting a myth that only males are involved in shooting sports. 



========= Full Text of Press Release ==========

January 15, 2014

For more information contact:

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Bill Brassard Jr.
203-426-1320

Connecticut Benefits from Spending by Target Shooters

Find out what's happening in Wiltonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

View INFOGRAPHIC

LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- The National Shooting Sports Foundation has released a major new report about the importance of target shooting activities to the economies of Connecticut and the nation. NSSF is the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industry.

The report, Target Shooting in America: Millions of Shooters, Billions of Dollars, was released today in conjunction with a press conference at the Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show (SHOT Show), the largest trade show of its kind in the world and a showcase for the firearms and ammunition industry.

The report provides a first-ever look at U.S. target shooting-related expenditures. Also included are state-by-state statistics for the number of target shooters, retail sales, taxes and jobs. The target-shooting report complements the Hunting in America report released by NSSF and the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies in March 2013.

In Connecticut, target shooting-related spending contributed $104,558,241 to the state's economy and supported 853 jobs.

Nationally, the money target shooters spent in 2011 resulted in $23 billion being added to the nation's economy and supported more than 185,000 jobs.

"More people target shooting is good news for the industry, and it is equally good news for America’s economy," said NSSF President and CEO Steve Sanetti.

Retail sales related to target shooting account for nearly $10 billion, with rifle and handgun shooting being the leading contributors, followed by shotgun and muzzleloader shooting. California and Texas are the top two states ranked by retail sales.

Combining data from Target Shooting in America and Hunting in America shows that target shooters and hunters together poured more than $110 billion into the nation’s economy, fueling more than 866,000 jobs. “Communities and businesses of all sizes benefit from these activities,” said Sanetti.

Target shooters ($8.2 billion) and hunters ($8.4 billion) spend nearly equal amounts on equipment common to both pursuits, such as firearms, ammunition and accessories. Hunters spend more overall than target shooters when factors such as fuel, food, lodging and transportation are included.

“The Target Shooting in America and Hunting in America reports give us a more complete understanding of the economic importance of the shooting sports to America,” said Sanetti. “We’ve long known about the recreational benefits of these activities, and now we know how much they contribute to our country’s financial well-being.”

Read Target Shooting in America: Millions of Shooters, Billions of Dollars or view the report as a printable PDF.

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