In the lead-up to America's 250th, the Second Amendment was well exercised, according to the latest data for last month's gun sales.

According to data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System, 1,886,539 background checks were processed in June 2026. That was a 1.2 percent decrease from the FBI NICS figure of 1,909,294 in June 2025. 

However, that figure covers several types of checks, not just those done for gun sales. 

The firearms industry trade group, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, distills the raw NICS numbers to remove gun permit checks and rechecks to yield the true number of checks done for over-the-counter sales. The adjusted figure for June 2026 stands at 1,123,006, a downright decent 11.7 percent increase compared to the June 2025 NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1,004,986.

Two big causes for the increase in those numbers were pending "assault weapon" bans in Rhode Island and Virginia that were set to take effect in July. 

"Virginia saw a 241 percent increase over the same month last year, with 123,699 background checks for the purchase of a firearm," Mark Oliva, public affairs officer with the NSSF, told Guns.com. "Likewise, Rhode Island had a 201 percent increase over June 2025 with 7,815 background checks completed."
 

NFA transfers way, way up

In an update of what is shaping up to be the story of the year when it comes to firearms industry growth, the number of NFA items transferred nearly tripled when compared to last year, with June 2026's figure of 166,677 transfers being a remarkable 177.1 percent jump compared to June 2025's much more pedestrian 60,147.

This is no doubt due to the recent zeroing out of the circa 1934 taxes on the making and transfer of suppressors and short-barreled firearms. 

Banner image: Assorted Dead Air suppressors on the range, including, left to right, a Ghost, Odessa, Mojave, and Wolfman. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)