State Police Dedicate Additional Staff to Process Handgun License Applications
Posted
Staff Report-
Indianapolis – The Indiana State Police Department is responsible for issuing licenses to carry a handgun to Indiana residents who require one. The department is required to issue or deny the request – stating the denial cause – within 60 days from the time an application is submitted. Efforts to meet the time frame requirement have not been successful due to a significant rise in the number of requests for handgun licenses. The ISP attributes the rise to the number of shootings across the country recently, coupled with national news stories debating more restrictive gun laws, according to information provided. Historically, applications received for a license to carry a handgun average around 5,200 per month, but increased dramatically toward the end of 2012. January saw more than 23,000 application requests being submitted to the state police. The level of demand marginally decreased in the months that followed, falling to just over 6,500 new license requests in June. However, the overall monthly increase has led to a substantial backlog in applications, pushing processing time to more than 110 days. To eliminate the backlog, Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter ordered a thorough evaluation of the procedures involved to issue a license to carry a handgun. Based on this comprehensive review, processes are being streamlined and additional personnel have been added to process some 45,000 pending applications. The review process also included plans to address future spikes in application requests. Barring unforeseen circumstances, the backlog should be eliminated within eight to 10 weeks of July 1, according to the ISP. New license applications received after mid-September are expected to be processed within the required 60 day timeframe. The ISP also notes that from December through June, it received 91,940 applications for a license to carry a handgun. To offer a point of contrast, for all of 2012 there were 62,934 applications received and processed, which resulted in the issuance of 60,906 new handgun licenses. To decrease processing time of applications the ISP encourages all applicants to submit their application and fingerprints electronically. While all applications are required to be electronically submitted there is an option to submit fingerprints that are either hand rolled or scanned onto paper print cards, or prints that are electronically recorded and immediately emailed to the ISP for verification and processing. Applications submitted with hand rolled or scanned finger prints take about two weeks longer to process than electronically transferred fingerprints. Superintendent Carter and the ISP say they are dedicated to meeting the required time frame to issue or deny a license to carry a handgun, and regret the inconvenience many residents experienced with this process. They add that factors that increase processing time include: • Applications that are incomplete • Submission of hand rolled or scanned fingerprints instead of electronic fingerprints • Incomplete criminal history information that has to be confirmed • Common names with criminal history information that must to be verified Applications for license to carry a handgun received, by month, from December 2012 to June of 2013: • Dec 2012: 13,954 • Jan 2013: 23,079 • Feb 2013: 15,945 • Mar 2013: 12,204 • Apr 2013: 11,397 • May 2013: 8,848 • Jun 2013: approx. 6,513 • Seven month total: 91,940 Issued licenses to carry a handgun from 2009 to 2012: • 2009: 98,639 • 2010: 79,027 • 2011: 61,595 • 2012: 60,906 At the beginning of July there were 493,205 active licenses to carry a handgun, of which 392,520 were issued to men and 100,685 to women. To see previous reports that reflect quarterly comparisons of active handgun licenses by county and gender of the license holder, visit http://www.in.gov/isp/2963.htm The state police remind media and the public that specific information about who possesses a license to carry a handgun is not public record. The state police will not confirm or deny if a specific citizen possesses a license to carry a handgun. For more information on the license to carry a handgun application process, including how to file electronic fingerprints, visit http://www.in.gov/isp/2828.htm
