HILO — Gun ownership in Hawaii is soaring.
The number of firearms registered in 2011 increased 17.2 percent and hit a record high of 36,804, according to an annual report released Tuesday by the state Attorney General’s office.
Hawaii County had 6,603 gun registrations last year. Based on the population, that was “a 36 percent greater-than-expected share of processed applications,” the report said. The county also had the highest rate of rejected applications — 3.8 percent.
The number of gun permit applications statewide also reached a record high. A total of 15,375 personal/private firearm permit applications were processed in 2011, compared to the previous record high of 12,801 applications processed in 2010. That’s an increase of 20.1 percent.
Of the applications processed in 2011, 94 percent were approved and resulted in issued permits. The remaining 6 percent were either approved but subsequently voided after the applicants failed to return for their permits within a specified time period, or were rejected outright due to one or more disqualifying factors.
Just under half of the firearms registered during 2011 were imported from out-of-state, with the remainder 51.2 percent accounted for by in-state transfers (i.e., firearms that were already in Hawaii).
Firearm registration activity increased dramatically over the course of the 12 years for which these data have been systematically compiled and reported, according to the AG’s report. From 2000 through 2011, the number of permit applications processed annually climbed 136.9 percent, the number of firearms registered soared 170.3 percent, and the number of firearms imported surged 148.3 percent.
The vast majority of rejections in 2011 were for longarm guns, such as rifles and shotguns. They accounted for 204 rejected applications, or 88.7 percent, while handguns accounted for 26 rejected applications, or 11.3 percent.
In 2011, falsified criminal and/or mental health information was provided in 172 of the 230 rejection cases; falsified information pertaining to anything other than criminal or mental health histories was provided in 3.5 percent, or eight, of the cases; both types of falsified information were provided in 0.4 percent, or just one, of the cases; and no falsified information was provided in 21.3 percent, or 49, of the cases.
It is a felony to provide falsified information on firearm permit applications, unless the falsified information does not pertain to criminal or mental health histories, in which case it is a misdemeanor offense.
The full report can be downloaded from the Crime Prevention and Justice Assistance Division website at hawaii.gov/ag/cpja.