September FBI NICS Rise Hides a Falling State-Table Sum

Independent analysis of FBI tables shows September 2026 national NICS at 2,000,629 checks, up 3.6 percent year over year, while the sum of 55 state and territory rows fell 0.8 percent to 1,843,700. The gap between the national total and the state table widened to 156,929, more than double the year-earlier gap. Illinois led at 231,920, driven largely by permit rechecks. NSSF's adjusted September sales-proxy figure was still unpublished as of the Oct. 2 report, and the FBI notes checks are not sales.