The FBI reports that gun background checks are on track for a record year, citing 19,827,376 requests that have been sent to the National Instant Criminal Background Check Systems, or NICS, from the beginning of 2015 through Nov.30.
These numbers represent a 6 percent increase from the same period last year, as well as a 4 percent increase during the same period in 2013, which is the record year for amount of background checks since full-year records started being kept in 1999.
As the FBI notes, however, firearm background checks are not directly indicative of the number of firearms sold. Due to different factors such as varying state laws and purchase scenarios, a one-to-one correlation between a firearm background check and a firearm sale can't be made. However, since most purchases are conducted by federally licensed dealers and most buyers pass background checks, this method is generally considered the most accurate way of determining gun sales, according to CNN.
This year had already seen gun sales and background checks break various records starting with an all-time high starting in May and a record-breaking 185,345 gun background checks on Black Friday, marking a 5.5 percent increase from the 175,754 recorded a year ago.
With a month left before the end of the year, it's all but guaranteed that 2015 gun sales will break the yearly record, especially following the two shootings in San Bernardino, Calif., and the Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, Colo.
Historically, mass shootings tend to boost gun sales partly because buyers want to protect themselves but also because they're worried that the latest shooting will prompt more restrictive gun control measures. For example, Dec. 21, 2012, which came one week after the Sandy Hook incident, held the record for highest amount of gun sales in a single day at 177,710 until Black Friday 2015 broke the record, according to CNN.
With mass shootings becoming a regular occurrence in the U.S., it's likely that these numbers will continue to rise as records are continually beaten.
