Texas Reaches One Million Plus Concealed Carry Holders

1,017,618 to be exact

University of Texas Campus Carry Ban

In the second largest state in the union, more than one million are now licensed for concealed carry.

Out of Texas’s nearly 27 million people, numbers show that as of April 30, 2016, 1,017,618 of them are concealed carry permit holders. Open carry has only been legal in the Lone Star State since 2015, a surprising fact for a state that many people view as being all about cowboys carrying in the street.

According to the Town Hall report, most Texans cite the desire for personal protection as the basis for their reason to carry a concealed handgun. Florida still has more licensed concealed carry permits, at more than 1.3 million. As New York Times reports on May 16, 2016, the number of permit holders tops the population of one of the state’s largest cities: Fort Worth.

Harris County has the most license holders. This county includes Houston and is the most populated in the state. Interestingly, the least populated county, Loving County in rural West Texas, has issued four licenses to four of its 112 residents.

The NY Times report confirms other recently released statistics showing that concealed carry permits are increasing for senior citizens. While the minimum age to be licensed is 21 except for 18-year-old members of the military, an increasing number of armed citizens are 55 and older. In Texas, the 55 and up age bracket comprises 22,871 permits and is the largest group of license holders.

There are also 268,000 women permit holders in that number.