MA Ranked One of Least Dependent States on Gun Industry

Thursday, March 16, 2017

GoLocalWorcester News Team

Massachusetts is one of the states the depends on the gun industry the least.

According to a recent study completed by WalletHub, Massachusetts is ranked 44th on a list of states that depend on the gun industry the most.

“Gun sales are down since Donald Trump won the White House. And while that’s good news to some, it could be a bad sign for state economies relying heavily on the firearms industry. By one estimate, guns contributed more than $51 billion to the nation’s coffers and generated nearly $7.4 billion in federal and state taxes in 2016,” said WalletHub.

Massachusetts is ranked 40th for firearm industry, 47th for gun prevalence and 41st for gun politics.

The Rankings

Massachusetts is ranked behind Hawaii and Connecticut who rank 42nd and 43rd respectively. Massachusetts ranks ahead of Michigan and Maryland who rank 45th and 46th respectively.

Alaska is the state that is most dependent on the gun industry while Rhode Island is least dependent.

See the full rankings in the map below

Source: WalletHub

The Method

In order to identify the states that most and least depend on the gun industry for economic stability, WalletHub’s analysts compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across three key dimensions: 1) Firearms Industry, 2) Gun Prevalence and 3) Gun Politics.

They evaluated those dimensions using 13 relevant metrics. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the “most gun-industry-dependent” state.

They then calculated the overall score for each state and the District based on its weighted average across all metrics and used the resulting scores to construct our final ranking.

Firearms Industry – Total Points: 35

Firearms-Industry Jobs per Capita: Double Weight (~7.78 Points)
Firearms Dealers & Importers per Capita: Full Weight (~3.89 Points)
Firearms Manufacturers per Capita: Full Weight (~3.89 Points)
Average Wages & Benefits in Firearms Industry: Full Weight (~3.89 Points)
Total Firearms-Industry Output per Capita: Full Weight (~3.89 Points)
Total Taxes Paid by Firearms Industry per Capita: Full Weight (~3.89 Points)
Presence of State Law Granting Immunity to Gun Industry: Full Weight (~3.89 Points)
Strictness of State Gun Laws: Full Weight (~3.89 Points)

Gun Prevalence – Total Points: 35

Gun Ownership Rate: Full Weight (~11.67 Points)
Gun Sales per Capita: Full Weight (~11.67 Points)
Gun Ads for Private Buying & Selling: Full Weight (~11.66 Points)

Gun Politics – Total Points: 30

Gun-Control Contributions to Congressional Members per Capita: Full Weight (~15 Points)
Gun-Rights Contributions to Congressional Members per Capita: Full Weight (~15 Points)

Related Slideshow: The Influence of Gun Money in New England States

New Data from The Sunlight Foundation shows state-by-state breakdowns for donations to groups on both sides of the gun debate. The money went toward candidates, political parties, and political action committees (PACs), but doesn't include donations to independent or so-called “super PACs”.

See how much money went to candidates in each of the New England States in the slides below.

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