In Sacramento region, gun dealers as common as Starbucks coffee shops

The number of guns sold throughout California and the nation has jumped sharply over the last decade - and so has the number of licensed gun dealers. The Sacramento region is no exception.

About 190 federally licensed gun dealers and pawnshops operate in the four-county area, according to the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. That's an increase of 17 percent in the last three years.

To put that figure in context, about 190 Starbucks coffee shops do business in the four-county area, including multiple Starbucks located in Safeway grocery stores and Target markets.

Firearm sales are in the news again this week following a mass shooting at an Orlando nightclub. The state legislature and U.S. Congress are considering tightening rules on gun purchases. Gun control efforts and mass shootings have historically caused an immediate increase in California gun sales, apparently because of fears that gun laws will tighten.

These maps show the locations of gun dealers and, for comparison, Starbucks coffee shops in the Sacramento metropolitan area.

Sources: ATF, Starbucks.

Notes: Shown are Federal Firearms License types 1 and 2 - firearm dealers and pawnbrokers. The fee to obtain a license is $200, with a $90 renewal every three years. Dealers range in size from home-based operations that process internet sales to large sporting goods stores. All firearm dealers shown are licensed to sell firearms, but some may not be actively selling them.

This story was originally published June 15, 2016 at 4:21 PM with the headline "In Sacramento region, gun dealers as common as Starbucks coffee shops."