An Iowa group is hailing a new study that shows a dramatic decrease in the number of gun dealers statewide. Iowans for the Prevention of Gun Violence President, John Johnson, says the federal Brady Law is a big reason for the decrease. He says prior to the Brady Law, there were about 39-hundred gun dealers in Iowa — about 40 per county. Johnson says the number of Iowa dealers has dropped to about 13-hundred. He says 1994 crime bill also helped reduce the number of gun dealers.The bill required dealers to register their fingerprints, pay more to register and notify the local sheriff that they wanted to be a dealer. Johnson says the drop has come mostly in “kitchen table” dealers — those who sell guns from their home. He says that’s good news.Johnson says 56-percent of the Iowa gun dealers still sell from their homes. and he’d like to see that change.The gun dealer study was conducted by the Violence Policy Center, a national group that researches gun violence.
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