Following the mass shootings in a Colorado movie theater and an elementary school in Connecticut , the debate over gun control has been reignited : How should the country balance its constitutional right to bear arms with access to deadly firepower ? Here 's a look by the numbers on guns in the United States and Americans ' attitudes toward them . 25 - Percent of Americans who favor a handgun ban , a record low , according to a 2013 Gallup poll . 60 - Percent who supported a ban in 1960 , the first year Gallup asked this question . 34 - Percent of Americans who own a gun , rifle , or pistol , according to a Pew Research survey . Analysis : Fewer U.S. gun owners own more guns . 27 - Percentage of households in the Northeast with a firearm , the lowest of any region . 56 - Number of votes the Assault Weapons Ban received in the U.S. in 1994 . 19 - Types of military-style weapons affected by the ban . 10 - Years the Assault Weapons Ban was in effect until it expired . Do guns make us safer ? 20,947,258 - FBI firearm background checks in 2013 . 5,539,538 - Firearms imported into the United States in 2013 . 18 - Minimum legal age to possess a handgun or handgun ammunition , with exceptions that relate to employment , farming , hunting , etc . CNN iReport : 5 things gun owners want you to know . 16,238 - Homicides in the U.S. in 2011 . 11,068 - Homicides with a firearm in the U.S. in 2011 . 153,000 - Brady Act background checks in 2010 that led to the rejection of a potential gun buyer 's application . 47.4 - Percent of applications denied by the FBI for 2010 because of a felony conviction or indictment .
60 % -- Americans who supported a handgun ban in 1959 . 25 % -- Americans who supported a handgun ban in 2013 . 20,947,258 - FBI firearm background checks in 2013 .