Introduction
The Firearms Data Dashboards are public-facing resources developed by the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS), in collaboration with the Department of Criminal Justice Information Services (DCJIS), the Executive Office of Technology Services and Security (EOTSS), and other Commonwealth entities. These dashboards reflect a shared commitment to transparency, public safety, and responsible data sharing.
As part of the implementation of Chapter 135 of the Acts of 2024 — An Act Modernizing Firearm Laws — the dashboards provide anonymized, aggregated data to help inform the public, support research, and guide policy discussions. Their launch marks a major achievement in the Commonwealth’s efforts to modernize firearm data reporting and empower public understanding.
About the Firearms Data Dashboards
Developed pursuant to M.G.L. c. 140, §121E(a), EOPSS designed the dashboards with a strong emphasis on public value, clarity, and data privacy. They serve as tools for residents, researchers, policymakers, and advocates to better understand the landscape of firearm-related activity in the Commonwealth.
The dashboards present structured data on firearm-related applications, licenses, and firearm-related incidents across Massachusetts and are updated on a quarterly basis. They include demographic information on victims and offenders involved in firearm-related violations and provide multiple years of data reflecting licensing activity and agency-level data.
EOPSS and its partners worked closely together to identify data sources that provide meaningful insights into firearm-related applications, licenses, and activity while maintaining strict privacy data protections. The dashboards currently include the below trusted data sources:
- National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS)
- Crime and arrest statistics were compiled using NIBRS data, which is voluntarily submitted by local, state, campus, and hospital police agencies to the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS) and the FBI. NIBRS provides detailed information on offenses, victims, offenders, property involved, and arrests. Agencies submit data either by exporting from their records management systems or by manual entry through EOPSS’ data portal. Not all agencies participate in NIBRS reporting, so coverage may vary. With respect to race and ethnicity data, NIBRS uses federal standards established by the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program.
- Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME)
- The OCME, established under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 38, provides medicolegal investigative services for deaths occurring under violent, suspicious, or unexplained circumstances in Massachusetts. OCME determines the cause and manner of death and releases certifications and autopsy reports. It collects data from hospital medical records and is the authoritative source for confirming completed suicides. OCME holds required data on homicides and suicides as mandated by state law.
- Massachusetts Crime Gun Database (131Q Database)
- The 131Q database is used by local law enforcement to enter field data in relation to criminal incidents and the firearms associated with crimes.
- Massachusetts Instant Record Check System (MIRCS)
- MIRCS is a web-based system managed by the Massachusetts Department of Criminal Justice Information Services (DCJIS) that serves as the state's integrated platform for firearms licensing and gun transaction reporting.
- Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) eTrace System
- The ATF’s eTrace system is a web-based application that allows local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to submit, monitor, and retrieve data for firearms traces.
- Massachusetts Trial Court
- The Trial Court possesses certain data related to criminal proceedings that is essential to the proper implementation of the Firearms Data Dashboard and has agreed to share such data from Massachusetts criminal proceedings.
Data collection standards may vary across these sources due to differences in reporting protocols, definitions, and system capabilities. EOPSS and its partners have worked to harmonize data values and classifications to ensure consistency and comparability. Where applicable, notes are provided to explain limitations or variations in data scope.
Users can interact with each dashboard using built-in filters to customize views. Visualizations are designed to be intuitive and accessible. Each visualization contains a description to assist users’ understanding of both the underlying data and the types of incidents or records represented.
For more information about the dashboard, you can access FAQs here.
For any other questions, please write to legal.info@mass.gov.
Victim Demographics in Incidents Involving Firearms
This dashboard provides county-level insights into the demographics of individuals who were victims in firearm-related incidents across Massachusetts, helping the public better understand how different communities are impacted. It includes anonymized, aggregated data categorized by gender, race, ethnicity, and age group.
The data currently covers the period from January 1, 2025, through April 30, 2025, and is compiled from the following three trusted sources:
- National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS): Provides data on victims of crime such as Murder, Negligent Manslaughter, Justifiable Homicide, Kidnapping / Abduction, Rape, Aggravated Assault, and Robbery.
- Crime and arrest statistics were compiled using NIBRS data, which is voluntarily submitted by local, state, campus, and hospital police agencies to the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS) and the FBI. NIBRS provides detailed information on offenses, victims, offenders, property involved, and arrests. Agencies submit data either by exporting from their records management systems or by manual entry through EOPSS’ data portal. Not all agencies participate in NIBRS reporting, so coverage may vary. With respect to race and ethnicity data, NIBRS uses federal standards established by the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program.
- Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME): The OCME, established under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 38, provides medicolegal investigative services for deaths occurring under violent, suspicious, or unexplained circumstances in Massachusetts. OCME determines the cause and manner of death and releases certifications and autopsy reports. It collects data from hospital medical records and is the authoritative source for confirming completed suicides. OCME holds required data on homicides and suicides as mandated by state law.
- Massachusetts Crime Gun Database (131Q Database): The 131Q database is used by local law enforcement to enter field data in relation to criminal incidents and the firearms associated with crimes. It includes data on victims of Accidental Shootings and Attempted Suicide. Please note, Data on victims of accidental shootings and attempted suicide is not currently available but will be collected through the 131Q Database starting in October 2025.
EOPSS will update this dashboard in 2026 to reflect the newly collected data.
Users can explore the data using filters for year, county, and offense type, allowing for a more focused view of trends and demographic patterns.
To protect individual privacy in accordance with M.G.L. c. 6, § 172 and M.G.L. c. 66, § 10B, data categories with fewer than five incidents are not displayed.
Firearm Incidents - Offender Demographic Data
This dashboard presents demographic information about individuals identified as offenders in firearm-related incidents across Massachusetts. It features anonymized, aggregated data categorized by age, gender, race, and ethnicity.
The dashboard also includes data on dispositions associated with firearm charges, regardless of whether a firearm was physically recovered or seized. A disposition refers to the result of a criminal case through a conviction, acquittal, plea or admission, dismissal, nolle prosequi or other final resolution as entered by the Trial Court.
The data are sourced from the Massachusetts Trial Courts and includes all firearm incident related dispositions adjudicated by the courts on or after January 1, 2025.
- Massachusetts Trial Court: The Trial Court possesses certain data related to criminal proceedings that is essential to the proper implementation of the Firearms Data Dashboard and has agreed to share such data from Massachusetts criminal proceedings.
Users can explore the data using filters for year, offense location, disposition, and firearm violation group, allowing for a more detailed view of offender demographics and case outcomes.
To protect individual privacy in accordance with M.G.L. c. 6, § 172 and M.G.L. c. 66, § 10B, data categories with fewer than five incidents are not displayed.
Firearm Incidents - Disposition Information by Offense Severity
This dashboard provides an overview of how firearm-related criminal charges are resolved in Massachusetts, organized by the severity of the offense. This dashboard empowers users to understand judicial outcomes for various types of firearms-related charges across Massachusetts.
The data are sourced from the Massachusetts Trial Courts and include dispositions for qualifying cases beginning on or after January 1, 2025.
- Massachusetts Trial Court: The Trial Court possesses certain data related to criminal proceedings that is essential to the proper implementation of the Firearms Data Dashboard and has agreed to share such data from Massachusetts criminal proceedings.
Users can filter the dashboard by year, disposition, offense location, firearms violation group and firearm charges to view case outcomes across regions and offense types. Users may also select grouping of offenses to view the more detailed offense information contained therein.
Firearm License Applicants - Demographic Data
This dashboard displays demographic information for individuals who have applied for a License to Carry (LTC) or a Firearms Identification Card (FID) in Massachusetts.
It includes data on age, gender, and municipality for both approved and denied applications, allowing for a detailed view of licensing trends across regions and time periods. Data on race and ethnicity is not currently available but will be collected through the Massachusetts Instant Record Check System (MIRCS) starting in October 2025. EOPSS will update this dashboard in 2026 to reflect the newly collected race and ethnicity data.
The data are sourced from MIRCS and include historical records dating back to 2003, previously published on the DCJIS website.
- MIRCS is a web-based system managed by the Massachusetts Department of Criminal Justice Information Services (DCJIS) that serves as the state's integrated platform for firearms licensing and gun transaction reporting.
Users can explore the data using filters for year, municipality, application type, and application status.
To protect individual privacy in accordance with M.G.L. c. 6, § 172 and M.G.L. c. 66, § 10B, data categories with fewer than five applicants are not displayed.
Active Firearm License Count
This dashboard provides a comprehensive view of currently active firearm licenses across Massachusetts. It includes aggregate counts of various license types, helping users understand licensing trends and activity across municipalities and issuing authorities.
The data is sourced from the Massachusetts Instant Record Check System (MIRCS) and is updated quarterly.
- MIRCS is a web-based system managed by the Massachusetts Department of Criminal Justice Information Services (DCJIS) that serves as the state's integrated platform for firearms licensing and gun transaction reporting.
Users can explore the dashboard using filters for licensing authority and licensing type to view licensing patterns across regions.
Firearms License Applications by Type & Status
This dashboard provides a detailed view of firearms license application activity across Massachusetts, showing how different license applications progress through various stages of the licensing process. It includes counts of applications that were started, issued, denied, suspended, or revoked and are organized by licensing authority.
The data is sourced from the Massachusetts Instant Record Check System (MIRCS) and includes historical records dating back to 2006. The dashboard is updated annually.
- MIRCS is a web-based system managed by the Massachusetts Department of Criminal Justice Information Services (DCJIS) that serves as the state's integrated platform for firearms licensing and gun transaction reporting.
Users can filter the dashboard by licensing agency and license type to explore activity across different jurisdictions and license categories.
The stacked bar chart on the dashboard below uses a 100% stacked format to display the percentage breakdown of application statuses for each license type. This format allows users to understand the distribution of status of licenses (started, delivered, denied, revoked, and suspended) within each license type. Of note, the size of each bar does not reflect the total count of applications for that license type; and therefore, users should not compare the total count of total licenses across license types in the visual representation. For actual counts, please refer to the data labels on the chart or the table below.
Planned Enhancements
As part of the continued implementation of Chapter 135 of the Acts of 2024, additional data elements will be collected beginning in October 2025 and reflected in new and existing dashboards starting in 2026. These enhancements will expand the scope of firearm-related data available to the public and improve visibility of crime gun activity and enforcement outcomes.
Crime Gun – Seizure and Offender Demographics
New data will provide insights into crime guns seized by law enforcement across Massachusetts. This information will be sourced from the upgraded Massachusetts Crime Gun Database (131Q Database), which began collecting enhanced data in October 2025.
Anonymized offender demographic information will also be included, based on entries submitted by law enforcement agencies following arrests and charges related to recovered firearms. This is a newly implemented data collection effort, and demographic data will begin to populate in late 2025. Because court dispositions often take months or longer to be finalized, disposition data for these cases may not be available until 2026.
Crime Guns – Sales, Purchase, and Ownership Data
To better understand the origins and movement of crime guns, new data will link firearm recovery records with purchase and transfer history. This will include:
- Comparisons with Massachusetts Instant Record Check System (MIRCS) data to determine whether a firearm was purchased, transferred, or sold within the Commonwealth.
- Serial number tracing through the ATF eTrace System to identify the point of origin and first sale of the firearm.
This data will be collected as part of an enhancement to the Crime Gun Database, with collection beginning in October 2025 and public availability expected in 2026.
Revision History
| Details | Date |
|---|---|
| Published On | 10/28/2025 |