Washington (CNN) -- As President Obama continues to
push for new gun control measures, new FBI data shows that January was
the second-highest month on record for gun background checks.
FBI figures posted
Tuesday show there were 2,495,400 background checks done through the
FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System, known as NICS.
The number was more than 1 million higher than any previous January.
U.S. law requires background checks for all people who try to buy firearms from federally licensed dealers.
Obama still backs new gun ban
The data does not
indicate exactly how many weapons might have been purchased, as some
customers buy more than one gun at a time.
December was the top record-setting month, with 2,783,765 background checks.
The FBI makes the data
available on its website without comment. The figures typically show
high numbers of background checks during the holiday shopping months of
November and December, and the background check numbers usually decline
in January. There also is often a spike in checks after a dramatic
incident of gun violence.
The NICS system was launched in November 1998 after being mandated by the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993.
Federal law does not
require background checks for "private transactions," such as sales at
gun shows. Many states have their own statutes requiring such checks for
private sales.
