Gun violence has skyrocketed in the past few years, with 690 mass shootings taking place in 2021. But those were just the most visible; 40,000 gun deaths were recorded in 2022, half of those by suicide. And as of 2018, the country recorded 400 million firearms — part of what’s prompting gun safety laws to come into the conversation. Everytown Research compiled and released a new ranking list for each state’s gun safety. New Jersey ranked highly, with the fourth-strongest gun laws in the country.

A permit and background check are required for all gun purchases in New Jersey, part of why the state has the third-lowest rate of gun deaths in the country and the lowest rate of firearm ownership overall. Some 8.9% of households in New Jersey carry guns. The states that rank above the Garden State for gun safety are California, New York and Hawaii.

Even with a gun violence rate that is among the lowest in the nation — around 5.5 gun deaths per 100,000 residents — New Jersey still isn’t safe from violence and lack of federal safety laws.

“Out of all guns showing up at crime scenes after crossing state lines, four out of five come from states that lack good background check laws,” says the statement released by Everytown.