Illinois State Police say budget issues; increased demand causing FOID backlog

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois State Police say a number of factors have created a backlog in processing Firearm Owner’s Identification cards in the state, including budget issues and an increased demand. They say that in the last decade an additional million Illinois residents have requested the card, and those requesting a conceal carry license has more than tripled since 2014. So far this year, the average time for processing a FOID application is 121 days and the average time for a CCL is 145 days, numbers the state police say they deem as unacceptable. They noted a change in procedures and improved call center technology has allowed them to process over 215,000 FOID applications this year and over 50,000 CCLs, with their expanded staff putting in about 17,000 hours of overtime.