BFPE Backlog Crisis: 1,200 Cases and Two-Year Delays

A November 2025 state audit of the Board of Firearms Permit Examiners (BFPE) revealed a crisis-level backlog of approximately 1,200 pending cases with an average processing delay of two years.^[1] The findings have raised serious concerns about whether Connecticut residents are being effectively denied their Second Amendment rights through administrative delay.

What Is the BFPE?

The Board of Firearms Permit Examiners is a nine-member board that hears appeals from individuals whose firearms permits have been denied or revoked. Eight members are appointed by the Governor and the ninth is a retired Superior Court judge appointed by the Chief Court Administrator.^[2] At least one member appointed by the Governor must be an attorney and serves as chair; two of the Governor's appointees are public members. The board provides the sole administrative remedy for Connecticut residents challenging permit decisions made by local police departments or the DESPP.^[3]

The Audit Findings

The 2025 government accountability audit found a backlog of approximately 1,203 cases, consisting of 590 permit denials and 613 permit revocations awaiting hearings.^[4] Key findings include:

• The board is required by CGS 29-32b to schedule hearings within 10 days of receiving an appeal and hold hearings at least every 90 days^[1]
• The BFPE is obligated to hold 28 meetings per year with 28 hearings per meeting^[4]
• Due to case withdrawals and resolutions, the board hears an average of only 12 cases per meeting^[1]
• Case resolutions often come so close to the hearing date that the board cannot schedule replacement cases in time^[4]

A Longstanding Problem

The 2025 audit is not the first to identify this issue. Government accountability audits from 2001 through 2021 consistently flagged the same backlog problem, indicating that the BFPE has been unable to keep pace with incoming appeals for over two decades.^[1]

Constitutional Concerns

Critics have characterized the delays as "temporary denials" of Second Amendment rights. When a permit is denied or revoked, the appellant cannot legally carry a firearm until the BFPE rules in their favor. A two-year wait for a hearing effectively suspends the individual's right to bear arms for that period -- potentially without legal justification if the original denial or revocation is ultimately overturned.^[1]

In the post-Bruen landscape, where the Supreme Court has held that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to carry firearms in public for self-defense, extended administrative delays in the permit appeals process face heightened constitutional scrutiny.^[5]

Structural Challenges

The BFPE faces several structural limitations that contribute to the backlog:

• Unpaid members: Board members serve without compensation, limiting the time they can dedicate to hearings^[2]
• Volume mismatch: The board receives more annual appeals than it can reasonably process under its current structure^[4]
• No enforcement mechanism: Despite the statutory requirement to hold timely hearings, there is no practical mechanism to compel the board to meet more frequently or process cases faster^[1]

What This Means for Permit Applicants

Connecticut residents whose pistol permit applications have been denied or whose permits have been revoked should be aware that appealing to the BFPE may involve a wait of approximately two years before a hearing is scheduled. Applicants may also consider consulting a firearms attorney about alternative legal remedies, including filing a direct court action if the delays constitute an unconstitutional burden on their rights.