DOVER, N.H. — A newspaper analysis is reporting that the number of automatic weapons in New Hampshire has jumped since 2010, making it the No. 1 state in the number of automatic weapons per capita.

Foster’s Daily Democrat reported Sunday that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says there were 9,863 registered machine guns in New Hampshire last March, up 80 percent from December 2010.

The newspaper says it’s unclear if the numbers reflect an increase in private ownership. The figures could include weapons for law enforcement and military use.

Automatic weapons fire as long as the trigger is depressed. It’s illegal for civilians to own automatics made after 1986 without approval from the ATF.

The newspaper said there were 7.5 machine guns in New Hampshire per 100,000 people.

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