While police in the midstate haven’t run out of bullets, a nationwide ammunition shortage is causing headaches as departments try to ensure they have enough for training and patrols.

Susquehanna Township Police Chief Rob Martin said he used to be able to order the year’s worth of supplies in January. Now he’s ordering the 2011 supply, hoping to get his department’s needs in sync with the projected eight- to 12-month wait.

“We have a very large reserve now because we properly planned,” Martin said. “But this complicates our purchasing.”

Martin, who also serves as the president of the Dauphin County Chiefs of Police Association and the commander of the county’s Crisis Response Team, said he’s heard from other local departments facing similar problems.

There are plenty of theories as to why ammunition is in short supply — the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, metal shortage, even hoarding by people who fear a government crackdown on gun ownership — but no one could point to one cause.

Tim Toth, an assistant manager at Bass Pro Shops in the Harrisburg Mall, was hard-pressed to blame a single circumstance for the order delays but said it’s been a problem for more than a year.

Hunting rounds appear less affected by the delays than are the .40-caliber, .45-caliber and 9 mm rounds frequently used by law enforcement, he said. Still, Toth advised hunters to plan.

“Personally, if I saw a box or two of what I needed [for hunting season], I’d pick up a box or two now,” he said.

Carroll Wagner, an education specialist with the Shumaker Public Safety Center at Harrisburg Area Community College, said he is waiting for orders of .45-caliber semi-automatic rounds he placed in January.

The estimated arrival date is February.

“The war has a lot to do with it, but there’s also a metal shortage,” Wagner said. “I have to keep enough on stock so I can have it. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be able to have classes for officer training. We’re always able to get it, but if I order retail, it’s close to double the price.”

HACC, which offers municipal police officer cadet training and education for those serving, estimates usage at about 2,000 rounds per cadet for the 80-hour training course.

The college supplies ammunition and loaner 9 mm pistols to cadets. The equipment is part of the $3,000 fee to take the course.

Departments that want to use the center's range for veteran officer qualification have to bring their own supplies.



Wagner said officers are required to recertify annually with their service weapons, but most departments require more than that.

Officers using specialized weapons, such as tactical rifles used in crisis operations, might train once a month, he said.

At the Pennsylvania State Police Academy in Derry Township, training on guns requiring .233-caliber practice rounds has to be monitored because those bullets are among the most scarce, said Cpl. Rodney Manning, the director of the training division for the Bureau of Training and Education.

East Pennsboro Township Police Chief Dennis McMaster said he can’t remember a time when ammunition has been so difficult to come by.

The department requires its officers to qualify three times a year on its weapons — .40-caliber handguns, 12-gauge shotguns and M-4 patrol rifles. Getting handgun and M-4 rounds has been difficult because they are also popular in the military, McMaster said.

“We’re fighting a war on two fronts,” McMaster said. “The Army has to practice just like the policemen.”