Gun-permit patterns tied to income

Translation: The fees associated with getting the permits to legally carry a gun equate to a poll tax and are disenfranchising the poor.

Jonathon Hartsfield and Adam Kelly live on opposite sides of San Antonio. They'd both like to have a concealed handgun license — just to be safe.

But like many of his neighbors on the low-income South Side, Hartsfield hasn't applied for a gun permit, which costs $140 for the license fee and $100 or more for the 10-hour instruction class.

"It's the cost and time to get it," said Hartsfield, 22, who works at a shooting range.

Kelly, 36, lives on the North Side - one of the most popular areas for concealed handgun licenses. Two weeks ago, he attended the mandatory class to obtain his permit. "It's the right thing to do if you're going to have a gun."

In a pattern that's playing out in Houston, San Antonio and other major cities in Texas, residents in low-income neighborhoods aren't taking advantage of the 15-year-old concealed-carry law as often as residents living in wealthier, more conservative areas.

The Department of Public Safety doesn't identify permit-holders, but it publishes data showing the total permits issued in ZIP codes across Texas. The Texas Tribune, an Austin-based nonprofit news organization, compared the data to income levels and past presidential election results in each ZIP code and voting precinct in Texas.

The Tribune's analysis found the number of gun permits in a neighborhood often correlates with how much money residents make, how they vote and where they live.