According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, more than 52,000 people in the state who have submitted an application for a first-time concealed handgun license or renewal since the beginning of the year. This is an almost 5 percent increase over the first six months of 2007.

The crunch – which some say is spurred by concerns about rising crime, the state’s new castle law and uncertainty about future gun laws – has created a ballooning backlog of applications for the department and angered gun proponents.

On average, new applicants are waiting between 80 and 90 days for their licenses; renewals are taking about 70 to 80 days to process. By law, new applications should take no more than 60 days and renewals 45 days to process unless a required background check raises any flags.

The DPS is paying overtime and has hired an additional 11 temporary employees to help expedite processing. The department says it will be playing a game of catch-up for the foreseeable future.

Last September, many instructors noticed their classes filling once the state’s castle and traveling laws took effect last September.

The castle law authorizes residents to use deadly force to protect their property in some situations without requiring them to retreat first. The traveling law allows those without a license to ride with a gun in their vehicle.

Many students are saying that crime is in places that it wasn’t before and they feel it’s creeping closer to their doorsteps. Other applicants are afraid of anti-gun laws that could come on the heels of the upcoming presidential election.

While Republican candidate John McCain supports gun rights, Democratic candidate Barack Obama favors individuals’ right to bear arms but also a government’s right to regulate them.

But a Supreme Court decision last month that struck down a handgun ban in Washington, D.C., could potentially loosen restrictions.

Gun safety advocates say the court’s decision shouldn’t be a free pass to rewrite gun laws.

Under current law, Texas allows private businesses to ban weapons, and guns are prohibited in certain places, such as government buildings and college campuses.

Gun advocates hope those with concealed-weapon licenses eventually will be given the right to carry their guns on campuses and to secure areas at their workplaces.

Additionally, a petition seeking to change the concealed-carry law to open-carry has picked up some steam in recent weeks, with almost 18,000 people having electronically signed it.