The recommendations appear in a new state-specific roadmap from the university’s Center for Gun Violence Solutions. Lead author Ethan Bartlett said the measures are intended to improve outcomes statewide, though their effects may differ among communities based on local conditions and how policies are implemented.

Three proposals could be especially significant in Milwaukee and other places experiencing higher levels of interpersonal gun violence, Bartlett said: requiring a license to buy a firearm, requiring state licenses for gun dealers, and establishing sustainable support for violence intervention and prevention programs.

As of Oct. 8, Milwaukee had recorded 84 homicides and 325 nonfatal shootings, according to the Milwaukee Police Department’s crime dashboard. Those figures were down more than 20% from the same period in 2025, when the city had recorded 108 homicides and 425 nonfatal shootings. Milwaukee recorded 142 homicides and 516 nonfatal shootings in all of 2025.

Bartlett cautioned that homicide figures do not capture the full scope of firearm harm. Firearm suicides make up the largest share of firearm deaths, he said, and Wisconsin has more firearm injuries each year than firearm homicides and suicides combined.

Wisconsin does not require a license to purchase a firearm. The Johns Hopkins proposal would require prospective buyers to complete safety training, including live-fire instruction, submit fingerprints, undergo a comprehensive background check and apply in person. The guide cites research associating purchaser-licensing laws with an 11% reduction in firearm homicides across 136 large urban counties between 1984 and 2015.

Milwaukee County Supervisor Justin Bielinski broadly supports the guide’s recommendations but warned that licensing requirements could place an unfair burden on lower-income residents and people of color, particularly in heavily policed neighborhoods.

The roadmap also recommends state licensing for gun dealers, beyond federal requirements. Wisconsin has no separate state dealer license, the guide says. The proposed system would include recordkeeping, security standards and inspections. Research cited in the guide found that strong state dealer regulations were associated with a 64% decline in firearm trafficking within states.

Federal data cited in the report show that authorities recovered and traced 8,841 firearms in Wisconsin in 2023, including 3,781 in Milwaukee.

Bridget Whitaker, executive director of Milwaukee nonprofit Safe & Sound, said stronger safeguards could help keep guns from reaching people who should not have them. A dispute or impulsive decision can become fatal when a firearm is involved, she said.

Whitaker said she most strongly supports stable funding for community violence intervention and prevention. Milwaukee already has efforts including Safe & Sound, the 414LIFE violence interruption program and initiatives coordinated by the city’s Department of Community Wellness and Safety.

The researchers also recommend establishing Wisconsin’s Office of Violence Prevention in state law, which they say could help provide more consistent state support. Gov. Tony Evers created the office by executive order in January 2025, initially backed by $10 million in federal funding. His proposal to make it permanent through the 2025-27 state budget was not included in the final budget.

“Trust doesn’t operate on a grant cycle,” Whitaker said, describing the difficulty nonprofits face when expected to build long-term neighborhood relationships with funding that may last only a year.

Bielinski said most of the roadmap’s policy changes would require action by state lawmakers. He also questioned whether Milwaukee County could afford to expand violence-prevention programs under current budget conditions. A spokesperson for the Wisconsin Department of Administration, which oversees the state office, said continued, dependable and flexible funding is important for prevention work in Milwaukee and statewide.

Evers has previously called for universal background checks and an extreme risk protection order law, which would allow courts to temporarily restrict firearm access for people considered at serious risk of harming themselves or others. His administration also directed $8.4 million in federal funding to Milwaukee violence-prevention efforts in 2022.

The other recommendations in the Johns Hopkins roadmap include stronger firearm-storage rules and domestic-violence protections, an extreme risk protection order law, broader restrictions on firearm purchases and possession, a ban on large-capacity magazines, stronger rules for carrying guns in public and mandatory reporting of lost or stolen firearms.