SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah's concealed weapons permit is considered by many firearms aficionados to be the most valuable in the nation because it is accepted by more than 30 states.

But it's not just Utah residents who are taking advantage of it.

For the first time in the permit's 12-year history, nonresidents are receiving more permits than residents, creating what could be a serious legal problem -- Utah has no way of making daily checks to see if someone's permit should be revoked because of an out-of-state arrest, said Ed McConkie, chief of the state Bureau of Criminal Identification.

"When we do our automatic cross-section of those permit holders arrested we do not have the resources or capabilities to check non-Utahn applicants or, more specifically, those applicants that are outside of the Utah criminal case history or Utah state warrant system," McConkie said.

"That creates serious liability issues the Legislature is going to have to address."

State officials estimate that about 58 percent of the more than 16,000 concealed weapons permit applications that will be received this year will come from out-of-state residents, with the fastest-growing segment coming from Canadians. In past years that figure was closer to 25 percent.

Part of what makes Utah's concealed weapons permit so attractive, besides its widespread acceptance, is that the permit only needs to be renewed every five years at a cost of $10. In other states and counties, it can cost 10 times that and permit renewal can be required more frequently.

But McConkie said the state only has the resources to check criminal backgrounds during the permit application and renewal process. He also said he doubted most other states would be able to check to see if someone arrested there has a Utah concealed weapons permit to alert officials here.

"If you are in Missouri, for example, and you have a protection order put against you we will not know that unless there are some extenuating circumstances that come to our attention," he said. "We don't have the resources or the ability to find that out. That's something the Legislature is going to have to grapple with."

The flood of new applicants is straining the Bureau of Criminal Identification, which is failing to meet its statutory obligation of issuing permits within 60 days. Other background checks, such as those for teachers, are also being delayed.

McConkie said his agency also has barely enough staff to make sure instructors along the Wasatch Front are following protocol, much less those certified in 42 other states and Canada.

The initial application requires a gun-safety class, fingerprinting, a criminal background check and payment of a $59 fee, but applicants need not ever step foot in Utah.

The bureau's budget is typically about $88,000 a year while its operating costs are closer to $832,000 a year. McConkie is hoping lawmakers will dedicate the state's portion of the initial application fee -- $35 -- to help fund the permit program. That would generate about $650,000. There was little talk about increasing fees for out-of-state applicants or limiting their access.

"We will be happy if we get to keep what comes in currently," he said. "We are confident that we can make this program run efficiently and meet your statutory imposed deadline to get these applications out within 60 days if we simply are able to keep the money that comes in on this user fee program."

A law enforcement and criminal justice committee recommended that proposal Wednesday. The executive appropriations committee is expected to review it Friday.

"My assertion is a large number of non-resident applications isn't a problem in and of itself. It's a good sign there are a lot of people outside the state who are interested in a Utah permit," said National Rifle Association lobbyist Brian Judy, who holds a non-resident Utah concealed weapons permit.

"The Utah system is a good system. Utah permit holders are law-abiding citizens. True -- you're going to have a very few and far between where a permit holder will cause a problem, but it's ... an insignificant number."

Legislators said they aren't sure if the out-of-state permit application increase is a fluke or a new trend. In the past year, permit applications have increased 50 percent. In the past two years, it's increased 100 percent.

Sen. Mark Madsen, R-Lehi, said the state should be commended for becoming the "gold standard" for concealed weapons permits. He said Utah's permit is widely accepted because its gun-safety program is highly respected.