WASHINGTON, D.C. — NSSF®, The Firearm Industry Trade Association, praises Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for signing SB 214, a law that bars credit card companies from implementing a special Merchant Category Code (MCC) for credit card purchases at firearm retailers. Gov. DeSantis, and the Florida legislature, are ensuring that the privacy of customers at firearm retailers remains protected and is not collected to be used in an illegal backdoor firearm registry.
“Governor DeSantis is standing up against a ‘woke’ initiative borne from the efforts of antigun Wall Street banks and their gun control allies in the media to use lawful private transactions as a means to usher in gun control,” said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel. “No law-abiding American should be subjected to having their name and financial data being added to a government-accessible watchlist simply for exercising their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. Governor DeSantis is ensuring that Floridians won’t be held captive by the radical ‘woke’ antigun agenda that seeks to weaponize credit cards in gun owners’ wallets against them. Gun owners should worry about what’s in their wallet, not who’s in their wallet.”
Florida’s SB 214 will ensure that the names of law-abiding firearm owners are not illegally recorded on a list or registry; prohibit a payment settlement entity, merchant acquiring entity or third party settlement organization from assigning a MCC classifying a merchant as a seller of firearms or ammunition; and authorize the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to investigate alleged violations of the law.
In late 2022, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) announced it would create a unique MCC, at the behest of Amalgamated Bank, which has been described as the Left’s Private Banker, that would allow credit card companies to monitor transactions at firearm retailers. Credit card companies suspended plans to implement the use of unique firearm retailer MCCs after significant opposition by NSSF and several state governments.
NSSF also thanks Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson for his leadership on this issue along with the bill sponsors, state Sen. Danny Burgess and state Rep. John Snyder.
Florida joins West Virginia, Mississippi and Idaho in enacting laws to protect firearm purchasers’ privacy when using credit cards at firearm retailers. Legislation similar to Florida’s law is pending in Congress.
