Louisiana Bans Credit Card Tracking of Gun, Ammo Purchases

A handgun in a holster in a file photo. (David Ryder/Getty Images)

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry has signed a bill into law that supporters say protects the privacy and sensitive financial information of people buying guns and ammunition.

Mr. Landry, a Republican, signed SB 301, or the Second Amendment Financial Privacy Act, into law on June 11, making Louisiana the 16th state to adopt measures banning government tracking of firearms when bought using credit cards or other payment cards.

The new law, which goes into effect on Aug. 1, prohibits financial institutions from requiring or encouraging retailers to assign firearm-specific merchant category codes to card-based purchases of guns and ammunition. The measure also bans financial services providers from assigning a merchant category code to gun stores in a way that distinguishes the firearm retailer from other retailers.

The law also prohibits any government entities, officials, or agents from keeping any list, record, or registry of privately-owned firearms or the owners of those firearms, except in the case of a criminal investigation.

“Governor Jeff Landry’s signature on the Second Amendment Financial Privacy Act is a powerful statement that the Second Amendment rights of Louisianans are not negotiable,” Darren LaSorte, a director at the Firearm Industry Trade Association, said in a statement. “This law will protect Louisiana’s citizens from unlawful intrusion on their private purchases when purchasing firearms and ammunition with a payment card.”

Firearm Code Controversy

Merchant category codes consist of four digits and are used to classify retailers across various industries.

In 2022, an international standards body approved the creation of merchant category codes for gun retailers to identify payment card sales of guns and ammunition.

Several payment processors, including Visa and Mastercard, initially said they would be implementing the codes but later hit pause as the firearm codes prompted pushback from Second Amendment advocates, leading several states to advance legislation to restrict their use.

Other states that have enacted similar measures are Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Iowa, Kentucky, Wyoming, Indiana, Utah, Florida, Idaho, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Texas, and West Virginia.

The controversial firearm codes were created by the Switzerland-based International Organization for Standardization (ISO), in response to a 2022 request by Amalgamated Bank, whose president said that the bank’s petition to ISO had broad support from elected officials across the United States and came after three years of partnership with the gun control advocacy groups Guns Down America and Giffords Law Center.

“The new code will allow us to fully comply with our duty to report suspicious activity and illegal gun sales to authorities without blocking or impeding legal gun sales,” Priscilla Sims Brown, president and CEO of Amalgamated Bank, said in a statement at the time. “This action answers the call of millions of Americans who want safety from gun violence and we are proud to have led the broad coalition of advocates, shareholders, and elected officials that achieved this historic outcome.”

In New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James, praised the decision to create the codes.

“Labeling gun and ammunition sales is a responsible, common sense way to help protect Americans and I thank Amalgamated Bank for their bold leadership on this critical issue,” Ms. James said in a statement. “I urge credit card companies to take the next step and flag suspicious transactions on gun and ammunition sales, like they do for fraud and money laundering.”

Second Amendment advocates have said these codes could be used to intimidate gun owners and discriminate against firearm retailers.

A group of 24 attorneys general sent a letter to congressional lawmakers and the heads of credit card companies in September 2022, vowing to marshal the full scope of their authority to oppose the codes, arguing that the codes would do nothing to bolster public safety but would only unfairly target law-abiding citizens and consumers.

The National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action urged lawmakers across the United States to adopt laws restricting the use of the merchant codes for firearm sales, calling such moves “an important protection for gun owners, preventing abuse of private purchasing information by third parties.”