Florida efforts ‘working’ after credit card companies pause work to track gun purchases

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FLV) – Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson lauded the state’s efforts as some credit card companies reportedly paused their work to track gun purchases.

“It’s working, y’all,” Simpson said on Twitter while posting about a story where credit card companies are pausing their efforts regarding gun purchases.

Simpson, along with Sen. Danny Burgess, R-Zephyrhills, and Rep. John Snyder, R-Stuart, announced a proposal to combat tracking gun and ammunition purchases in January.

The proposed legislation came after the International Organization for Standardization announced it would be creating a new merchant category code with the specific intent of identifying the sale of firearms and ammunition.

The proposal would fine companies up to $10,000 for utilizing the new code for guns and ammunition. 

Simpson called the new code a “backdoor way of trying to intimidate gun owners.”

Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. reportedly said it would suspend their work on creating the new merchant category code. Banks could use the code when processing transactions for gun and ammunition stores.

The Florida House version of the bill has passed one committee and is awaiting a second committee’s approval. The state’s Senate version passed two committees and is awaiting a third approval.

Several red states introduced similar legislation to Florida’s, aiming to stop credit card companies from collecting data on customer firearm purchases.

Democrats have applauded credit card companies for wanting to create a new merchant code to track gun sales. Congressional Democrat lawmakers wrote in a letter that “shooters in at least five major mass shootings between 2007 and 2020 financed their massacres using credit cards.”