A new legislative proposal in Colorado, SB24-066, is stirring controversy with its intention to introduce Merchant Category Codes (MCCs) specifically for firearm sales. These four-digit identifiers, common in the retail sector to classify the nature of transactions, are at the heart of a debate that extends far beyond their apparent administrative function. While proponents argue that assigning unique MCCs to gun and ammunition retailers could aid in identifying suspicious purchasing patterns, critics are raising alarms over privacy and Second Amendment rights.
At the core of the opposition’s concern is the belief that such a measure veils an attempt to establish a covert registry of gun owners. By mandating payment networks like Visa and Mastercard to apply a distinct code to transactions at firearm retailers, the government would, in effect, gain the ability to monitor legal gun purchases. It also sets the stage for further abuses by the financial industry to decline payments and financing for businesses and individuals buying or selling firearms.
“This effectively creates a backdoor gun registry,” Taylor Rhodes, executive director of Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, told KDVR Fox 31. He illustrates a scenario where a simple purchase of a shotgun at a store like Cabela’s could become a tracked transaction, a stark departure from when such purchases were categorized under general sporting goods, eluding specific scrutiny.
The pushback from groups like Rocky Mountain Gun Owners underscores a broader apprehension that the legislation could infringe on the privacy of law-abiding citizens who exercise their right to buy firearms. These concerns are not just theoretical; they reflect a growing unease with how data collection and surveillance could be used to compile detailed profiles on gun owners without their consent or, arguably, a legitimate basis.
Supporters of the bill, like Hudson Munoz of Guns Down America, emphasize the potential safety benefits, likening the measure to existing efforts by banks and credit card companies to combat fraud and other illicit activities. By spotting potentially dangerous patterns in firearm purchases, they argue, such codes could prevent crimes before they occur. Yet, this perspective does not fully address the fears of those who see the proposal as a slippery slope toward excessive government oversight and a dilution of constitutional rights.
As the bill progresses through the Senate, with its recent advancement from the Senate Business, Labor & Technology Committee, the debate it has ignited reflects deeper national divisions over gun control and privacy. The resistance from organizations like Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, poised to challenge the bill both legislatively and possibly through litigation, as well as other 2A organizations signals an inevitable contentious path ahead, not just for SB24-066 but for the broader conversation around gun rights and regulatory oversight in America.
Colorado used to be a sane place to be. Now that it’s being overrun by west coast transplants, backdoor activities are becoming more and more common.
(sigh)
It’s getting to the point where every week there’s some Leftist, Democrat-overrun State introducing some type of gun control to specifically reduce our liberties, and often the same thing that has already been attempted and knocked down elsewhere in the nation.
STATE A) “Here is a plate of beans, rice, and cheese. With poison sauce drizzled on top.”
COURTS) “You cannot serve that specific recipe. Stop.”
STATE B) “Here is a plate of cheese, beans, and rice. With poison sauce mixed inside.”
COURTS) “You cannot serve that specific recipe. Stop.”
STATE C) “Here is a plate of rice, beans, and poisoned cheese.”
THE PEOPLE) “Really?…”
How would that MCC work with gun sales conducted on-line thru AAFES (Army,Air Force Exchange Service), or at many Military Exchanges on installations around the country? I’ve bought several firearms this way, as have many thousands of other active duty, reserve, and retired military members. It’s convenient, avoids State Sales Taxes, no NICS fee, and no shipping costs. And you can pick up a bottle of whiskey, or a clothing item, etc. at the same time you pick up your gun or ammo, etc. One stop shopping. 🙂
It would be done from the top down, so that any merchant who wants to be able to accept credit card payments would be forced to comply. It would be baked into the processing of every transaction. If you use a card to pay for a firearm purchase, your transaction would be added to the data file automatically, unless there is some kind of exemption.
It would take a lot of work to get the processing systems set up to do this, which in the end, would be charged to the merchants and/or consumers. But as we know, the leftists who are behind schemes like this aren’t worried about the costs of implementing their nefarious plans.
Apparently it’s already begun in CA. Looks like it’s a State by State thing.
https://www.breitbart.com/2nd-amendment/2024/02/13/visa-mastercard-american-express-implementing-code-to-track-gun-purchase-information-in-california/
In California, it is just gilding the lily, or a patent attempt to “encourage” credit card companies to authorizing firearms purchases, since California already has a gun registry that has been in effect for over twenty years. Does anyone know how many other states have registries?? I know that NY, NJ, MA and Hi have registries.
https://ballotpedia.org/Firearm_registration_requirements_by_state
100 Members of Congress Back Effort to Preserve Lake City Civilian Ammunition Sales > https://www.shootingnewsweekly.com/2024/02/12/100-members-of-congress-back-effort-to-preserve-lake-city-civilian-ammunition-sales/
As much as you cherish your God Given Rights there are insane people across America who disdain those rights. Such individuals are left to wallow in their misery until the day they die. In the meantime all they can do every now and then is let off steam as seen directly below…
…. and right on cue, here’s one of those aforementioned insane people.
The stupidly and paranoia of the Far Right is infinite.
Sane people who are not suffering from sick Far Right paranoia know that if any type or category of guns are someday restricted or outlawed it will do you zero good to own one.
Now let’s take a look at why and of course the stupidity of the Far Right.
1. You would never be able to use a banned or restricted gun in a self defense situation because they would put you in the same cell as the criminal who robbed you.
2. You could not sell such a gun under the table without risk of getting caught, going to prison, be fined, lose your job, and be banned for life from owning any firearm.
3. You could not shoot such a weapon at any public shooting range.
4. If there was a fire in your home and the Fire Dept entered your home if they say a restricted weapon they would be required by law to report you to the police
5. If your weapon was stolen or you sold it and it ended up being used in a crime you would be charged as accessory to the crime of either theft or even murder.
So should these Morons of the Far Right be worried about the ability of a business to help police stop or solve gun crime. The answer is no. The tracings are for societies benefit which the Far Right could not care less about because they do not value life , even the life of their own children which to them is cheap and expendable and to be immediately sacrificed on the warped altar of zero gun control. They are very sick people.
The stupidly and, well, just plain stupid displayed by dacian in his posted-display of ignorance and mental illness is infinite.
Your entire list. Replace guns with drugs.
You’ve hit on a genius plan to do away with illegal drug use and sales in America. Make it illegaler and all the druggie will get sober.
Or not. You really are too stupid to live without your social worker.
To Jethro the Janitor who’s every post makes him the bigger fool.
To answer your question, you Hillbilly ignoramus, when you decriminalize drugs and institute Socialist programs that give treatment to drug addicts they no longer need to buy drugs because they get them for free from the Government which of course includes treatment which in turn drives drug sellers out of business because who in the hell would buy drugs if you can get them for free. Of course you, being a cheap stingy Hilljack, would rather save a penny in taxes and put up with getting caught in the crossfire of two rival drug gangs shooting it out on the street. Your stupidity even amazes yourself.
You really fell head first into your backyard outhouse on that post Jethro. Try again and keep the hilarious Hillbilly posts coming. LMAO
None of what you say is true. To date, every state that has banned “assault weapons” haw grandfathered in existing firearms and magazines. Further, no stat I know of has–or could– prevent the sale of a banned firearm in another state that does not have a ban. Firearms owners are not liable for criminal acts committed by others. The only exception is in those few states that mandate notifying the police of the theft, a law intended to prevent owners from falsely claiming that the firearm was stolen after they commit a crime with it.
First, I don’t see the relationship of your comment to this article. Help me out there.
Second,
“Sane people who are not suffering from sick Far Right paranoia know that if any type or category of guns are someday restricted or outlawed it will do you zero good to own one.”
Under what Constitutional methodology would a category of guns be outlawed? Even the NFA restrictions will soon end under the Bruen guidelines. Even the 1939 Miller ruling regarding the NFA laid the groundwork to dismantle it. The writing is on the wall D. and the yellow brick road to liberty has been laid.
Gman you are living in a fantasy land. The NFA act has as much chance of being rescinded as you have to winning your states lottery.
Even the warped Scalia Decision stated “The Court has the right to “regulate firearms”. In case you did not know that is double speak for ban or restrict firearms which falls under the NFA act.
“National Firearms Act Act”. Really shows that you’re an expert on the topic!
Are you ignorant, drowning in the koolaid or merely a troll? Either way I tried to put this in plain & simple words to help you understand it. 1. There are way more children sacrificed to an abortionist’s suction than killed by firearms. Don’t want to hear about a fetus is not a person. Progressive libs say a fetus determines his/her gender in the womb (can’t have it both ways).
2. The constitution provides the right to bear arms shall not be infringed. It’s not right wing/left wing it’s the law of the land. (Just an FYI, abortion is not a *right*. Of course if you can find it in the constitution I’ll correct myself)
I think we should track people who get abortions.
See how that works??
PAY WITH CASH OR PREPAID DEBIT CARD!!
This should be done in addition to fighting nonsense like the above. There’s a reason the government wants a cashless society, and it’s not for our benefit.
If you pay with a debit card on a website, is there still a transaction code applied to the transaction??
Asking for a friend.
Yes. Debit cards use the same payment network as credit cards, that’s why they have the Visa/Mastercard logo on them- it indicates which network is used.
Types of cards like prepaid debit or credit cards are generally not associated with a specific user. I could buy a $500 VISA gift card at the grocery store, pay cash for it, and then use it at the gun shop, and the only way that use of the card could be traced back to me specifically would be if the merchant attached my name to the transaction. However, half of that part of it is already accomplished by the authorities, by way of the 4473. The merchant will know who you are, and it wouldn’t be difficult to have the system link the 4473 to the purchase, electronically. Many gun retailers already use an electronic 4473. So rosignol is correct, but the tracing would occur through a different pathway, unless the regulations for sales of prepaid cards were changed to require registration of the card to the user.
darcydodo…you silly blabbermouth there’s not a bit of difference between your thinking and the thinking behind Jim Crow, the third reich and an abortion mill. Bottom line…you need an enema.
I was waiting for TTAG to talk about colorado again.
Don’t worry you get the leg#l butt sex and drugs.
Why because years ago colorado celebrated the legalization of pot. And colorado celebrated the election of an open ho m0 sexual married with children governor.
So yes you got the legaliz@tion of butt sex and drugs.
You got the soft easy things.
The things you have to work hard for. The things that are difficult to keep. You’re not really interested in working to keep those things. Because it’s too difficult for you.
The sexually liberated and h0m0 sexu@ls are s0ci@ list pr0 gressive in their p0litic@l or!ent@tion. They are @theists. President Eisenhower said the enemies of the United States are atheistic in nature.
They have never believed in the 1st amendment. What day will tell you is it the First Amendment was written for their pornography.
Now they can have their pornography if they want it. But that is not the reason why the first amendment was written.
I do feel bad for the patriots who are trapped in colorado and outnumbered.
I was waiting for TTAG to talk about colorado again.
Don’t worry you get the leg#l butt sex and drugs.
Why because years ago colorado celebrated the legaliz@ tion of pot. And colorado celebrated the election of an open ho m0 sexual married with children governor.
So yes you got the legaliz @tion of butt sex and drugs.
You got the soft easy things.
The things you have to work hard for. The things that are difficult to keep. You’re not really interested in working to keep those things. Because it’s too difficult for you.
The sexually liberated and h0m0 sexu@ls are s0ci@ list pr0 gressive in their p0litic@l or!ent@tion. They are @theists. President Eisenhower said the enemies of the United States are atheistic in nature.
They have never believed in the 1st amendment. What day will tell you is it the First Amendment was written for their pornography.
Now they can have their pornography if they want it. But that is not the reason why the first amendment was written.
I do feel bad for the patriots who are trapped in colorado and outnumbered.
Every h0 m0 sexu@l and atheist , who has been elected to office , has worked to take away civil.
And when given the opportunity to vote for a pro civil rights g#y candidate , they are always rejected.
edit
Every h0 m0 sexu@l and atheist, who has been elected to public office, has worked to take away civil rights.
And when given the opportunity to vote for a pro civil rights g#y candidate, in San Francisco, they are always rejected.
They are for raising taxes on everything. But when they leg@lized pot in california. Now all of a sudden those business taxes were applied to them. So they ran away, to the Free and low tax state of colorado.
But unfortunately they brought their politics with them. And since then they heave been working to destroy that once Free state.
A slight point of order here…………The title of the article is a bit misleading. Just as in Texas and New Mexico (and other states), anyone with a concealed carry permit is ALREADY in a permanent state-maintained firearms ownership registry. In Texas (at least) even if you don’t renew (or surrender) your permit the data remains in the system for an indefinite period. In all three states law enforcement offices see your registry information anytime they input your driver’s license. So this proposal by the CO state government simply expands the already existing registry from concealed carry permit holders to every purchaser who uses a credit or debit card instead of cash.
Unless the transaction code includes an itemized list of what was purchased, I’m not sure it will result in a registry because you wouldn’t necessarily know what they purposed at store, it could have just been a shirt, bumper sticker, gun safe, books on guns, etc.