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J. French Hill

Republican 3:20 p.m.

“I want to pass a bill that says payment card networks can't use codes that single out firearms retailers. The DOJ has to enforce this.”

J. French Hill

Republican 3:20 p.m.

“I want this bill to pass. Our government must protect the privacy of people who buy guns. Payment systems should not record what people buy. I want to stop codes that single out gun sellers. This bill does not change how we catch criminals. It protects the privacy of people who buy guns. I think this is common sense. I want my colleagues to vote yes.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of Mr. Moore's Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act. Financial privacy is fundamental to consumer trust and confidence in our financial system. As technology continues to transform financial services, protecting Americans' financial privacy remains an essential part of Congress' oversight role. Merchant category codes were designed to help process transactions, not create mechanisms for tracking or categorizing lawful purchases. Maintaining trust in the payment system requires clear safeguards to ensure that these tools are used for commerce, not consumer surveillance. H.R. 1181 establishes those safeguards by preventing payment card networks and processors from using merchant category codes to target firearms retailers and their customers. The Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act provides important protections for consumers by preventing the misuse of payment systems to monitor lawful purchasing activity. Consumers should not have to sacrifice their financial privacy in order to participate in our modern economy. Protecting financial privacy helps reinforce confidence in the institutions and infrastructure that our payment systems operate around. Americans should be able to participate in the economy with confidence that their lawful transactions are simply being processed, not tracked or categorized or scrutinized beyond what is never necessary to essentially facilitate the payment. This bill helps preserve the integrity of that payment system by keeping it focused on facilitating commerce and efficient movement of funds. Importantly, this bill does not interfere with any existing law enforcement authorities, anti-money laundering requirements, fraud prevention efforts, or other obligations designed to protect consumers and safeguard our financial system. H.R. 1181 is a commonsense measure that simply safeguards financial privacy while maintaining the integrity of our Nation's payment network. I urge all my colleagues to support the legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Maxine Waters

Democrat 3:20 p.m.

“I want to talk about gun violence. I want to talk about how many people are killed by guns. I want to talk about a famous shooting. I want to talk about how some states require payment card networks to use a code for gun retailers. I want to say this code could help law enforcement track suspicious purchases. I want to say a bill would make it harder to track suspicious purchases. I want to say this bill will make it easier for criminals to buy guns. I want to talk about a mass shooting where the shooter used credit cards to buy guns and ammo. I want to say that if there were codes for gun shops, maybe the shooter would have been caught. I want to say Americans want Congress to do something about gun violence. I want to say this bill goes in the opposite direction. I want to say this bill will stop states from requiring codes for gun shops. I want you to vote against this bill.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I strongly oppose this bill because it limits efforts to detect and investigate gun violence and acts of terrorism. Before I discuss the bill, let's start with a few sobering statistics: 46,000 Americans die from gun violence every year. That comes out to an average of more than 125 Americans losing their life each day due to gun violence. Of course, America is unusual in this regard. Americans are 26 times more likely to be shot and killed than if you lived in any other high- income country. Nearly one in five Americans say they have personally witnessed someone shot. In the past decade, more than 1.2 million Americans have been shot, with more than 400,000 who died from gun violence. For many who survive a gunshot, they may still suffer a lifetime of devastating consequences. Most of these data points come from GIFFORDS, a gun violence prevention group set up by our former colleague in the House, Gabby Giffords. Of course, she herself was shot when she served as a Congresswoman, and she later set up the group following the Sandy Hook Elementary mass shooting when 20 children and 6 educators lost their lives. Now, a few States, including California, New York, and Colorado, have taken action to require payment card networks to use a merchant category code, or an MCC, to distinguish firearms retailers from other types of retailers. Many different types of retailers have unique MCC codes, including florists, barbershops, art dealers, automotive tire shops, and even candy stores. While these merchant codes don't reveal what individual goods are purchased, they can indicate an unusually large purchase at a type of business that might reveal a risk. This information could help law enforcement track suspicious purchases and prevent even more gun violence. Leading gun safety groups, including Brady, Community Justice, Everytown for Gun Safety, GIFFORDS, Guns Down America, and Newtown Action Alliance, sent the House a letter to urge Members to vote ``no'' on this harmful legislation. In the letter that was sent to me, they said: ``We write in strong opposition to H.R. 1181, the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act. This bill would make it easier for mass shooters, gun traffickers, and even terrorists to abuse our financial systems to stockpile firearms and ammunition undetected.'' They go on to note that between 2007 and 2018, credit cards were used to finance at least eight major mass shootings. One of these included the shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, where 49 people were killed and nearly 60 more were injured a decade ago last month, in June 2016.'' Now, listen to this: Just days before the shooter opened fire, his internet search history included the terms ``credit card unusual spending,'' ``FBI,'' and ``why banks stop your purchases.'' He had opened six new credit card accounts in the 8 months prior, and 12 days before the shooting, he spent more than $26,000 on things like a rifle, a semiautomatic pistol, several large magazines, and thousands of rounds of ammunition. Before this, his average monthly spending on his single card was $1,500. None of the credit card operators, payment processors, or banks were alerted to the types of transactions being undertaken, and they did not notify law enforcement officials about these purchases. We don't know for sure, but had these MCC codes been in place for gun shops back then, a financial institution would have been empowered to report these suspicious credit card purchases to law enforcement. Americans are tired of the senseless gun violence and want Congress to do something to curb it. Unfortunately, this bill goes in the opposite direction and would implement a ban on such merchant reporting on the Federal level and would literally preempt existing State laws like those in California, New York, and Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Riley M. Moore

Republican 3:30 p.m.

“I want to talk about my bill. I want to say it protects privacy and the right to bear arms. I want to say Americans should not have to tell payment processors when they buy guns. I want to say my bill stops states from making gun stores use a separate code. I want to say this code would be a gun registry. I want to say the left keeps trying to make gun registries. I want to say a progressive bank tried to make a gun registry through an international organization. I want to say I stopped this when I was State treasurer in West Virginia. I want to say other states did the same. I want to say some blue states still make gun stores use a separate code. I want to say this is a threat. I want to say gun rights are God-given rights. I want to say we don't need permission to protect ourselves. I want to say no American should worry about being on a government watch list for buying a gun. I want to say privacy and gun ownership go together. I want you to vote for my bill.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of my bill, H.R. 1181, the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act. My bill preserves two fundamental rights: the right to privacy and the right to bear arms. Americans should not be forced to disclose to payment processors when they buy firearms. The bill preserves Americans' rights by prohibiting the creation of a separate merchant category code for firearms. This would, of course, become a de facto gun registry. The bill also preempts harmful State laws and gives the Attorney General authority to take any bank or payment processor that assigns or requires a separate code to Federal court. For too long, the American people have had their rights undermined by the radical left. The bill's premise is simple: no gun registries, period. In fact, this very body has twice prohibited these unjust registries, once in 1986 and again in 1993, to prohibit the left from destroying Americans' rights. However, the gun-grabbing left never stops trying. In 2021, the progressive Amalgamated Bank lobbied the International Organization for Standardization to create a separate merchant category code for firearm retailers to advance a backdoor gun registry. Previously, these retailers had always been accurately categorized as miscellaneous retail stores or sporting goods stores. Amalgamated Bank was hell-bent on tracking firearm purchases. It pressured a faceless, unaccountable, foreign standards body in Geneva to stand up a new merchant category code explicitly targeting American gun owners and American businesses. When I was State treasurer in West Virginia, we said ``no'' to the gun-grabbing progressive bank partnering with a European NGO destroying American rights. Under my leadership as State treasurer, West Virginia enacted one of the first bans on separate merchant category codes for firearms retailers, protecting the privacy of our State's gun owners. Nineteen States after that followed suit. However, a patchwork of State regulations is not enough. California, Colorado, and New York currently mandate that firearm stores have a separate merchant category code, creating a de facto registry in some of the most populous States in our country. This cannot be allowed to stand. We have already seen the Biden administration pressure financial institutions to hand over data on their customers. A private database of gun owners falling into the hands of a future anti-gun administration is a threat that we cannot accept. Our God-given right to own a firearm does not stop at the border of blue States. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues, Representatives Barr and Hudson, for their work on this bill. I also thank Chairman Hill for getting it across the finish line. I also thank Representative Stefanik for her leadership on this issue. These are our God-given rights, spelled out in our Constitution, and we proudly exercise them. We will not allow an elitist bank partnered with a foreign, faceless bureaucracy to rob Americans of their right to protect themselves. In West Virginia, we don't ask permission to protect ourselves and our families, and no American should ever have to wonder whether buying a firearm will land them on a government watch list. Privacy and gun ownership go hand in hand. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.''

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Mike Thompson

Democrat 3:30 p.m.

“I want to talk against this bill. I want to say it makes it harder to catch criminals. I want to say it makes communities less safe. I want to say banks have to report suspicious transactions. I want to say this helps catch human traffickers. I want to say this bill stops states from flagging suspicious gun sales. I want to say many gun traffickers don't buy guns like responsible owners. I want to say trafficked guns often go to convicted felons. I want to say felons with guns are a big risk. I want to say gun violence kills many children and police. I want to say we should break up gun trafficking rings. I want you to vote against this bill.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 1181, a bill which makes it harder to catch criminals and makes our communities less safe. Today, under current law, financial institutions are required to report suspicious transactions to law enforcement. They do this every day, and that helps catch human traffickers. These alerts give law enforcement leads that uncover human trafficking rings and evidence that help put these bad guys away. The bill on the floor today blocks States from using this same process to flag suspicious firearms transactions to uncover gun trafficking rings. Many gun traffickers don't buy guns like responsible gun owners, and once guns are trafficked, we know bad things happen. Approximately 60 percent of trafficked guns are delivered to convicted felons. The felons who seek out and obtain trafficked firearms are the people who pose the greatest risk to everyone's safety. Mr. Speaker, gun violence is the leading cause of death for children, for teenagers, and for law enforcement in the line of duty. We should be working to break up gun trafficking rings which supply the guns that kill kids and cops. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this bill.

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Andy Barr

Republican 3:30 p.m.

“I want to talk for this bill. I want to thank the people who worked on this bill. I want to say this bill protects privacy. I want to say this bill stops the government from tracking people who buy guns. I want to say the government should not track people who buy guns. I want to say the government should not pressure banks to track people who buy guns. I want to say the government should not make lists of people who buy guns. I want to say buying a gun is not suspicious activity. I want to say this bill does not stop the government from investigating crime. I want to say the government should not blame guns for violence. I want to say the government should focus on other causes of violence. I want to say this bill stops the government from abusing its power. I want you to vote for this bill.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1181, the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act. I thank my friend, the gentleman from Arkansas, the chairman of the Financial Services Committee, for his leadership on the bill and for yielding. I am proud to be a cosponsor of this legislation. I thank Congressman Riley Moore for his leadership on this important bill. I thank Congressman Richard Hudson for his longstanding work defending the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens, and our colleague from New York, Elise Stefanik, for her original introduction of this bill in several previous Congresses. At its core, this bill is about protecting privacy and preventing government surveillance on citizens simply for exercising their constitutionally enshrined Second Amendment rights. H.R. 1181 prohibits payment card networks and financial institutions from requiring or assigning merchant category codes, or MCCs, that single out firearm retailers for separate tracking and monitoring. Unfortunately, we have seen repeated examples of progressive regulators and government officials pressuring financial institutions to target lawful industries and lawful customers. From Operation Choke Point under the Obama administration and Choke Point 2.0 under Biden to New York financial regulators pressuring insurance companies to abandon longstanding relationships with the NRA, Americans have legitimate reasons to be concerned about the weaponization of the financial system. Despite what those on the other side of the aisle may say, this bill does nothing to prevent law enforcement or regulators from investigating criminal activity, nor does it change the stringent requirements on financial institutions to comply with existing anti- money laundering laws or suspicious activity reporting requirements. However, what my friend from California who just spoke doesn't say, but it needs to be said, is that the lawful purchase of a firearm protected by the Second Amendment is not in and of itself suspicious activity, nor should it be surveilled by the government. What it does is prevent the creation of a framework that could be used to monitor, flag, and discourage lawful purchases from federally licensed firearm retailers. This is about preventing government actors from using financial data to target Americans who are engaged in conduct expressly protected by the Second Amendment's right to keep and bear arms, a fundamental liberty for Americans. Americans should not have to worry that lawful purchases that they made will be used to create lists, databases, or surveillance tools aimed at this constitutionally protected activity. My friend, the ranking member from California, cited statistics about annual and daily deaths that she says are the result of gun violence. Respectfully, the right to bear arms is not the cause of violence. One murder is too many in America, period. We all agree on that. Rather than blaming gun violence, Congress would be more productive focusing on the root causes of homicide: the breakdown of the family, lack of active parenting, mental illness, open-border policies, policies to defund the police, soft-on-crime policies like no cash bail, and politically motivated violence, like the kind that was behind the murder of Charlie Kirk. Addressing these societal problems does not require unconstitutional surveillance of Americans. H.R. 1181 establishes commonsense guardrails to prevent regulatory abuse and safeguards constitutional freedoms. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

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Maxwell Frost

Democrat 3:40 p.m.

“I don't like this bill. I think it protects bad people. I think banks should track people who buy guns. I think banks should tell the government who buys guns. A shooter in my district used credit cards to buy guns. I want banks to stop that. I want the government to know when people buy guns. I want the government to stop people from buying guns. I want to send this bill back to committee. I want to make sure the government can track people who buy guns. I want to stop this bill from passing.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I strongly oppose the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act. Sponsors claim this bill prevents the privacy of gun owners, but in reality, it protects mass shooters, terrorists, gun traffickers, and the profits of the firearms industry. Financial institutions have already been using merchant codes to detect crimes like money laundering and human trafficking. They should be allowed to use that same responsible monitoring to help prevent gun violence. I know personally why this matters. The Pulse nightclub shooter opened up six new credit cards in 8 months. He racked up more than $26,000 in credit card charges on guns and ammunition in the days before his killing spree in the middle of my district in my home of Orlando, Florida. Our system failed to turn those warning signs into an alert for police. He murdered 49 angels in my community and wounded another 49. Instead of helping to prevent the next tragedy, this bill makes it easier for those warning signs to be missed yet again. It strips law enforcement of an essential tool to stop violence before it happens, making every community in our Nation less safe. For this reason, at the appropriate time, I will offer a motion to recommit this bill back to committee. If the House rules permitted, I would have offered an important amendment to make clear that nothing in this bill should prevent law enforcement from using merchant category codes to assist in investigating and preventing acts of terrorism. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of this amendment into the Record immediately prior to the vote on the motion to recommit. The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. DesJarlais). Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Florida? There was no objection.

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Jim Jordan

Republican 3:40 p.m.

“I want to protect people's privacy. I think the government should not track people who buy guns. I think the government uses these merchant codes to spy on people. I think this is wrong. I think this bill will stop the government from spying on people who buy guns. I think this bill will protect people's rights. I want this bill to pass. I want to thank the people who worked on this bill.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time. Mr. Speaker, you don't give up your Fourth Amendment rights when you are exercising your Second Amendment rights. That is what is happening out there: People's privacy is being invaded. These merchant codes are there so the government can abuse them and track you. If you don't think I am right about this, we have the evidence: January 15, 2021, an email from the FBI to Bank of America saying give us every debit card and credit card purchase for anyone in Washington, D.C., for these particular dates. That is bad enough. You are allowed to travel in this country, too. That is a right we have. Here is what they also say: Also, overlay that with any historic purchase for weapons or weapons-related purchases. What? We want to know what you bought when you were at a certain location, and we want to know if you ever purchased a gun anytime in your life with that credit card or debit card. That is what the FBI asked Bank of America to do. That is how dangerous this practice is. That is why the sponsor from West Virginia, the chairman, and the committee's work is so good. God bless them. You don't give up your Fourth Amendment rights. Our Constitution protects our First, Second, and Fourth Amendment liberties--all of them. They are all important. That is why this legislation is critical. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for his good work and Mr. Moore from West Virginia for sponsoring the bill.

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Al Green

Democrat 3:40 p.m.

“I want to protect people's lives. I think gun violence is bad. I think the government should do more to stop gun violence. I think the right to life is more important than the right to privacy. I think the government should track people who buy guns. I think this is constitutional. I want this bill to not pass. I want to thank the people who agree with me.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I thank those who had the foresight to declare that all persons are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, among them: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. You are not giving up your constitutional rights when you are doing what you can to protect life. I have been to the funerals. I have seen the people who have lost their loved ones to gun violence. At some point we have to do more than contend that privacy trumps the right to life. The person's right to life trumps privacy, especially when no court has said that this is unconstitutional. Mr. Speaker, that is pure speculation on behalf of some people. I believe that the right to life trumps this right to privacy that they are contending.

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Jefferson Van Drew

Republican 3:40 p.m.

“I want to stop the government from tracking what people buy. I think it's wrong for the government to control what people buy and believe. I think this bill is about more than just guns. I think it's about the government using banks to spy on people. I think it's extreme to use banks to track what people believe and what rights they use. I want my colleagues to vote for privacy and freedom. I want them to support the Constitution.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bill. This is not about crime. It is about control. Once you can flag a purchase, any purchase, you can flag a person. Once you can flag a person, you can control what they buy, what banks they use, and even what they believe. It is wrong. It is un-American. This bill is not just about guns. It is about the precedent that was set. If we allow financial institutions to become the surveillance arm of one party's political agenda today, there will be no limit to what gets flagged tomorrow. Let me be clear: Buying a firearm is not extremism; buying a Bible is not extremism; reading the news you choose and want to read is not extremism; exercising a constitutional right is not extremism. The extreme position is using America's banks to build a permanent list to track who people worship, what they read, and what constitutional rights they happen to choose to exercise. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for privacy, freedom, and the Constitution of the United States of America.

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Maxwell Frost

Democrat 3:40 p.m.

“You say this bill violates the Constitution. But banks use the same codes for other stores. If you think it's wrong, why not ban the codes for all stores? The codes don't track what people buy. They are a normal tool. I think the argument against the bill is not good. I want to stop mass shootings. I think the bill will help.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I think it is important to say because we hear over and over from our colleagues about the Constitution: If using merchant category codes violated the Fourth Amendment, where is your bill on amending this for every purchase at a pharmacy, liquor store, or casino? This is a standard accounting tool that is used by banks. This argument, unless you are going to follow it up with legislation to essentially make it illegal to track and have the same codes, which is just a four-digit number, for pharmacies, casinos, liquor, and other things as well, the argument falls flat. Law enforcement needs to go through a legal process to access the financial records here. Mr. Speaker, it is not a good argument. We are talking about something that doesn't track what you are buying. It doesn't track the guns you are buying. It won't tell them that, but it is just a general tool to help us stop some of the worst of the worst mass shootings.

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Laurel M. Lee

Republican 3:40 p.m.

“I want to stop banks from tracking gun buyers. Gun buying is a right. Banks should not watch people who have done nothing wrong. The bill will stop banks from marking gun store purchases. This protects privacy. It is not right to watch people who use their rights. Florida already stopped this. The bill is good.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1181, the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act. The Second Amendment is a constitutional right. Americans should not have their lawful purchases singled out simply because they choose to exercise that right. This bill stops efforts to create a special system for identifying and organizing purchases made at firearm and ammunition retailers. While its proponents present this as simply an administrative tool, in practice it raises serious concerns about privacy and the unjust treatment of lawful conduct. Americans are increasingly concerned about how much information is collected, stored, and shared. Those concerns are especially valid when it comes to information being tracked that relates to the exercise of a constitutional freedom. Here is the reality: Tracking the lawful purchase of firearms and ammunition creates a framework for collecting information about law-abiding citizens who have done nothing wrong. My home State of Florida already prohibits this type of surveillance. Floridians understand something that most Americans agree with: Your bank should process your transaction, not track your activities. This bill prevents payment networks and financial institutions from requiring special codes for firearms retailers, while preserving existing tools used to combat fraud, protect consumers, maintain cybersecurity, and report suspicious activity. At its core, this legislation is about privacy, fairness, and the principle that the exercise of constitutional rights should never become the basis for surveillance. I thank the chairman and the bill's sponsor for their work on this important issue. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1181.

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Maxine Waters

Democrat 3:50 p.m.

“I want to talk about a bill I don't like. I had a hearing. No one said they liked the bill. The bill is bad. The bill stops banks from marking gun store purchases. The codes might help law enforcement. That might save lives. I think it is worth it. I don't like that the bill stops states from using the codes. That is not right.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. As I conclude, I will point out that when our committee held a hearing last year, none of the majority's witnesses said a single positive thing about this bill in their testimony. That is probably because there is nothing positive to say about this harmful bill. Now, using merchant category codes for firearm retailers won't solve this problem, not even close. The codes themselves don't identify what is purchased, but it might have triggered a flag for unusual and suspicious purchases that get reported to law enforcement. Mr. Speaker, that might save 1 life or 10 lives or 100 lives or 1,000 lives or 10,000 lives. Even if it is a fraction of the 416,000 who have died from gun violence over the past decade, wouldn't it be worth it? Mr. Speaker, the audacity of the opposite side of the aisle to tell States they cannot use these merchant codes, any State in the United States of America, even those who started in some way using these codes, they are now saying they want a law that would preempt your State from being able to use the merchant codes. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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J. French Hill

Republican 3:50 p.m.

“I want to talk about a bill I like. I had a debate. I thank my colleague for writing the bill. I want everyone to support the bill. The bill is about privacy. I yield back my time.”

What they said. What they meant.

Recent debates

Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act

J. French Hill

J. French Hill

Maxine Waters

Riley M. Moore

Mike Thompson

Andy Barr

Maxwell Frost

Jim Jordan

Al Green

Jefferson Van Drew

Maxwell Frost

Laurel M. Lee

Maxine Waters

J. French Hill