Congress·In Committee·H.R. 7133

Merchant Codes Can Save Lives Act

Congress Proposes Law to Stop States from Blocking Gun Store Sales Codes

Jan 16·View on Congress.gov·Read full text

Part of: The Legislative Tug-of-War Over Firearm Merchant Category Codes

Next up: A house committeeNo action in 6 months

This bill is currently in the House Committee on Financial Services. It has not had any new action since January 2026, which means it has been stalled for five months. The House committee must choose to review or vote on the bill before it can move forward.

Legislative Progress

House

Senate

President

Law

Key Points

This bill would stop states from banning the use of special tracking codes for gun and ammunition stores. These codes are used by credit card companies to label the type of business where a purchase is made.
Currently, some states have passed laws to prevent these codes from being used, often citing privacy concerns for gun owners. This federal law would override those state bans and allow the codes to be used nationwide.
Supporters of these codes say they help banks and law enforcement spot suspicious buying patterns that might signal a mass shooting or illegal gun trafficking before they happen.
If this becomes law, the U.S. Attorney General would have the power to take legal action against any state that tries to block or discourage banks from using these specific firearm merchant codes.

Gun PolicyConsumer ProtectionData Privacy

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

How this policy affects specific groups of people

Mixed Impacts(2)

Gun Owner

Neutral

Gun owners would see their firearm and ammunition purchases tagged with a specific merchant category code by credit card companies, even in states that currently ban this practice. Supporters say this helps prevent mass shootings, but many gun owners worry it creates a backdoor registry of their purchases and could lead to banks flagging or restricting legal transactions based on buying patterns.

Small Business Owner

Neutral

Gun shop owners and ammunition dealers would be classified under a specific merchant category code nationwide, regardless of state laws that currently protect them from this labeling. While this doesn't change what they can sell, some worry it could lead banks or payment processors to treat them differently — potentially flagging transactions or adding extra scrutiny to their businesses.

Broader Impacts

DomainScoreShort-termLong-termReversibilityConfidence

Score

Scores: -5 (harmful) to +5 (beneficial)Short-term: 0-2 yearsLong-term: 10-30 years

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions

Jan 16, 2026House

Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.

Jan 16, 2026

Introduced in House

The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.

Related News

2 articles

WKMG ClickOrlando·Jan 16

Congressman Frost discusses ICE operations, reintroducing gun violence prevention bills

U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Orlando) announced plans to reintroduce three major gun violence prevention bills: the Merchant Codes Can Save Lives Act, the Destroy Zombie Guns Act, and the Prevent Illegal Gun Sales Act. The Merchant Codes bill aims to override state bans on firearm merchant codes.

Center Left

The Hill·Mar 7, 2024

Democrats introduce bill to allow merchant codes for gun stores

Democratic lawmakers led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Madeleine Dean introduced the Merchant Codes Can Save Lives Act. The legislation would require the use of specific merchant category codes (MCCs) for gun and ammunition retailers to help flag suspicious purchasing patterns.

Center

No votes or related bills recorded for this bill yet.

Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

Merchant Codes Can Save Lives Act

Bill NumberHR 7133

Congress119th Congress

ChamberHouse of Representatives

Latest ActionReferred to the House Committee on Financial Services.

Data Sources

Congress.gov

Official legislative information

Read Full Bill Text

Sponsor

Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.