This morning, April 1, the legislature adjourned Sine Die. Throughout this year's session, multiple pro-gun measures were introduced to protect our Second Amendment rights. Thanks to the pro-gun majority, all anti-gun bills failed in committee.
Mississippi's Merchant Category Code (“MCC”) Bill, HB 1110, passed both chambers and had a conference report filed and adopted by both. This bill prohibits payment processors from requiring the use of a firearms-specific MCC to distinguish purchases at a firearms retailer from a general merchandise or sporting goods retailer. It also prevents the misuse of payment card processing systems to surveil, report, or disclose these legal transactions. Governor Tate Reeves will now have the opportunity to sign the bill into law. Governor Reeves has always been steadfast in his defense of law-abiding citizens' Second Amendment rights in the state.
The NRA would like to thank Representative Jansen Owen, for authoring HB 1110, and Representative Nick Bain, Representative Shane Barnett, and Senator Chris Johnson for their leadership in ensuring the success of this bill. Additionally, the NRA thanks all lawmakers who worked tirelessly to address the emerging threat to Second Amendment rights posed by the MCC rule and the potential tracking of firearm purchases. Anti-gun radicals have attempted to outsource the creation and maintenance of a gun owner registry to the private financial sector because the federal government is prohibited by law from doing so.
The NRA will return to Jackson for the next legislative session and will continue to work to preserve the Second Amendment rights of all law-abiding citizens. Please stay tuned to www.nraila.org and your email inbox for further updates.