June 17, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — NSSF^®, The Firearm Industry Trade Association, applauds Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry for signing SB 301, the Second Amendment Financial Privacy Act, into law last week. This NSSF-supported law protects the privacy and sensitive financial information of people purchasing firearms and ammunition in The Pelican State. With Louisiana, there are now 16 states with laws that protect the Second Amendment financial privacy of their citizens.

The law prohibits financial institutions from requiring the use of a firearm code, also known as a Merchant Category Code (MCC), from being assigned to firearm and ammunition purchases at retail when using a credit card. The law also forbids discriminating against a firearm retailer as a result of the assigned or non-assignment of a firearm code and disclosing the protected financial information. Additionally, the law prohibits keeping or causing to be kept any list, record or registry of private firearm ownership.

“Governor Jeff Landry’s signature on the Second Amendment Financial Privacy Act is a powerful statement that the Second Amendment rights of Louisianans are not negotiable. This law will protect Louisiana’s citizens from unlawful intrusion on their private purchases when purchasing firearms and ammunition with a payment card,” said Darren LaSorte, NSSF’s Director, Government Relations – State Affairs. “‘Woke’ Wall Street banks, credit card companies and payment processors won’t be able to collude with government entities to spy on Louisianans’ private finances when they exercise their rights. No American should fear being placed on a government watchlist because they choose their Constitutionally-protected rights to keep and bear arms.”

NSSF worked closely with Louisiana legislators to protect private and legal firearm and ammunition purchases from political exploitation. The Second Amendment Financial Privacy Act is designed to protect the privacy of lawful and private firearm and ammunition purchases from being abused for political purposes by corporate financial service providers and unlawful government search and seizure of legal and private financial transactions. NSSF is grateful to state Sen. Blake Miguez and state Rep. Troy Romero for guiding this legislation to passage and enactment.

The U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) admitted to U.S. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) in a letter that it violated the Fourth Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens that protect against illegal search and seizure when it collected the credit card purchase history from banks and credit card companies of individuals who purchased firearms and ammunition in the days surrounding Jan. 6, 2020. Treasury’s FinCEN had no probable cause, and sought the information without a warrant, to place these law-abiding citizens on a government watchlist only because they exercised their Second Amendment rights to lawfully purchase firearms and ammunition.

The idea of a firearm-retailer specific MCC was borne from antigun New York Times’ columnist Andrew Ross Sorkin and Amalgamated Bank, which has been called “The Left’s Private Banker” and bankrolls the Democratic National Committee and several antigun politicians. Amalgamated Bank lobbied the Swiss-based International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for the code’s creation. NSSF has called on Congress to investigate Amalgamated Bank’s role in manipulating the ISO standard setting process for political purposes.

Sorkin admitted creating a firearm-retailer specific MCC would be a first step to creating a national firearm registry, which is forbidden by federal law.

Louisiana joins a growing list of states that are standing against the invasion of financial privacy when exercising Second Amendment rights, including Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Iowa, Kentucky, Wyoming, Indiana, Utah, Florida, Idaho, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Texas and West Virginia. These states passed laws protecting citizens’ Second Amendment privacy. Other states are considering similar legislation. U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) introduced S. 4075, the NSSF-supported Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act in the Senate. U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) introduced H.R. 7450, with the same title in the U.S. House of Representatives. Only two states – California and Colorado – have laws requiring payment card processors to report purchases by a firearm retailer-specific MCC. New York’s legislature passed similar legislation, which is expected to be signed into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

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About NSSF
NSSF is the trade association for the firearm industry. Its mission is to promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports. Formed in 1961, NSSF has over 10,5000 members including manufacturers, distributors, firearms retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen’s organizations and publishers nationwide. For more information, visit nssf.org.

________________________

NSSF Media contact:
Mark Oliva
202-220-1340

Categories: BP Item, Featured, Press Releases

This AccuWeather Enhanced RealVue satellite image shows the strengthening tropical rainstorm over the Yucatan Peninsula late on Sunday, June 16.

After a tropical rainstorm brought heavy rainfall to portions of Florida last week, AccuWeather hurricane experts warn that yet another tropical rainstorm is expected to impact the southern U.S. in the coming days.

In addition to the tropical rainstorm, two other areas in the Atlantic Basin are being monitored for tropical development later this week. It is possible that one of these areas could strengthen into Alberto, becoming the first named storm of the season.

AccuWeather began to highlight portions of the western Gulf of Mexico as a high risk on Thursday afternoon. A tropical rainstorm developed late on Sunday and is forecast to steer toward the border between Mexico and Texas early this week. The storm is expected to drift north-northwestward into Wednesday, bringing with it rounds of heavy rain.

“Very warm waters in this area of the Gulf, as well as low wind shear will make this a conducive environment the tropical rainstorm to strengthen,” said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Pydynowski.

Given these factors, the rainstorm is forecast to strengthen into a tropical depression, then a tropical storm right before making landfall along the northern Gulf Coast of Mexico. Should the storm produce sustained winds of 39 mph or greater prior to any other development in the Atlantic Basin, it would be given the name Alberto.

A tropical storm is likely to bring widespread gusts to the Mexican states of Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon, as well as portions of South Texas. Some storm surge can also be expected along the coast north of the storm’s landfall. For both Mexico and the United States, given the risk for damaging winds, storm surge and flooding rainfall, this storm is a 1 on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes.

Given the limited time over water and close proximity to land, the tropical system will need to intensify quickly in order to reach tropical storm strength before landfall late on Wednesday.

“Even if the tropical storm falls short of reaching tropical storm status, a plume of rich, deep tropical moisture is expected to surge into Mexico, Texas and Louisiana into the middle of the week,” Pydynowski explained.

Heavy rain is forecast to extend well north of the center of the storm, beginning as early as Monday.

A wet Monday morning commute is expected along the Interstate 10 corridor from New Orleans to Houston, as downpours threaten to slow travel, reduced visibility and cause flooding. Rain is forecast to continue into Wednesday before some of the heavier downpours shift north up the Mississippi River Valley and westward into more of Texas.

The ample supply of tropical moisture could allow rainfall totals to add up quickly, bringing the risk for over half a foot of rain across parts of the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coasts. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 30 inches is possible in the hardest-hit areas, resulting in road closures.

The Houston area has already received over 6 inches of rain through the first half of June, which is an amount more typical for the entire month. This new round of heavy rainfall to the already drenched area could bring renewed flooding woes for southeastern Texas.

Other zones along the Gulf Coast could use the rain. Brownsville, Texas, has only had 0.17 of an inch of rain so far in June, 14% of the historical average. In New Orleans, only 10% of the month’s typical rain fell in the first 15 days of June. In these areas, the soil may be so dry from the lack of recent rain that flash flooding could occur in the heavier downpours.

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Behind this wave of tropical rainfall, it’s not out of the question that another tropical system could form near the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico late in the week.

“With warm waters and low shear still present in the southern Gulf of Mexico and northwestern Caribbean next weekend, yet another opportunity for tropical development may present itself,” warned Pydynowski.

Depending on the wind pattern in the atmosphere, any moisture from this area may again funnel into the Gulf Coast for the last week of June. Given the expected rain in the coming week, the risk for localized flooding may increase.

As the middle of the week approaches, yet another area could see a developing tropical system, according to AccuWeather meteorologists.

“This appears to be a quick-moving and compact low pressure area that will be moving westward into northeastern Florida or perhaps as far north as southeastern Georgia on Thursday,” said Pydynowski.

A stronger storm could bring gusty winds, especially to coastal locations. But even a less-organized storm would bring rough surf and downpours from the northern Bahamas to the Southeast Atlantic Coast.

Heavy tropical rainfall may hit some of the same areas that were drenched with last week’s tropical rainstorm. The highest rainfall totals are likely to miss to the north of Miami, which had over 11 inches of rain, and the town of Aventura, where 20 inches of rain fell. Instead, locations from Melbourne, Florida, to Charleston, South Carolina, may be more at risk for the heavy rain.

The zone currently primed for the heaviest rain has had very little rain so far this month, including Jacksonville, Florida, which only has reported 0.64 of an inch.

Forecasters will continue to monitor the development potential of all three areas throughout the week.

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METAIRIE, La. (WVUE/Gray News) – Two toddler girls were found unresponsive at a community swimming pool at an apartment complex in Louisiana, according to authorities.

The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office said the incident happened at the Lemon Tree Apartments in the Metairie suburbs.

Emergency dispatchers received a call about the unresponsive children shortly before 9:55 a.m. on Sunday.

Initial reports indicated a pair of 2-year-olds had fallen or jumped into a pool.

The sheriff’s office says deputies arrived on the scene and began CPR efforts.

After paramedics arrived to continue treatment, deputies formed a rolling blockade of intersections along Causeway Boulevard to accelerate the safe transport of the children the hospital.

The sheriff’s office said the children arrived at the hospital at 10:24 a.m., but there was no indication from authorities that they ever regained consciousness.

Authorities have not disclosed the children’s identities. WVUE reported it is confirmed the children are both young girls.

“Our initial investigation indicates that the victims were outside their apartment unit playing with siblings, before entering the gated common pool area,” JPSO spokesman Sgt. Brandon Veal said in a statement. “This investigation is in its early stages. The identity of the victims are being withheld at this time.”

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