HR-1181 — Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act

YourVoice.Now Summary

Gun LawsCivil LibertiesTransparency & Accountability

Buy guns with a card and your bank would not see a gun-store label — firearms-only store codes would be banned.

Gun Laws

Gun-store labels on card purchases — networks and banks could not use them

Card networks and the banks that handle card sales could not tag a gun shop with a code used only for gun sellers. Stores that sell only ammunition, parts, or gear for guns count as gun shops too.

State rules on gun-store payment codes — federal ban would replace them

Any state or local law about gun-store payment codes would stop applying. The federal rule would be the only one. That is true whether a state law required these codes or banned them.

Civil Liberties

Your right to sue over violations — only the government could enforce

If a network or bank broke this rule, you could not take it to court yourself. You would file a complaint with the Justice Department, which decides whether to sue.

Transparency & Accountability

Yearly report on enforcement — investigations and results sent to Congress

The Attorney General would send Congress a report each year. It would count the cases opened, say how each ended, and add any data on how well the rule works.

More about this bill

If you buy guns or ammunition with a card, your bank would no longer see a gun-store label. Card networks could not require these shops to use a merchant category code that marks them as gun sellers. That code is the industry label for what kind of store made a sale. The banks and processors that handle card payments could not assign such a code either. Gun shops would be labeled like sporting-goods or general stores instead. The Attorney General would enforce the ban. Within 90 days, the Justice Department would set up a way for people to file complaints. A network found breaking the rule would get 30 days to fix it. After that, the government could sue to stop it. People could not sue over a violation on their own. State and local laws on these gun-store codes would no longer apply. Banks could still watch for fraud, data breaches, and suspicious activity.

Congressional Summary

Protecting Privacy in Purchases ActThis bill prohibits payment card networks from using merchant codes that distinguish firearms retailers from general-merchandise retailers or sporting-goods retailers.The Department of Justice must enforce this bill and report annually on the resulting investigations and cases.

Legislative Subjects

Banking and financial institutions regulationConsumer affairsFirearms and explosivesRetail and wholesale tradesRight of privacy

Details

Congress: 119th
Chamber: House
Status: summarized
Action: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
Action Date: 2026-07-15
Date Added: 2026-07-18
Source: Congress.gov →

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