WESH: Local congressman Maxwell Frost honors Parkland victims, introduces new gun legislation
Feb. 14, 2024, marks six years since 17 people were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.
Local congressman Frost held a news conference and introduced a new bill alongside Reps. Jared Moskowitz to honor all the lives lost in Parkland and other gun violence attacks.
The bill is called the Identify Gun Stores Act, which prevents states from prohibiting credit card companies from establishing and implementing codes that track suspicions gun and ammunition purchases.
Frost said this could've prevented the mass shooting that occurred in Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and the Orlando Pulse Club.
"If we were able to allow credit card companies to flag these sorts of purchases and track them, we could have probably prevented the Pulse nightclub massacre. The Pulse nightclub shooter walked in there with an assault weapon and murdered and killed in cold blood, 49 angels due to armed bigotry and armed hate," Frost said. "He spent $26,000 in the days leading up to the shooting to accumulate all of his ammo and weapons. Something like that would have been flagged by the credit card company using the merchant category code and could have potentially saved lives."
The bill would override state bills, like the one in Florida that currently prevents credit card companies from using a separate 'merchant category code' for sales at gun businesses.
State Rep. Randy Fine (R)-Brevard County believes credit card companies shouldn't have that power.
"I don't think it's the role of credit card companies to oversee what Americans choose to spend their money on," Fine said. "What you think is suspicious might be different than what I may think is suspicious, and in Florida we think credit card companies should stick to offering credit."
Rep. Frost said they are going to fight to get this passed on the house floor.
Source: WESH