Brady Praises NY Gov. Hochul for Signing Landmark Gun…

With Gov. Hochul’s signature, New York enhances public awareness of safe storage, ensures gun industry accountability for the sale and manufacture of conversion devices, improves implementation of the state’s extreme risk law, and becomes the third state in the country to ensure implementation of the merchant category code for gun and ammunition vendors.

WASHINGTON, D.C., October 9, 2024 — Brady, the nation’s leading gun violence prevention group, celebrates Governor Kathy Hochul’s signing of a vital suite of six gun safety bills today. Among the signed legislation was a bill on merchant category codes (MCC) for firearm and ammunition dealers in New York — which will bring much-needed accountability to the gun industry — and a new law that requires the state to develop and implement a public awareness campaign on safe firearm storage and child access prevention.

President of Brady, Kris Brown said:

“Public awareness around safe storage and preventing children from accessing firearms has never been more important. Firearms continue to be the number one cause of death for children and teens in this country. We know that simply educating gun owners on safe storage practices can save lives: in 75% of youth firearm suicides for which the gun storage method could be identified, the gun was stored loaded and unlocked. This gun safety bill and others signed today by Gov. Hochul are a critical step in the right direction, and Brady applauds the governor’s consistent leadership in the fight to curb the gun violence epidemic.

Tanya Schardt, Senior Counsel and Director of State and Federal Policy said:

“Merchant category codes are applied to nearly every type of business – from restaurants, gas stations, and liquor stores — so the question has remained: why are gun and ammunition sellers any different? The use of merchant category codes for gun sellers holds the potential to identify dangerous purchasing patterns, including when someone may be trafficking firearms or accumulating an arsenal to use in a mass shooting, the same way these codes are used to identify human trafficking. Brady applauds the work of Assemblymember Solages, Senator Myrie, and the New York State legislature for its efforts to get this bill passed, and we thank Gov. Hochul for signing it into law."

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Brady has one powerful mission — to unite all Americans against gun violence. We work across Congress, the courts, and our communities with over 90 grassroots chapters, bringing together young and old, red and blue, and every shade of color to find common ground in common sense. In the spirit of our namesakes Jim and Sarah Brady, we have fought for over 45 years to take action, not sides, and we will not stop until this epidemic ends. It’s in our hands.