What Are Walmart’s New Gun And Ammunition Policies?

Following the El Paso, Texas, mass shooting, Walmart (WMT) has now taken steps towards limiting the sale of ammunition to its customers as well as banning handguns at all of its stores. A letter was penned to its employees, detailing the action plan the company has set into motion in response to its customers’ and employees’ request to act after the shooting that killed 22 people.

In the letter, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said that the company has “been focused on store safety and security.” The CEO mentioned that the company has been listening to both customers and employees to decide on the role it can take in making the country safer.

After careful review, McMillon said in his letter that “It’s clear to us that the status quo is unacceptable.”

McMillon reiterated that Walmart made the decision to stop selling military-style rifles and raised the age limit purchase a firearm or ammunition to age 21. He mentioned how it is required at Walmart stores to receive a “green light” on background checks to purchase a firearm and that all firearm transactions are videotaped in addition to only allowing trained employees to sell guns at its stores.

Going forward, the company will discontinue the sale of shore barrel rifle ammunition commonly used in hunting rifles and large capacity clips on military-style weapons. The company said it will also sell-through and then discontinue handgun ammunition. It will also discontinue handgun sales in Alaska, which McMillon said would mark its “complete exit from handguns.”

McMillon also made mention of the impact the elimination of the ammunition and handgun sales at its stores would have on the company. He said, “We believe these actions will reduce our market share of ammunition from around 20% to a range of approximately 6 to 9%. We believe it will likely drift toward the lower end of that range, over time, given the combination of these changes.”

Walmart also asked that its customers stop openly carrying a firearm into its stores in the states where open carry is permitted unless they are authorized law enforcement officers. The request by Walmart does not affect concealed carry permit holders.

“We believe the opportunity for someone to misinterpret a situation, even in open carry states, could lead to tragic results,” McMillon said. “We hope that everyone will understand the circumstances that led to this new policy and will respect the concerns of their fellow shoppers and our associates.”

Walmart has also made a commitment to make the retail industry safer as a whole and McMillon called for the “nation’s leaders to move forward and strengthen background checks and to remove weapons from those who have been determined to pose an imminent danger.

“We must also do more, as a country, to understand the root causes that lead to this type of violent behavior,” he said in his letter to employees. “Today, I’m sending letters to the White House and the Congressional leadership that call for action on these common sense measures.

“As we’ve seen before, these horrific events occur and then the spotlight fades. We should not allow that to happen. Congress and the administration should act. Given our decades of experience selling firearms, we are also offering to serve as a resource in the national debate on responsible gun sales,” he added.

Shares of Walmart stock were up 0.30 percent as of 1:47 p.m. ET on Tuesday.