I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 3347

To reform the laws relating to forfeitures.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

OCTOBER 22, 1993

Mr. CONYERS introduced the following bill; which was referred jointly to the

Committees on Ways and Means, the Judiciary, and Energy and Commerce

A BILL

To reform the laws relating to forfeitures.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Asset Forfeiture

5 Justice Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. REQUIRE CONVICTION.

7 (a) TARIFF ACT OF 1930.—Section 604 of the Tariff

8 Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1604) is amended by adding at

9 the end the following new sentence: ‘‘Proceedings for the

10 forfeiture of property, other than of merchandise upon

11 which the duties have not been paid or which has been

12 otherwise brought into the United States unlawfully, shall
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1 be conducted only upon conviction of the owner of such

2 property for the crime upon which the forfeiture is

3 based.’’.

4 (b) TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE.—Subsection

5 (c) of section 1082 of title 18, United States Code, is

6 amended to read as follows:

7 ‘‘(c) Whoever, being (1) the owner of an American

8 vessel, or (2) the owner of any vessel under or within the

9 jurisdiction of the United States, or (3) the owner of any

10 vessel and being an American citizen, uses, or knowingly

11 permits the use of, such vessel in violation of this section

12 shall upon conviction, in addition to any other penalties

13 provided by this chapter, forfeit such vessel, together with

14 her tackle, apparel, and furniture, to the United States.’’.

15 SEC. 3. NOTICE.

16 Section 607(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.

17 1607(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following

18 new sentence: ‘‘Such notice shall be sent not later than

19 60 days after the seizure to any possessor, owner, or other

20 interested party (including any lienholder).’’.

21 SEC. 4. BURDEN OF PROOF.

22 Section 615 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.

23 1615) is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘SEC. 615. BURDEN OF PROOF IN FORFEITURE PROCEED2 INGS.

3 ‘‘In—

4 ‘‘(1) all suits or actions (other than those aris5 ing under section 592) brought for forfeiture of any

6 vessel, vehicle, aircraft, merchandise, or baggage

7 seized under the provisions of any law relating to the

8 collection of duties on imports or tonnage; and

9 ‘‘(2) in all suits or actions brought for the re10 covery of the value of any vessel, vehicle, aircraft,

11 merchandise, or baggage, because of violation of any

12 such law;

13 the burden of proof is on the United States Government

14 to establish, by clear and convincing evidence, that the

15 property was subject to forfeiture.’’.

16 SEC. 5. PRELIMINARY HEARING.

17 (a) CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT.—Section

18 511(b) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C.

19 881(b)) is amended to read as follows:

20 ‘‘(b)(1) Any property subject to civil forfeiture to the

21 United States under this section may be seized by the At22 torney General upon order of the District Court of the

23 United States in which the property is located or the

24 owner of such property is found.

25 ‘‘(2) The court may issue an order under subsection

26 (a)(1) if it determines, after notice to persons appearing
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1 to have an interest in the property and opportunity for

2 hearing, that—

3 ‘‘(A) there is a substantial probability that the

4 United States will prevail on the issue of forfeiture

5 and that failure to enter the order will result in the

6 property being destroyed, removed from the jurisdic7 tion of the court, or otherwise made unavailable for

8 forfeiture; and

9 ‘‘(B) the need to preserve the availability of the

10 property through the entry of the requested order

11 outweighs the hardship to any party of interest.

12 ‘‘(3) A seizure without such order may be made

13 when—

14 ‘‘(A) the seizure is incident to an arrest or a

15 search under a search warrant or an inspection

16 under an administrative inspection warrant;

17 ‘‘(B) the property subject to seizure has been

18 the subject of a prior judgment in favor of the

19 United States in a criminal injunction or forfeiture

20 proceeding under this subchapter;

21 ‘‘(C) there is probable cause to believe that the

22 property is directly or indirectly dangerous to health

23 or safety; or

24 ‘‘(D) there is probable cause to believe that the

25 delay occasioned by the need to secure an order will
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1 frustrate the seizure. Any officer having made a sei2 zure under the authority of this subparagraph shall,

3 as practicable thereafter, apply for an order under

4 subsection (b)(1); the property must be released to

5 the owner of such property immediately if the order

6 is denied.’’.

7 (b) TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section

8 981(b) of title 18, United States Code, is amended to read

9 as follows:

10 ‘‘(b)(1) Any property subject to civil forfeiture to the

11 United States under subsection (a)(2) may be seized by

12 the Attorney General upon order of the District Court of

13 the United States in which the property is located or the

14 owner of such property is found.

15 ‘‘(2) The court may issue an order under subsection

16 (b)(1) if it determines, after notice to persons appearing

17 to have an interest in the property and opportunity for

18 hearing, that—

19 ‘‘(A) there is a substantial probability that the

20 United States will prevail on the issue of forfeiture

21 and that failure to enter the order will result in the

22 property being destroyed, removed from the jurisdic23 tion of the court, or otherwise made unavailable for

24 forfeiture; and
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1 ‘‘(B) the need to preserve the availability of the

2 property through the entry of the requested order

3 outweighs the hardship to any party of interest.

4 ‘‘(3) A seizure without such order may be made

5 when—

6 ‘‘(A) the seizure is incident to an arrest or a

7 search under a search warrant or an inspection

8 under an administrative inspection warrant;

9 ‘‘(B) the property subject to seizure has been

10 the subject of a prior judgment in favor of the

11 United States in a criminal injunction or forfeiture

12 proceeding under this subchapter;

13 ‘‘(C) there is probable cause to believe that the

14 property is directly or indirectly dangerous to health

15 or safety; or

16 ‘‘(D) there is probable cause to believe that the

17 delay occasioned by the need to secure an order will

18 frustrate the seizure. Any officer having made a sei19 zure under the authority of this subparagraph shall,

20 as practicable thereafter, apply for an order under

21 subsection (b)(1); the property must be released to

22 the owner of such property immediately if the order

23 is denied.’’.
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1 (c) TARIFF ACT OF 1930.—(1) Section 603(a) of the

2 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1603(a)) is amended to

3 read as follows:

4 ‘‘(a) PROCESS FOR SEIZURE.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any property which is sub6 ject to forfeiture to the United States for violations

7 of the customs law and which is not subject to

8 search and seizure in accordance with provisions of

9 section 595, may be seized by the appropriate officer

10 or person upon process issued under paragraph (2).

11 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURES.—

12 ‘‘(A) SEIZURE UNDER ORDER.—Any prop13 erty subject to forfeiture under the customs

14 laws of the United States may be seized by the

15 Attorney General upon order of the District

16 Court of the United States in which the prop17 erty is located or the owner of such property is

18 found.

19 ‘‘(B) DETERMINATIONS.—The court may

20 issue an order under paragraph (1) if it deter21 mines, after notice to persons appearing to have

22 an interest in the property and opportunity for

23 hearing, that—

24 ‘‘(i) there is a substantial probability

25 that the United States will prevail on the
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1 issue of forfeiture and that failure to enter

2 the order will result in the property being

3 destroyed, removed from the jurisdiction of

4 the court, or otherwise made unavailable

5 for forfeiture; and

6 ‘‘(ii) the need to preserve the avail7 ability of the property through the entry of

8 the requested order outweighs the hardship

9 to any party of interest.

10 ‘‘(C) SEIZURE WITHOUT ORDER.—A sei11 zure without such order may be made when—

12 ‘‘(i) the seizure is incident to an ar13 rest or a search under a search warrant or

14 an inspection under an administrative in15 spection warrant;

16 ‘‘(ii) the property subject to seizure

17 has been the subject of a prior judgment

18 in favor of the United States in a criminal

19 injunction or forfeiture proceeding under

20 this subchapter;

21 ‘‘(iii) there is probable cause to believe

22 that the property is directly or indirectly

23 dangerous to health or safety; or
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1 ‘‘(iv) there is probable cause to believe

2 that the delay occasioned by the need to

3 secure an order will frustrate the seizure.

4 Any officer having made a seizure under the

5 authority of this subparagraph shall, as prac6 ticable thereafter, apply for an order under

7 paragraph (1). Any property so seized must be

8 released to the owner of such property imme9 diately if the order is denied.’’.

10 (2) Section 595(a)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19

11 U.S.C. 1595(a)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the

12 following: ‘‘Any seizure of property described in paragraph

13 (1)(B) of this section must be authorized under section

14 603(a).

15 SEC. 6. ELIMINATION OF BOND; ADEQUATE REPRESENTA16 TION.

17 Section 608 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.

18 1608) is amended to read as follows:

19 ‘‘SEC. 608. SEIZURE; CLAIMS.

20 ‘‘(a) Any person claiming such vessel, vehicle, air21 craft, merchandise, or baggage may at any time within

22 60 days from the date of the first publication of the notice

23 of seizure, file with the appropriate customs officer a claim

24 stating his interest therein. Upon the filing of such claim,

25 the customs officer shall transmit such claim, with a
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1 duplicate list and description of the articles seized, to the

2 United States attorney for the district in which seizure

3 was made, who shall proceed to a condemnation of the

4 merchandise or other property in the manner prescribed

5 by law.

6 ‘‘(b) If the person filing a claim under subsection (a),

7 or a claim regarding seized property under any other pro8 vision of law that incorporates by reference the seizure,

9 forfeiture, and condemnation procedures of the customs

10 laws, is financially unable to obtain representation of

11 counsel, the court may appoint appropriate counsel to rep12 resent that person with respect to the claim. The court

13 shall set the compensation for that representation, which

14 shall—

15 ‘‘(1) be equivalent to that provided for court-ap16 pointed representation under section 3006A of title

17 18, United State Code, and

18 ‘‘(2) be paid from the Justice Assets Forfeiture

19 Fund established under section 524 of title 28,

20 United States Code.’’.

21 SEC. 7. RIGHT TO JURY TRIALS.

22 Section 610 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.

23 1610) is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘SEC. 610. SEIZURE; JUDICIAL FORFEITURE PROCEEDINGS;

2 TIMELINESS; RIGHT TO JURY TRIALS.

3 ‘‘(a) If any vessel, vehicle, aircraft, merchandise, or

4 baggage is not subject to section 607, or in any case upon

5 the filing of a claim pursuant to section 608 of this Act,

6 the appropriate customs officer shall transmit a report of

7 the case, with the names of available witnesses, to the

8 United States Attorney for the district in which the sei9 zure was made, or in which the property is located or the

10 owner of such property is found, for the institution of the

11 proper proceedings for the condemnation of such property.

12 ‘‘(b) No action to forfeit property shall be brought

13 more than 1 year from the date of the offense that is the

14 basis for the forfeiture, or when a stay has been granted

15 during the pendency of criminal proceedings, from the

16 date of the completion of such proceedings.

17 ‘‘(c) In the proceedings in such cases, either party

18 may demand trial by jury of any issue of fact joined in

19 the case.’’.

20 SEC. 8. ATTORNEYS’ FEES.

21 (a) TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE.—(1) Section

22 981(a)(2) of title 18, United States Code, is amended to

23 read as follows:

24 ‘‘(2) No property shall be forfeited under this section

25 to the extent of the interest of an owner or lienholder by

26 reason of any act or omission established by that owner
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1 or lienholder to have been committed without the knowl2 edge of that owner or lienholder; nor shall any property

3 which has been paid or pledged as bona fide attorneys’

4 fees be forfeited under this section.’’.

5 (2) Section 1963(c) of title 18, United States Code,

6 is amended by—

7 (A) striking the period at the end and inserting

8 a comma; and

9 (B) adding at the end the following: ‘‘or that he

10 received or has been pledged the property as bona

11 fide attorneys’ fees.’’.

12 (3) Section 1963(l)(6)(B) of title 18, United States

13 Code, is amended by inserting before the semicolon at the

14 end the following: ‘‘or the petitioner received or has been

15 pledged the property as bona fide attorneys’ fees’’.

16 (b) CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT.—

17 (1) Section 413(n)(6)(B) of the Controlled Sub18 stances Act (21 U.S.C. 853(n)(6)(B)) is amended by

19 adding at the end the following: ‘‘or the petitioner

20 received or has been pledged the property as bona

21 fide attorneys’ fees;’’.

22 (2) Section 511(a) of the Controlled Substances

23 Act (21 U.S.C. 881(a)), as amended by section 13,

24 is further amended by adding at the end the follow25 ing new paragraph:
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1 ‘‘(12) No property received or pledged as bona

2 fide attorneys’ fees shall be forfeited under this sec3 tion.’’.

4 SEC. 9. IN PERSONAM.

5 Section 1082(c) of title 18, United States Code, is

6 amended to read as follows:

7 ‘‘(c) Whoever, being (1) the owner of an American

8 vessel, or (2) the owner of any vessel under or within the

9 jurisdiction of the United States, or (3) the owner of any

10 vessel and being an American citizen, shall use, or know11 ingly permit the use of, such vessel in violation of any pro12 vision of this section shall upon conviction, in addition to

13 any other penalties provided by this chapter, forfeit such

14 vessel, together with her tackle, apparel, and furniture, to

15 the United States. The Attorney General may institute

16 proceedings against the owner to recover such vessel and

17 her tackle, apparel, and furniture in the United States

18 District Court for the district in which the owner is or

19 in which the vessel is located.’’.

20 SEC. 10. FILING DEADLINE.

21 Paragraph (6) of Rule C of the Supplemental Rules

22 for Certain Admiralty and Maritime Claims to the Federal

23 Rules of Civil Procedures (28 U.S.C. Appendix) is amend24 ed by striking out ‘‘10 days’’ and inserting ‘‘60 days’’.
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1 SEC. 11. PROPORTIONALITY.

2 (a) CIVIL FORFEITURES UNDER THE CONTROLLED

3 SUBSTANCES ACT.—Section 511(a) of the Controlled Sub4 stances Act (21 U.S.C. 881(a)), as amended by section

5 13, is further amended by striking ‘‘The’’ and inserting:

6 ‘‘Except that the value of the property forfeited under this

7 section may not exceed the pecuniary gain derived from

8 the offense or the pecuniary loss caused by the offense,

9 the’’.

10 (b) CRIMINAL FORFEITURES UNDER THE CON11 TROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT.—Section 413(a) of the Con12 trolled Substance Act (21 U.S.C. 853(a)) is amended by

13 striking the last sentence and inserting the following:

14 ‘‘The value of the property forfeited under this section

15 may not exceed the pecuniary gain derived from the of16 fense or the pecuniary loss caused by the offense.’’.

17 SEC. 12. ELIMINATION OF THE RELATION-BACK DOCTRINE.

18 (a) GENERAL TITLE 18, CIVIL FORFEITURE.—Sec19 tion 981(f) of title 18, United States Code, is amended

20 to read as follows:

21 ‘‘(f) All right, title, and interest in property described

22 in subsection (a) of this section shall vest in the United

23 States upon administrative or judicial declaration of for24 feiture.’’.

25 (b) RICO FORFEITURES.—Section 1963(c) of title

26 18, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘(c) All right, title, and interest in property described

2 in subsection (a) of this section shall vest in the United

3 States upon return of a special verdict of forfeiture.’’.

4 (c) CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT.—(1) Section

5 413(c) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C.

6 853(c)) is amended to read as follows:

7 ‘‘(c) VESTING OF TITLE IN THE UNITED STATES.—

8 All right, title, and interest in property described in sub9 section (a) of this section vests in the United States upon

10 return of a special verdict of forfeiture.’’.

11 (2) Section 511(h) of the Controlled Substances Act

12 (21 U.S.C. 881(h)) is amended to read as follows:

13 ‘‘(h) VESTING OF TITLE IN THE UNITED STATES.—

14 All right, title, and interest in property described in sub15 section (a) of this section shall vest in the United States

16 upon administrative or judicial declaration of forfeiture.’’.

17 SEC. 13. PROPERTY SUBJECT TO SEIZURE.

18 (a) CRIMINAL FORFEITURE UNDER CONTROLLED

19 SUBSTANCES ACT.—Section 413(a)(2) of the Controlled

20 Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 853(a)(2)) is amended to read

21 as follows:

22 ‘‘(2) any of the person’s property primarily

23 used to commit such violation; and’’.

24 (b) CIVIL FORFEITURE UNDER CONTROLLED SUB25 STANCES ACT.—Section 511(a) of the Controlled Sub-
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1 stance Act (21 U.S.C. 881(a)) is amended to read as fol2 lows:

3 ‘‘(a) PROPERTY SUBJECT TO SEIZURE.—The follow4 ing shall be subject to forfeiture to the United States upon

5 conviction of the owner of such property of a violation of

6 this title and no property right shall exist in them:

7 ‘‘(1) All controlled substances which have been

8 manufactured, distributed, dispensed, or acquired in

9 violation of this title.

10 ‘‘(2) All raw materials, products, and equip11 ment of any kind which are used, or intended for

12 use, in manufacturing, compounding, processing, de13 livering, importing, or exporting any controlled sub14 stance in violation of this title.

15 ‘‘(3) All property which is used, or intended for

16 use, as a container for property described in para17 graph (1).

18 ‘‘(4) All conveyances, including aircraft, vehi19 cles, or vessels, which are used primarily to trans20 port or concealment of property described in para21 graph (1), except that—

22 ‘‘(A) no conveyance used by any person as

23 a common carrier in the transaction of business

24 as a common carrier shall be forfeited under

25 the provisions of this section unless it shall ap-
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1 pear that the owner or other person in charge

2 of such conveyance was a consenting party or

3 privy to a violation of this title or title II;

4 ‘‘(B) no conveyance shall be forfeited

5 under the provisions of this section by reason of

6 any act or omission established by the owner

7 thereof to have been committed or omitted by

8 any person other than such owner while such

9 conveyance was unlawfully in the possession of

10 a person other than the owner in violation of

11 the criminal laws of the United States, or of

12 any State; and

13 ‘‘(C) no conveyance shall be forfeited under

14 this paragraph to the extent of an interest of an

15 owner, by reason of any act or omission estab16 lished by that owner to have been committed or

17 omitted without the knowledge, consent, or will18 ful blindness of the owner.

19 ‘‘(5) All books, records, and research, including

20 formulas, microfilm, tapes, and data which are used,

21 or intended for use, in violation of this title.

22 ‘‘(6) All moneys, negotiable instruments, securi23 ties, or other things of value furnished or intended

24 to be furnished by any person in exchange for a con25 trolled substance in violation of this title, and all
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1 proceeds traceable to such exchange, except that no

2 property shall be forfeited under this paragraph, to

3 the extent of the interest of an owner, by reason of

4 any act or omission established by that owner to

5 have been committed or omitted without the knowl6 edge or consent of that owner.

7 ‘‘(7) All parts of real property used primarily to

8 commit a violation of this title punishable by more

9 than 1 year’s imprisonment, except that no property

10 shall be forfeited under this paragraph, to the extent

11 of an interest of an owner, by reason of any act or

12 omission established by that owner to have been

13 committed or omitted without the knowledge or con14 sent of that owner.

15 ‘‘(8) All controlled substances which have been

16 possessed in violation of this title.

17 ‘‘(9) All listed chemicals, all drug manufactur18 ing equipment, all tableting machines, all encap19 sulating machines, and all gelatin capsules, which

20 have been imported, exported, manufactured, pos21 sessed, distributed, or intended to be distributed, im22 ported, or exported, in violation of a felony provision

23 of this title or title II.
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1 ‘‘(10) Any drug paraphernalia (as defined in

2 section 1822 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986

3 (21 U.S.C. 863)).

4 ‘‘(11) Any firearm (as defined in section 921 of

5 title 18) used or intended to be used to facilitate the

6 transportation, sale, receipt, possession, or conceal7 ment of property described in paragraph (1) or (2)

8 and any proceeds traceable to such property.’’.

9 SEC. 14. FORFEITURE PROCEEDS TO STATE TREASURIES.

10 (a) TARIFF ACT OF 1930.—Section 616(c)(1)(B)(ii)

11 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1616a(c)(1)(B)(ii)

12 is amended to read as follows:

13 ‘‘(ii) any State or local law enforce14 ment agency that participated directly or

15 indirectly in the seizure or forfeiture of the

16 property for disposition according to State

17 law.’’.

18 (b) TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section

19 981(e)(2) of title 18, United States Code, is amended to

20 read as follows:

21 ‘‘(2) to any State or local enforcement agency,

22 which participated directly in any of the acts which

23 lead to the seizure or forfeiture of the property, for

24 disposition according to State law.’’.
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1 (c) CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT.—Section

2 511(e)(1)(A) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C.

3 881(e)(1)(A)) is amended to read as follows:

4 ‘‘(A) retain the property for official use or,

5 in the manner provided with respect to trans6 fers under section 616 of the Tariff Act of

7 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1616a), transfer the property

8 to any Federal agency, or to any State or local

9 law enforcement agency which participated di10 rectly in the seizure or forfeiture of the prop11 erty for disposition according to State law;’’.

12 SEC. 15. EXPANDED USES OF FORFEITURE PROCEEDS.

13 Section 524(c) of title 28, United States Code, is

14 amended by adding at the end the following new para15 graph:

16 ‘‘(13)(A) In addition to the purposes under para17 graph (1), the fund shall be available to the Attorney Gen18 eral for community-based crime control programs (includ19 ing private, nonprofit programs) for drug education, pre20 vention, and treatment, with amounts for such programs

21 to be distributed, in accordance with criteria determined

22 by the State, with priority given to the communities in

23 which the assets involved are seized.

24 ‘‘(B) Not less than 50 percent of the total of the

25 amounts disbursed for all purposes under this section in
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1 a fiscal year shall be for programs referred to in subpara2 graph (A). Not more than 10 percent of the total dis3 bursed for such programs may be used for administrative

4 costs.’’.

5 SEC. 16. PAYMENT OF INFORMANTS.

6 (a) TARIFF ACT OF 1930.—(1) Section 619(c) of the

7 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1619(c)) is amended to

8 read as follows:

9 ‘‘(c) DOLLAR LIMITATION.—No person may be

10 awarded or paid more than $250,000 in any year under

11 this section.’’.

12 (2) Section 413(i)(3) of the Controlled Substances

13 Act (21 U.S.C. 853(i)(3)), is amended by inserting before

14 the semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, except that, no

15 person may be awarded or paid more than $250,000 in

16 any year under this section’’.

17 (b) TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section

18 1963(g)(3) of title 18, United States Code, is amended

19 by inserting after ‘‘section’’ the following: ‘‘, except that

20 no person may be awarded or paid more than $250,000

21 in any year under this section, or any other law of the

22 United States providing for moieties or awards of com23 pensation to informers in cases involving forfeiture’’.
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1 (c) TITLE 28, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section

2 524(c)(2) of title 28, United States Code, is amended to

3 read as follows:

4 ‘‘(2) Any award paid from the Fund for infor5 mation, as provided in paragraph (1)(B) or (C),

6 shall be paid at the discretion of the Attorney Gen7 eral or his delegate, under existing departmental del8 egation policies for the payment of awards, except

9 that no person may be awarded or paid more than

10 $250,000 in any year under this section. The Attor11 ney General shall publish data annually regarding

12 amounts of awards paid by the United States.’’.

13 (d) TITLE 31, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section

14 9703(b) of title 31, United States Code, is amended by

15 adding following new subsection:

16 ‘‘(6) No person may be awarded or paid more

17 than $250,000 in any year under subsection

18 (a)(1)(C) or (a)(2)(A), or any law of the United

19 States providing for moieties or awards of com20 pensation to informers in criminal cases.’’.

21 SEC. 17. ADOPTIVE SEIZURE.

22 (a) CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT.—Section

23 511(e)(3) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C

24 881(e)(3)) is amended—
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1 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara2 graph (A);

3 (2) by striking the period and inserting ‘‘; and’’

4 at the end of subparagraph (B); and

5 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the fol6 lowing:

7 ‘‘(C) is not so transferred to circumvent

8 any requirement of State law that prohibits for9 feiture or limits use or disposal of property for10 feited to State or local agencies.’’.

11 (b) TITLE 31, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section

12 9703(b)(4) of title 31, United States Code, is amended—

13 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara14 graph (A);

15 (2) by striking the period and inserting ‘‘; and’’

16 at the end of subparagraph (B); and

17 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the fol18 lowing:

19 ‘‘(C) is not so transferred to circumvent

20 any requirement of State law that prohibits for21 feiture or limits use or disposal or property for22 feited to State or local agencies.’’.

23 SEC. 18. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

24 Section 616(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.

25 1616a(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
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1 ‘‘(4) The Secretary shall maintain individual records

2 concerning property transferred under paragraph

3 (1)(B)(ii) demonstrating, with particularity—

4 ‘‘(A) the circumstances of the investigation and

5 seizure of the forfeiture, including the race, national

6 origin, gender, and age of those with an interest in

7 the property prior to seizure; and

8 ‘‘(B) the disposition of the property after trans9 fer by each State.’’.

10 SEC. 19. MAINTENANCE OF SEIZED PROPERTY.

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 2465 of title 28, United

12 States Code, is amended to read as follows:

13 ‘‘§ 2465. Return of property to claimant

14 ‘‘Upon the entry of judgment for the claimant in any

15 proceeding to condemn or forfeit property seized under

16 this Act of Congress or one year after the seizure of such

17 property if no such proceeding has been initiated, such

18 property shall be returned forthwith to the claimant or

19 his agent. At such time, interest shall be paid on any

20 seized coins, currency or negotiable obligations at a rate

21 equal to the greater of 6 percent or the prevailing market

22 rate. Compensation for any other injury to property,

23 caused by or occurring subsequent to its seizure, shall also

24 be paid.’’.
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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The item relating to

2 section 2465 in the table of sections at the beginning of

3 chapter 163 of title 28, United States Code, is amended

4 to read as follows:

‘‘2465. Return of property to claimant.’’.

5 SEC. 20. ADMINISTRATIVE AND CONTRACTING EXPENSES.

6 Section 524(c) of title 28, United States Code, as

7 amended by section 15, is further amended by adding at

8 the end the following:

9 ‘‘(14) The total of amounts paid from the Fund with

10 respect to a fiscal year for administrative and contracting

11 expenses under paragraph (1)(A) may not exceed 10 per12 cent of the total of amounts paid from the Fund for all

13 purposes with respect to such fiscal year.’’.

14 SEC. 21. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

15 Section 524(c)(6) of title 28, United States Code, is

16 amended—

17 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara18 graph (B);

19 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub20 paragraph (C) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

21 (3) by adding at the end the following:

22 ‘‘(D) a report for such fiscal year containing a

23 description of the administrative and contracting ex24 penses paid from the Fund under paragraph

25 (1)(A).’’.
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1 SEC. 22. NOMINAL CONSIDERATION SALES OF LOW VALUE

2 REAL PROPERTY.

3 Section 511(e) of the Controlled Substances Act (21

4 U.S.C. 881(e)) is amended—

5 (1) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘(4)’’ and

6 inserting ‘‘(4) or (5)’’; and

7 (2) by adding at the end the following:

8 ‘‘(5)(A) If any property referred to in para9 graph (1)(B) is low value real property located in a

10 metropolitan statistical area, the Attorney General

11 shall offer such property for sale, for nominal con12 sideration to tax-exempt organizations that provide

13 direct services furthering community-based crime

14 control, housing, or education efforts in such area.

15 ‘‘(B) As used in this paragraph—

16 ‘‘(i) the term ‘low value real property’

17 means, with respect to a metropolitan statistical

18 area, real property that is appraised at less

19 than 40 percent of the median value of com20 parable real property in the metropolitan statis21 tical area;

22 ‘‘(ii) the term ‘tax-exempt organization’

23 means an organization described in section

24 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of

25 1986, and exempt from tax under section

26 501(a) of such Code; and
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1 ‘‘(iii) the term ‘nominal consideration’

2 means minimal recompense not to exceed 1.5

3 percent of the value of the property, and shall

4 not include, directly or indirectly, equitable

5 sharing or any other cost, expense or payment

6 associated with the seizure, forfeiture, care or

7 maintenance of the property, or with the ad8 ministration of any fund or program, other

9 than the costs of the sale to the extent that

10 such sales costs do not exceed 1.5 percent of

11 the value of the property.’’.

12 SEC. 23. ACTIONS UNDER THE TORT CLAIMS ACT.

13 Section 2680(c) of title 28, United States Code, is

14 amended by inserting before the period the following: ‘‘ex15 cept that this chapter and section 1346(b) of this title

16 shall apply to any claim based—

17 ‘‘(1) on the negligent destruction, injury,

18 or loss of goods or merchandise (including real

19 property) while in the possession of any officer

20 of customs or excise or any other law enforce21 ment officer, or

22 ‘‘(2) on the destruction, injury, or loss of

23 goods or merchandise (including real property)

24 caused by the misfeasance, malfeasance, or non25 feasance of any customs or excise or any other
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1 law enforcement officer while in the possession

2 of such officer’’.

Æ

HR 3347 IH——2