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[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5783 Engrossed in House (EH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5783

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 
  To provide a safe harbor for financial institutions that maintain a 
 customer account at the request of a Federal or State law enforcement 
                                agency.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Cooperate with Law Enforcement 
Agencies and Watch Act of 2018''.

SEC. 2. SAFE HARBOR WITH RESPECT TO KEEP OPEN LETTERS.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 31, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 5333. Safe harbor with respect to keep open letters
    ``(a) In General.--With respect to a customer account of a 
financial institution, if a Federal, State, Tribal, or local law 
enforcement agency requests, in writing, the financial institution to 
keep such account open--
            ``(1) the financial institution shall not be liable under 
        this subchapter for maintaining such account consistent with 
        the parameters of the request; and
            ``(2) no Federal or State department or agency may take any 
        adverse supervisory action under this subchapter with respect 
        to the financial institution for maintaining such account 
        consistent with the parameters of the request.
    ``(b) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section may be 
construed--
            ``(1) from preventing a Federal or State department or 
        agency from verifying the validity of a written request 
        described under subsection (a) with the Federal, State, Tribal, 
        or local law enforcement agency making the written request; or
            ``(2) to relieve a financial institution from complying 
        with any reporting requirements, including the reporting of 
        suspicious transactions under section 5318(g).
    ``(c) Letter Termination Date.--For purposes of this section, any 
written request described under subsection (a) shall include a 
termination date after which such request shall no longer apply.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for chapter 53 of 
title 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item 
relating to section 5332 the following:

``5333. Safe harbor with respect to keep open letters.''.

            Passed the House of Representatives June 25, 2018.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.
115th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 5783

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

  To provide a safe harbor for financial institutions that maintain a 
 customer account at the request of a Federal or State law enforcement 
                                agency.
```