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[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 79 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 79

To impose a fine with respect to international remittance transfers if 
 the sender is unable to verify legal status in the United States, and 
                          for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 7, 2015

  Mr. Vitter introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
    referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To impose a fine with respect to international remittance transfers if 
 the sender is unable to verify legal status in the United States, and 
                          for other purposes.

    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 ``Remittance Status Verification Act 
of 2015''.

SEC. 2. STATUS VERIFICATION FOR REMITTANCE TRANSFERS.

    Section 919 of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (relating to 
remittance transfers) (15 U.S.C. 1693o-1) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (h); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the following:
    ``(g) Status Verification of Sender.--
            ``(1) Request for proof of status.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Each remittance transfer 
                provider shall request from each sender of a remittance 
                transfer, the recipient of which is located in any 
                country other than the United States, proof of the 
                status of that sender under the immigration laws, prior 
                to the initiation of the remittance transfer.
                    ``(B) Acceptable documentation.--Acceptable 
                documentation of the status of the sender under this 
                paragraph--
                            ``(i) shall be, in any State that requires 
                        proof of legal residence--
                                    ``(I) a State-issued driver's 
                                license or Federal passport; or
                                    ``(II) the same documentation as 
                                required by the State for proof of 
                                identity for the issuance of a driver's 
                                license, or as required for a passport;
                            ``(ii) shall be, in any State that does not 
                        require proof of legal residence, such 
                        documentation as the Bureau shall require, by 
                        rule; and
                            ``(iii) does not include any matricula 
                        consular card.
            ``(2) Fine for noncompliance.--Each remittance transfer 
        provider shall impose on any sender who is unable to provide 
        the proof of status requested under paragraph (1) at the time 
        of transfer, a fine equal to 7 percent of the United States 
        dollar amount to be transferred (excluding any fees or other 
        charges imposed by the remittance transfer provider).
            ``(3) Submission of fines to bureau.--All fines imposed and 
        collected by a remittance transfer provider under paragraph (2) 
        shall be submitted to the Bureau, in such form and in such 
        manner as the Bureau shall establish, by rule.
            ``(4) Administrative and enforcement costs.--The Bureau 
        shall use fines submitted under paragraph (3) to pay the 
        administrative and enforcement costs to the Bureau in carrying 
        out this subsection.
            ``(5) Use of fines for border protection.--Amounts from the 
        collection of fines under this subsection that remain available 
        after the payment of expenses described in paragraph (4), shall 
        be transferred by the Bureau to the Treasury, to be used to pay 
        expenses relating to United States Customs and Border 
        Protection for border security fencing, infrastructure, and 
        technology.
            ``(6) Definition relating to immigration status.--In this 
        subsection, the term `immigration laws' has the same meaning as 
        in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
        U.S.C. 1101(a)).''.

SEC. 3. STUDY AND REPORT REGARDING REMITTANCE TRANSFER PROCESSING FINES 
              AND IDENTIFICATION PROGRAM.

    (a) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
conduct a study to determine the effects of the enactment of section 
919(g) of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, as amended by this Act.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to the Committee on 
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 
Financial Services of the House of Representatives a report on the 
results of the study conducted under paragraph (1) that includes--
            (1) an analysis of the costs and benefits of complying with 
        section 919(g) of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, as amended 
        by this Act; and
            (2) recommendations about whether the fines imposed under 
        that section 919(g) should be extended or increased.
                                 <all>
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