149
(2) modify or eliminate any customer identity 
requirement related to the purchases of monetary in-
struments by customers of depository institutions 
codified in section 103.29(a)(ii) of title 31, Code of 
Federal Regulations, that the Secretary determines 
is unnecessary. 
(c) ELIMINATION OF RECURRING FILINGS OF SUS-
PICIOUS
ACTIVITY
REPORTS
ON
A
SINGLE
TRANS-
ACTION.—Before the end of the 9-month period beginning 
on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of the Treasury, as appropriate, shall prescribe regula-
tions, or issue other forms of guidance, that eliminate the 
need for depository institutions to file recurring suspicious 
activity reports on the same transaction unless there has 
been a subsequent change in any pattern of activity involv-
ing any person who was connected with the transaction. 
(d) ELECTRONIC ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF CERTAIN 
ELECTRONIC FILINGS.—Before the end of the 1-year pe-
riod beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Net-
work shall put into effect a system for promptly furnishing 
an electronic acknowledgement of receipt to any institu-
tion that files a form with FinCEN under subchapter II 
of chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code, through the 
Network’s electronic filing system.
150
SEC. 704. STUDY BY COMPTROLLER GENERAL. 
(a) STUDY REQUIRED.—The Comptroller General of 
the United States shall conduct a study on methods and 
practices which would—
(1) reduce the overall number of currency 
transaction reports filed with the Secretary of the 
Treasury under section 5313(a) of title 31, United 
States Code, while ensuring that the needs of the 
Secretary, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Net-
work, law enforcement agencies, and financial insti-
tution regulatory agencies continue to be met; 
(2) improve financial institution utilization of 
the current exemption provisions; and 
(3) mitigate the difficulties in the current im-
plementation of such exemption provisions that limit 
the utility of the exemption process for financial in-
stitutions. 
(b) REPORT.—Before the end of the 6-month period 
beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Comptroller General shall submit a report to the Com-
mittee on Financial Services of the House of Representa-
tives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
Affairs of the Senate on the findings and conclusions of 
the Comptroller General with respect to the study con-
ducted under subsection (a) and such recommendations
151
for legislative and administrative action as the Comp-
troller General may determine to be appropriate. 
SEC. 705. FEASIBILITY STUDY REQUIRED. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of simplifying, 
and increasing compliance with, the various recordkeeping 
and reporting requirements under subchapter II of chap-
ter 53 of title 31, United States Code, chapter 2 of title 
I of Public Law 91—508, and section 21 of the Federal 
Deposit Insurance Act, and regulations prescribed under 
such provisions of law, the Secretary of the Treasury 
(hereafter in this section referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) 
shall conduct a study on the feasibility of developing and 
implementing interfaces and templates for use in elec-
tronic communications between financial institutions (as 
defined in section 5312 of title 31, United States Code) 
and the Secretary, the Financial Crimes Enforcement 
Network, and other Federal financial institution regu-
latory agencies. 
(b) FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED.—In conducting 
the study required under subsection (a), the Secretary 
shall take into account—
(1) any procedures required to be maintained 
by financial institutions under regulations prescribed 
pursuant to section 5318(a)(2) of title 31 of the 
United States Code and the manner in which the
152
use of interfaces and templates which might be de-
veloped could lessen the burden of complying with 
such procedures; and 
(2) any exemptions prescribed by the Secretary 
under paragraph (5) or (6) of such section 5318(a) 
and the manner in which interfaces and templates 
which might be developed could be programmed to 
reflect any such exemption for a financial institu-
tion, transaction, or class of transactions. 
(c) PROTOTYPE AND REPORT REQUIRED.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Before the end of the 1-year 
period beginning on the date of the enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary shall submit a report to the 
Congress containing a detailed description of the 
findings and conclusions of the Secretary in connec-
tion with the study required under subsection (a), 
together with such recommendations for legislative 
or administrative action as the Secretary may deter-
mine to be appropriate. 
(2) PROTOTYPE.—Any recommendation on the 
feasibility of developing and implementing interfaces 
and templates for use in electronic communications 
shall be accompanied by prototypes of such inter-
faces and templates that demonstrate such feasi-
bility.
153
(d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the 
following definitions shall apply: 
(1) INTERFACE.—The term ‘‘interface’’ means 
the point and method of interaction between any 2 
or more electronic data storage and communication 
systems that permits and facilitates active electronic 
communication between or among the systems, in-
cluding any procedures, codes, and protocols that en-
able the systems to interact. 
(2) TEMPLATE.—The term ‘‘template’’ means a 
preestablished layout model using word processing or 
other authoring software that ensures that data en-
tered into it will adhere to a consistent format and 
content scheme when used by all parties engaged in 
electronic communications among each other. 
SEC. 706. ANNUAL REPORT BY SECRETARY OF THE TREAS-
URY. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds as follows: 
(1) Financial institutions have too little infor-
mation about money laundering and terrorist financ-
ing compliance in other markets. 
(2) The current Financial Action Task Force 
designation system does not adequately represent 
the progress countries are making in combatting 
money laundering.
154
(3) Lack of information about the compliance 
of countries with anti-money laundering standards 
exposes United States financial markets to excessive 
risk. 
(4) Failure to designate countries that fail to 
make progress in combatting terrorist financing and 
money laundering eliminates incentives for internal 
reform. 
(5) The Secretary of the Treasury has an af-
firmative duty to provide to financial institutions 
and examiners the best possible information on com-
pliance with anti-money laundering and terrorist fi-
nancing initiatives in other markets. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than March 1 of each year, 
the Secretary of the Treasury shall submit to the Congress 
a report that identifies the applicable standards of each 
country against money laundering and states whether that 
country is a country of primary money laundering concern 
under section 5318A of title 31, United States Code. The 
report shall include—
(1) information on the effectiveness of each 
country in meeting its standards against money 
laundering; 
(2) a determination of whether that the efforts 
of that country to combat money laundering and ter-
155
rorist financing are adequate, improving, or inad-
equate; and 
(3) the efforts made by the Secretary to provide 
to the government of each such country of concern 
technical assistance to cease the activities that were 
the basis for the determination that the country was 
of primary money laundering concern. 
(c) DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION IN REPORT.—
The Secretary of the Treasury shall make available to the 
Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council for 
incorporation into the examination process, in consultation 
with Federal banking agencies, and to financial institu-
tions the information contained in the report submitted 
under subsection (a). Such information shall be made 
available to financial institutions without cost. 
(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 
term ‘‘financial institution’’ has the meaning given that 
term in section 5312(a)(2) of title 31, United States Code. 
SEC. 707. PRESERVATION OF MONEY SERVICES BUSI-
NESSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds as follows: 
(1) Title III of the USA PATRIOT ACT pro-
vided United States law enforcement agencies with 
new tools to combat terrorist financing and money 
laundering.
156
(2) The Financial Crimes Enforcement Net-
work in the Department of the Treasury (hereafter 
in this section referred to as ‘‘FinCEN’’ ) has de-
fined money services businesses to include the fol-
lowing 5 distinct types of financial services providers 
as well as the United States Postal Service: 
(A) Currency dealers or exchanges. 
(B) Check cashing services. 
(C) Issuers of travelers’ checks, money or-
ders, or stored value cards. 
(D) Sellers or redeemers of travelers’ 
checks, money orders, or stored value cards. 
(E) Money transmitters. 
(3) Money services businesses have had more 
difficulty in obtaining and maintaining banking serv-
ices since the passage of the USA PATRIOT ACT. 
(4) On March 30, 2005, FinCEN and the Fed-
eral banking agencies (as defined in section 3 of the 
Federal Deposit Insurance Act) issued a joint state-
ment recognizing the importance of ensuring that 
money services businesses that comply with the law 
have reasonable access to banking services. 
(5) On April 26, 2005, FinCEN offered guid-
ance to money service businesses on obtaining and 
maintaining banking services by identifying and ex-
157
plaining to money services businesses the types of 
information and documentation they are expected to 
have, and to provide to, depository institutions when 
conducting banking business. 
(6) At the same time, FinCEN and the Federal 
banking agencies have issued joint guidance to de-
pository institutions to—
(A) clarify the requirements of subchapter 
II of chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code, 
and related provisions of law; and 
(B) set forth the minimum steps that de-
pository institutions should take when providing 
banking services to money services businesses. 
(7) It is in the interest of the United States 
and its allies in the wars against terrorism and 
drugs to make certain that the international transfer 
of funds is done in a rules-based, formal, and trans-
parent manner and that individuals are not forced 
into utilizing informal underground methods due to 
a lack of services. 
(b) SENSE OF THE CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 
the Congress that depository institutions and money serv-
ices businesses should follow the guidance offered by 
FinCEN for the purpose of giving money services busi-
nesses full access to banking services and ensuring that
158
money services businesses remain in the mainstream fi-
nancial system and can be full players in providing impor-
tant financial services to their customers and be fully co-
operative in the fight against terrorist financing and 
money laundering. 
TITLE VIII—CLERICAL AND 
TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS 
SEC. 801. CLERICAL AMENDMENTS TO THE HOME OWNERS’ 
LOAN ACT. 
(a) AMENDMENT TO TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The 
table of contents in section 1 of the Home Owners’ Loan 
Act (12 U.S.C. 1461) is amended by striking the items 
relating to sections 5 and 6 and inserting the following 
new items:
‘‘Sec. 5. Savings associations. 
‘‘Sec. 6. [Repealed.].’’.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS TO HEADINGS.—
(1) The heading for section 4(a) of the Home 
Owners’ Loan Act (12 U.S.C. 1463(a)) is amended 
by striking ‘‘(a) FEDERAL
SAVINGS
ASSOCIA-
TIONS.—’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) GENERAL RESPON-
SIBILITIES OF THE DIRECTOR.—’’. 
(2) The section heading for section 5 of the 
Home Owners’ Loan Act (12 U.S.C. 1464) is 
amended to read as follows:
159
‘‘SEC. 5. SAVINGS ASSOCIATIONS.’’. 
SEC. 802. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO THE FEDERAL 
CREDIT UNION ACT. 
The Federal Credit Union Act (12 U.S.C. 1751 et 
seq.) is amended as follows: 
(1) In section 101(3), strike ‘‘and’’ after the 
semicolon. 
(2) In section 101(5), strike the terms ‘‘account 
account’’ and ‘‘account accounts’’ each place any 
such term appears and insert ‘‘account’’. 
(3) In section 107(a)(5)(E) (as so designated 
by section 303 of this Act), strike the period at the 
end and insert a semicolon. 
(4) In paragraphs (6) and (7) of section 107(a) 
(as so designated by section 303 of this Act), strike 
the period at the end and insert a semicolon. 
(5) In section 107(a)(7)(D) (as so designated 
by section 303 of this Act), strike ‘‘the Federal Sav-
ings and Loan Insurance Corporation or’’. 
(6) In section 107(a)(7)(E) (as so designated 
by section 303 of this Act), strike ‘‘the Federal 
Home Loan Bank Board,’’ and insert ‘‘the Federal 
Housing Finance Board,’’. 
(7) In section 107(a)(9) (as so designated by 
section 303 of this Act), strike ‘‘subchapter III’’ and 
insert ‘‘title III’’.