An act to amend Section 186.9 of the Penal Code, relating to money laundering.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.
Section 186.9 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
186.9.
As used in this chapter:
(a) “Conducts” includes, but is not limited to, initiating, concluding, or participating in conducting, initiating, or concluding a transaction.
(b) “Financial institution” means, when located or doing business in this state, any national bank or banking association, state bank or banking association, commercial bank or trust company organized under the laws of the United States or any state, any private bank, industrial savings bank, savings bank or thrift institution, savings and loan association, or building and loan association organized under the laws of the United States or any state, any insured institution as defined in Section 401 of the National Housing Act (former 12 U.S.C. Sec. 1724(a)), any credit union organized under the laws of the United States or any state, any national banking association or corporation acting under Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 601) of Title 12 of the United States Code, any agency, agent or branch of a foreign bank, any currency dealer or exchange, any person or business engaged primarily in the cashing of checks, any person or business who regularly engages in the issuing, selling, or redeeming of traveler’s checks, money orders, or similar instruments, any broker or dealer in securities registered or required to be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 or with the Commissioner of Corporations under Part 3 (commencing with Section 25200) of Division 1 of Title 4 of the Corporations Code, any licensed transmitter of funds or other person or business regularly engaged in transmitting funds to a foreign nation for others, any investment banker or investment company, any insurer, any dealer in gold, silver, or platinum bullion or coins, diamonds, emeralds, rubies, or sapphires, any pawnbroker, any telegraph company, any person or business regularly engaged in the delivery, transmittal, or holding of mail or packages, any person or business that conducts a transaction involving the transfer of title to any real property, vehicle, vessel, or aircraft, any personal property broker, any person or business acting as a real property securities dealer within the meaning of Section 10237 of the Business and Professions Code, whether licensed to do so or not, any person or business acting within the meaning and scope of subdivisions (d) and (e) of Section 10131 and Section 10131.1 of the Business and Professions Code, whether licensed to do so or not, any person or business regularly engaged in gaming within the meaning and scope of Section 330, any person or business regularly engaged in pool selling or bookmaking within the meaning and scope of Section 337a, any person or business regularly engaged in horse racing whether licensed to do so or not under the Business and Professions Code, any person or business engaged in the operation of a gambling ship within the meaning and scope of Section 11317, any person or business engaged in controlled gambling within the meaning and scope of subdivision (f) of Section 19805 of the Business and Professions Code, whether registered to do so or not, and any person or business defined as a “bank,” “financial agency,” or “financial institution” by Section 5312 of Title 31 of the United States Code or Section 1010.100 of Title 31 of the Code of Federal Regulations and any successor provisions thereto.
(c) “Transaction” includes the deposit, withdrawal, transfer, bailment, loan, pledge, payment, or exchange of currency, or a monetary instrument, as defined by subdivision (d), or the electronic, wire, magnetic, or manual transfer of funds between accounts by, through, or to, a financial institution as defined by subdivision (b).
(d) “Monetary instrument” means United States currency and coin; the currency, coin, and foreign bank drafts of any foreign country; payment warrants issued by the United States, this state, or any city, county, or city and county of this state or any other political subdivision thereof; any bank check, cashier’s check, traveler’s check, or money order; any personal check, stock, investment security, or negotiable instrument in bearer form or otherwise in a form in which title thereto passes upon delivery; gold, silver, or platinum bullion or coins; and diamonds, emeralds, rubies, or sapphires. Except for foreign bank drafts and federal, state, county, or city warrants, “monetary instrument” does not include personal checks made payable to the order of a named party which have not been endorsed or which bear restrictive endorsements, and also does not include personal checks which have been endorsed by the named party and deposited by the named party into the named party’s account with a financial institution.
(e) “Criminal activity” means a criminal offense punishable under the laws of this state by death, imprisonment in the state prison, or imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 or a criminal offense committed in another jurisdiction punishable under the laws of that jurisdiction by death or imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. “Criminal activity” also means a criminal offense specified in Section
320,
321, 322, 323, 326, 330a, 330b, 330c,
or 330.1.
330.1, or 330.4. This subdivision does not apply to any controlled game within the scope of Section 19943.5 of the Business and Professions Code that is approved by the Department of Justice.
(f) “Foreign bank draft” means a bank draft or check issued or made out by a foreign bank, savings and loan, casa de cambio, credit union, currency dealer or exchanger, check cashing business, money transmitter, insurance company, investment or private bank, or any other foreign financial institution that provides similar financial services, on an account in the name of the foreign bank or foreign financial institution held at a bank or other financial institution located in the United States or a territory of the United States.
SEC. 2.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.

Summary: Existing law makes it a felony or a misdemeanor to engage in money laundering, defined as conducting a transaction involving a monetary instrument of specified value through a financial institution with the specific intent to promote or facilitate criminal activity. Existing law defines criminal activity for these purposes as any criminal offense punishable as a felony.
This bill would expand the definition of criminal activity for purposes of money laundering to include various offenses punishable as misdemeanors that are related to illegal lotteries and gaming. By expanding the definition of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.