Title: Border Wall Funding Act of 2017
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Border Wall Funding Act of 2017
This bill amends the Electronic Fund Transfer Act to require a remittance transfer provider to collect from the sender a remittance fee of 2% of the U.S. dollar amount to be transferred to a recipient in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Aruba, Curacao, the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Montserrat, Guadeloupe, Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay, or Argentina.
Such fees shall be submitted to the Treasury to be expended for improving border security. By September 30, 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau shall provide a system for remittance transfer providers to: (1) submit such fees, and (2) retain a portion of such fees to cover administrative costs.
The bill establishes penalties for individuals who, with intent to evade such fee, request or facilitate an initial transfer of such remittance to a recipient located in a different country. Countries that aid or harbor an individual conspiring to avoid the fee shall be ineligible to receive foreign assistance or participate in the visa waiver program or any other programs at the discretion of the Departments of Homeland Security, Treasury, and State.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1813 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1813

     To amend the Electronic Fund Transfer Act to impose a fee for 
   remittance transfers to certain foreign countries, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 30, 2017

Mr. Rogers of Alabama (for himself, Mr. Barletta, Mr. Gaetz, Mr. Brooks 
  of Alabama, Mr. Austin Scott of Georgia, Mr. Franks of Arizona, Mr. 
 Culberson, Mr. Kelly of Mississippi, and Mr. Crawford) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial 
Services, and in addition to the Committees on Foreign Affairs, and the 
 Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend the Electronic Fund Transfer Act to impose a fee for 
   remittance transfers to certain foreign countries, 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 ``Border Wall Funding Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. FEES FOR CERTAIN REMITTANCE TRANSFERS.

    Section 920 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) Border Security Fee Collection.--
            ``(1) In general.--
                    ``(A) Fees.--If the designated recipient of a 
                remittance transfer is located in a foreign country 
                described in subparagraph (B), a remittance transfer 
                provider shall collect from the sender of such 
                remittance transfer a remittance fee equal to 2 percent 
                of the United States dollar amount to be transferred 
                (excluding any fees or other charges imposed by the 
                remittance transfer provider). Except as provided in 
                subparagraph (C), such remittance fees shall be 
                submitted to the Treasury to be expended for the 
                purpose of improving border security.
                    ``(B) Foreign countries.--Subparagraph (A) shall 
                apply to designated recipients located in Mexico, 
                Guatemala, Belize, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, Haiti, the 
                Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, 
                Jamaica, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, 
                Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Aruba, Curacao, the 
                British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, 
                Saint Kitts and Nevis, Montserrat, Guadeloupe, 
                Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and 
                the Grenadines, Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, Suriname, 
                French Guiana, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, 
                Paraguay, Uruguay, or Argentina.
                    ``(C) Costs.--For the 5-year period beginning on 
                the date of the enactment of this subsection, a 
                remittance transfer provider may retain up to 5 percent 
                of any remittance fees collected by such remittance 
                transfer provider pursuant to subparagraph (A) to cover 
                the costs of collecting and submitting such remittance 
                fees.
            ``(2) Fee collection system.--Not later than September 30, 
        2017, the Bureau, in consultation with the Secretary of 
        Homeland Security, the Secretary of the Treasury, and 
        remittance transfer providers, shall develop and make available 
        a system for remittance transfer providers to--
                    ``(A) submit the remittance fees collected in 
                accordance with paragraph (1)(A) to the Treasury; and
                    ``(B) retain a portion of such remittance fees in 
                accordance with paragraph (1)(C).
            ``(3) Penalties.--
                    ``(A) Whoever, with the intent to evade a 
                remittance fee to be collected in accordance with this 
                subsection, and who has knowledge that, at the time of 
                a remittance transfer, the value of the funds involved 
                in the transfer will be further transferred to a 
                recipient located in a country listed in paragraph 
                (1)(B), requests or facilitates such remittance 
                transfer to a designated recipient in a country that is 
                not listed in paragraph (1)(B) shall be subject to a 
                penalty of not more than $500,000 or twice the value of 
                the funds involved in the remittance transfer, 
                whichever is greater, or imprisonment for not more than 
                20 years, or both.
                    ``(B) Any foreign country that, in the joint 
                determination of the Secretary of Homeland Security, 
                the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Secretary of 
                State aids or harbors an individual conspiring to avoid 
                the fee collected in accordance with this subsection 
                shall be ineligible to receive foreign assistance and 
                to participate in the visa waiver program or any other 
                programs, at the discretion of the Secretaries 
                described in this subparagraph.''.
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