Enhancing Treasury's Anti-Terror Tools Act

Bill: 114-hr-5607
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Pittenger, Robert [R-NC-9]
Introduced: 2016-06-28
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Africa

Bank accounts, deposits, capital

Banking and financial institutions regulation

Business records

Congressional oversight

Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation

Currency

Department of the Treasury

Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad

Executive Office of the President

Executive agency funding and structure

Fraud offenses and financial crimes

Government information and archives

Government studies and investigations

Intelligence activities, surveillance, classified information

International organizations and cooperation

Somalia

Terrorism
Latest action: action_date: 2016-07-12
text: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

Summaries:
action_date: 2016-06-28
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Enhancing Treasury's Anti-Terror Tools Act </b></p> <p>This bill directs the Department of the Treasury to report to certain congressional committees on the employment by U.S embassies of full-time and temporary Treasury attaches and their role in advancing U.S. anti-terrorism financing interests, including money laundering and related illicit finance. </p> <p>The bill revises Treasury's authority to issue an order imposing recordkeeping and reporting requirements upon financial institutions and nonfinancial trade or business groups in certain geographic areas regarding transactions for the payment, receipt, or transfer of U.S. coins or currency (or other monetary instruments as Treasury may describe). Such an order may include all funds, not just U.S. coins or currency, involved in such transactions. </p> <p>Treasury shall study:</p> <ul> <li>the advisability and implications of transforming the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence into a standalone bureau,</li> <li>the potential efficacy of requiring banking regulators to establish a pilot technical assistance program for depository institutions and credit unions that furnish account services to money services businesses serving individuals in Somalia, and</li> <li>the potential impact of allowing money services businesses to share their state examinations with depository institutions and credit unions. </li> </ul> <p>The bill expresses the sense of Congress that, to better integrate the intelligence community with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing efforts, Treasury should work with finance ministry counterparts worldwide to spur the development of entities similar to its Office of Intelligence and Analysis. </p> <p>Treasury shall collect and make available electronically to federal agencies a unified stream of import and export data and similar currently collected information that would help federal detection and prevention of illicit finance. </p> <p>The National Security Act of 1947 is amended to add the Secretary of the Treasury to the National Security Council.</p>

action_date: 2016-07-11
action_desc: Passed House amended
text: <p><b>Enhancing Treasury's Anti-Terror Tools Act </b></p> <p>(Sec. 2) This bill instructs the Department of the Treasury to report to Congress on the employment by U.S. embassies of full-time and temporary Treasury attaches and their role in advancing U.S. anti-terrorism financing interests, including concerning: </p> <ul> <li> how Treasury's interests relating to anti-terror finance, money laundering, and related illicit finance issues are handled at other embassies;</li> <li> issues identified by Treasury attaches concerning anti-terror finance, money laundering, and related illicit finance; </li> <li> recommendations to improve coordination between Treasury and foreign financial ministries of efforts to block the financing of terror, money laundering, and related illicit finance; and </li> <li> whether Treasury's interests relating to anti-terror finance, money laundering, or related illicit finance issues are thought to be underrepresented in some embassies or regions. </ul> <p>(Sec. 3) The bill revises Treasury's authority to issue an order imposing recordkeeping and reporting requirements upon financial institutions and nonfinancial trade or business groups in certain geographic areas regarding transactions for the payment, receipt, or transfer of U.S. coins or currency (or other monetary instruments as Treasury may describe). Such an order may include all funds, not just U.S. coins or currency, involved in such transactions. </p> <p>(Sec. 4) Treasury shall study:</p> <UL> <LI>the advisability and implications of transforming the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence into a stand-alone bureau of Treasury, <LI>the potential efficacy of requiring banking regulators to establish a pilot technical assistance program for depository institutions and credit unions that furnish account services to money services businesses serving individuals in Somalia and whether it could improve the ability of Americans to legitimately send funds through transparent and easily monitored channels, and <LI>the potential impact of allowing money services businesses to share their state examinations with depository institutions and credit unions. </LI> </UL> <p>(Sec. 6) The bill expresses the sense of Congress that Treasury should work with finance ministry counterparts worldwide to spur the development of entities similar to its Office of Intelligence and Analysis to integrate the intelligence community with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing efforts. </p>

tv_txt: I 114th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5607 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES June 28, 2016 Mr. Pittenger (for himself and Mr. Lynch ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services , and in addition to the Committees on Foreign Affairs , Ways and Means , Armed Services , and Intelligence (Permanent Select) , 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 enhance the Department of the Treasury’s role in protecting national security, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Enhancing Treasury’s Anti-Terror Tools Act . 2. Examining the Department of the Treasury’s counter-terror financing role in embassies Within 180 days of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a report to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate containing— (1) a list of the United States embassies in which a full-time Department of the Treasury attaché is stationed; (2) a list of the United States embassies at which a Department of the Treasury attaché is assigned for temporary duty, the length of such assignments, and the reason why such assignments are not considered to be a permanent assignments; (3) how the Department of the Treasury’s interests relating to anti-terror finance, money laundering, and related illicit finance issues are handled at other embassies, including a discussion of the reporting structure by which such issues are brought to the direct attention of the ambassador; (4) a description of the role the Department of the Treasury attachés play in advancing America’s anti-terrorism financing interests; (5) a discussion of patterns, trends, or other issues identified by Department of the Treasury attachés in the previous year concerning anti-terror finance, money laundering, and related illicit finance; (6) recommendations to improve coordination between the Department of the Treasury and foreign financial ministries of efforts to block the financing of terror, money laundering, and related illicit finance; and (7) a discussion of whether the Department of the Treasury’s interests relating to anti-terror finance, money laundering, or related illicit finance issues are thought to be under-represented in some embassies or regions. 3. Clarifying requirements for recordkeeping (a) In general Section 5326 of title 31, United States Code, is amended— (1) in the heading of such section, by striking coin and currency ; (2) in subsection (a)— (A) by striking subtitle and and inserting subtitle or to ; and (B) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking United States coins or currency (or such other monetary instruments as the Secretary may describe in such order) and inserting funds (as the Secretary may describe in such order), ; and (3) in subsection (b)— (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking coins or currency (or monetary instruments) and inserting funds ; and (B) in paragraph (2), by striking coins or currency (or such other monetary instruments as the Secretary may describe in the regulation or order) and inserting funds (as the Secretary may describe in the regulation or order) . (b) Clerical amendment The table of contents for chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code, is amended in the item relating to section 5326 by striking coin and currency . 4. Study of bureau status (a) Study The Secretary of the Treasury shall carry out a study on the advisability and implications of transforming the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence into a standalone bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and the effects such a move would have on the Department of the Treasury’s efforts to stop money laundering, the financing of terror, and related illicit finance. (b) Report Within 270 days of the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a report to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate containing all findings and determinations made in carrying out the study required under subsection (a). 5. Improving anti-terror finance monitoring of funds transfers (a) Study To improve the Department of the Treasury’s ability to better track cross-border fund transfers and identify potential financing of terror or other illicit finance, the Secretary of the Treasury shall carry out a study to assess— (1) the potential efficacy of requiring banking regulators to establish a pilot program to provide technical assistance to depository institutions and credit unions that wish to provide account services to money services businesses serving individuals in Somalia; (2) whether such a pilot program could be a model for improving the ability of Americans to legitimately send funds to their loved ones through transparent and easily monitored channels; and (3) the potential impact of allowing money services businesses to share their State examinations with depository institutions and credit unions, or if another mechanism could be found to allow a similar exchange of information that would give such depository institutions and credit unions a better understanding of whether an individual money services business is adequately meeting its anti-money laundering and counter terror financing obligations to combat money laundering, the financing of terror, or related illicit finance. (b) Report Within 270 days of the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a report to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate containing all findings and determinations made in carrying out the study required under subsection (a). (c) Money services business defined For purposes of this section, the term money services business has the meaning given that term under section 1010.100 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations. 6. Sense of Congress It is the sense of the Congress that the Secretary of the Treasury, acting in the Secretary’s own capacity and through the Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, should work with finance ministry counterparts worldwide to spur the development within such ministries of entities similar to the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis to more solidly integrate the intelligence community with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing efforts. 7. Unified electronic stream The Secretary of the Treasury shall, within 180 days of the date of the enactment of this Act, implement a program to collect, assemble, maintain in an up-to-date form, and make available electronically to appropriate Federal departments and agencies, including the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, the Bureau of Industry and Security of the Department of the Commerce, the Census Bureau, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Drug Enforcement Administration, a unified stream of import and export data, including bills of lading, manifests, Electronic Data Interchange information tracking container movements, and similar currently collected information that would help such departments and agencies detect and prevent terrorist financing, money laundering, or other forms of illicit finance in any form, while protecting proprietary business information and other sensitive information from unauthorized disclosure, in accordance with other Federal laws. 8. Adding the Secretary of the Treasury to the National Security Council Section 101(a) of the National Security Act of 1947 ( 50 U.S.C. 3021(a) ) is amended— (1) by redesignating paragraphs (5) and (6) as paragraphs (6) and (7), respectively; and (2) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following: (5) the Secretary of the Treasury; .

tv_txt: IIB 114th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5607 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES July 12, 2016 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs AN ACT To enhance the Department of the Treasury’s role in protecting national security, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Enhancing Treasury’s Anti-Terror Tools Act . 2. Examining the Department of the Treasury’s counter-terror financing role in embassies Within 180 days of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a report to the Committees on Financial Services and Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and Foreign Relations of the Senate containing— (1) a list of the United States embassies in which a full-time Department of the Treasury attaché is stationed; (2) a list of the United States embassies at which a Department of the Treasury attaché is assigned for temporary duty, the length of such assignments, and the reason why such assignments are not considered to be a permanent assignments; (3) how the Department of the Treasury’s interests relating to anti-terror finance, money laundering, and related illicit finance issues are handled at other embassies, including a discussion of the reporting structure by which such issues are brought to the direct attention of the ambassador; (4) a description of the role the Department of the Treasury attachés play in advancing America’s anti-terrorism financing interests; (5) a discussion of patterns, trends, or other issues identified by Department of the Treasury attachés in the previous year concerning anti-terror finance, money laundering, and related illicit finance; (6) recommendations to improve coordination between the Department of the Treasury and foreign financial ministries of efforts to block the financing of terror, money laundering, and related illicit finance; and (7) a discussion of whether the Department of the Treasury’s interests relating to anti-terror finance, money laundering, or related illicit finance issues are thought to be under-represented in some embassies or regions. 3. Clarifying requirements for recordkeeping (a) In general Section 5326 of title 31, United States Code, is amended— (1) in the heading of such section, by striking coin and currency ; (2) in subsection (a)— (A) by striking subtitle and and inserting subtitle or to ; and (B) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking United States coins or currency (or such other monetary instruments as the Secretary may describe in such order) and inserting funds (as the Secretary may describe in such order), ; and (3) in subsection (b)— (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking coins or currency (or monetary instruments) and inserting funds ; and (B) in paragraph (2), by striking coins or currency (or such other monetary instruments as the Secretary may describe in the regulation or order) and inserting funds (as the Secretary may describe in the regulation or order) . (b) Clerical amendment The table of contents for chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code, is amended in the item relating to section 5326 by striking coin and currency . 4. Study of bureau status (a) Study The Secretary of the Treasury shall carry out a study on the advisability and implications of transforming the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence into a standalone bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and the effects such a move would have on the Department of the Treasury’s efforts to stop money laundering, the financing of terror, and related illicit finance. (b) Report Within 270 days of the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a report to the Committee on Financial Services and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate containing all findings and determinations made in carrying out the study required under subsection (a). 5. Improving anti-terror finance monitoring of funds transfers (a) Study To improve the Department of the Treasury’s ability to better track cross-border fund transfers and identify potential financing of terror or other illicit finance, the Secretary of the Treasury shall carry out a study to assess— (1) the potential efficacy of requiring banking regulators to establish a pilot program to provide technical assistance to depository institutions and credit unions that wish to provide account services to money services businesses serving individuals in Somalia; (2) whether such a pilot program could be a model for improving the ability of Americans to legitimately send funds to their loved ones through transparent and easily monitored channels; and (3) the potential impact of allowing money services businesses to share their State examinations with depository institutions and credit unions, or if another mechanism could be found to allow a similar exchange of information that would give such depository institutions and credit unions a better understanding of whether an individual money services business is adequately meeting its anti-money laundering and counter terror financing obligations to combat money laundering, the financing of terror, or related illicit finance. (b) Report Within 270 days of the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a report to the Committees on Financial Services and Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and Foreign Relations of the Senate containing all findings and determinations made in carrying out the study required under subsection (a). (c) Money services business defined For purposes of this section, the term money services business has the meaning given that term under section 1010.100 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations. 6. Sense of Congress It is the sense of the Congress that the Secretary of the Treasury, acting in the Secretary’s own capacity and through the Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, should work with finance ministry counterparts worldwide to spur the development within such ministries of entities similar to the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis to more solidly integrate the intelligence community with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing efforts.

Passed the House of Representatives July 11, 2016. Karen L. Haas, Clerk

tv_txt: I 114th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5607 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AN ACT To enhance the Department of the Treasury’s role in protecting national security, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Enhancing Treasury’s Anti-Terror Tools Act . 2. Examining the Department of the Treasury’s counter-terror financing role in embassies Within 180 days of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a report to the Committees on Financial Services and Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and Foreign Relations of the Senate containing— (1) a list of the United States embassies in which a full-time Department of the Treasury attaché is stationed; (2) a list of the United States embassies at which a Department of the Treasury attaché is assigned for temporary duty, the length of such assignments, and the reason why such assignments are not considered to be a permanent assignments; (3) how the Department of the Treasury’s interests relating to anti-terror finance, money laundering, and related illicit finance issues are handled at other embassies, including a discussion of the reporting structure by which such issues are brought to the direct attention of the ambassador; (4) a description of the role the Department of the Treasury attachés play in advancing America’s anti-terrorism financing interests; (5) a discussion of patterns, trends, or other issues identified by Department of the Treasury attachés in the previous year concerning anti-terror finance, money laundering, and related illicit finance; (6) recommendations to improve coordination between the Department of the Treasury and foreign financial ministries of efforts to block the financing of terror, money laundering, and related illicit finance; and (7) a discussion of whether the Department of the Treasury’s interests relating to anti-terror finance, money laundering, or related illicit finance issues are thought to be under-represented in some embassies or regions. 3. Clarifying requirements for recordkeeping (a) In general Section 5326 of title 31, United States Code, is amended— (1) in the heading of such section, by striking coin and currency ; (2) in subsection (a)— (A) by striking subtitle and and inserting subtitle or to ; and (B) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking United States coins or currency (or such other monetary instruments as the Secretary may describe in such order) and inserting funds (as the Secretary may describe in such order), ; and (3) in subsection (b)— (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking coins or currency (or monetary instruments) and inserting funds ; and (B) in paragraph (2), by striking coins or currency (or such other monetary instruments as the Secretary may describe in the regulation or order) and inserting funds (as the Secretary may describe in the regulation or order) . (b) Clerical amendment The table of contents for chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code, is amended in the item relating to section 5326 by striking coin and currency . 4. Study of bureau status (a) Study The Secretary of the Treasury shall carry out a study on the advisability and implications of transforming the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence into a standalone bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and the effects such a move would have on the Department of the Treasury’s efforts to stop money laundering, the financing of terror, and related illicit finance. (b) Report Within 270 days of the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a report to the Committee on Financial Services and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate containing all findings and determinations made in carrying out the study required under subsection (a). 5. Improving anti-terror finance monitoring of funds transfers (a) Study To improve the Department of the Treasury’s ability to better track cross-border fund transfers and identify potential financing of terror or other illicit finance, the Secretary of the Treasury shall carry out a study to assess— (1) the potential efficacy of requiring banking regulators to establish a pilot program to provide technical assistance to depository institutions and credit unions that wish to provide account services to money services businesses serving individuals in Somalia; (2) whether such a pilot program could be a model for improving the ability of Americans to legitimately send funds to their loved ones through transparent and easily monitored channels; and (3) the potential impact of allowing money services businesses to share their State examinations with depository institutions and credit unions, or if another mechanism could be found to allow a similar exchange of information that would give such depository institutions and credit unions a better understanding of whether an individual money services business is adequately meeting its anti-money laundering and counter terror financing obligations to combat money laundering, the financing of terror, or related illicit finance. (b) Report Within 270 days of the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a report to the Committees on Financial Services and Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and Foreign Relations of the Senate containing all findings and determinations made in carrying out the study required under subsection (a). (c) Money services business defined For purposes of this section, the term money services business has the meaning given that term under section 1010.100 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations. 6. Sense of Congress It is the sense of the Congress that the Secretary of the Treasury, acting in the Secretary’s own capacity and through the Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, should work with finance ministry counterparts worldwide to spur the development within such ministries of entities similar to the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis to more solidly integrate the intelligence community with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing efforts.

Passed the House of Representatives July 11, 2016. Karen L. Haas, Clerk.