Terrorist Financing Prevention Act of 2023

Bill: 118-s-3441
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Warner, Mark R. [D-VA]
Introduced: 2023-12-07
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Civil actions and liability

Currency

Digital media

Financial services and investments

Foreign and international banking

Fraud offenses and financial crimes

Judicial review and appeals

Sanctions

Terrorism

Violent crime
Latest action: action_date: 2024-02-08
text: Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. Hearings held.

Summaries:
action_date: 2023-12-07
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><strong>Terrorist Financing Prevention Act of 2023</strong></p><p>This bill requires specified sanctions on foreign entities that facilitate financial transactions tied to foreign terrorist organizations.</p><p>The bill requires the Department of the Treasury to identify any foreign financial institution or foreign digital asset transaction facilitator that (1) has knowingly facilitated a significant financial transaction with a foreign terrorist organization or related person, or (2) has engaged in money laundering to carry out such a transaction.</p><p>The President must prohibit, or place restrictions on, opening or maintaining a U.S. correspondent or payable-through account by such an institution. Further, the President must prohibit any transactions between any person subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and a foreign digital asset transaction facilitator identified by Treasury under this bill.</p><p>The bill allows Treasury to prohibit or restrict certain fund transmittals if a foreign jurisdiction, institution, account, or transaction is of primary money laundering concern.</p>

tv_txt: II 118th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 3441 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES December 7, 2023 Mr. Warner (for himself, Mr. Rounds , Mr. Reed , and Mr. Romney ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs A BILL To prevent Foreign Terrorist Organizations and their financial enablers, whether in currency or digital assets, from accessing financial and other institutions of the United States, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Terrorist Financing Prevention Act of 2023 . I Prevention of access to financial and other institutions of the United States by Foreign Terrorist Organizations and their enablers 101. Definitions In this title: (1) Digital asset The term digital asset means any digital representation of value that is recorded on a cryptographically secured distributed ledger or any similar technology, or another implementation which was designed and built as part of a system to leverage or replace blockchain or distributed ledger technology or their derivatives. (2) Digital asset protocol The term digital asset protocol means any communication protocol, smart contract, or other software— (A) deployed through the use of distributed ledger or similar technology; and (B) that provides a mechanism for users to interact and agree to the terms of a trade for digital assets. (3) Foreign digital asset transaction facilitator The term foreign digital asset transaction facilitator means any foreign person or group of foreign persons that, as determined by the Secretary, controls, operates, or makes available a digital asset protocol or similar facility, or otherwise materially assists in the purchase, sale, exchange, custody, or other transaction involving an exchange or transfer of value using digital assets. (4) Foreign financial institution The term foreign financial institution has the meaning given that term under section 561.308 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations. (5) Foreign person The term foreign person means an individual or entity that is not a United States person. (6) Foreign Terrorist Organization The term Foreign Terrorist Organization means an organization that has been designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the Secretary of State, pursuant to section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1189 ). (7) Secretary The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Treasury. (8) Specially designated global terrorist organization The term specially designated global terrorist organization means an organization that has been designated as a specially designated global terrorist by the Secretary of State or the Secretary, pursuant to Executive Order 13224 ( 50 U.S.C. 1701 note; relating to blocking property and prohibiting transactions with persons who commit, threaten to commit, or support terrorism). (9) United States person The term United States person means— (A) an individual who is a United States citizen or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence to the United States; (B) an entity organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States, including a foreign branch of such an entity; or (C) any person in the United States. 102. Sanctions with respect to foreign financial institutions and foreign digital asset transaction facilitators that engage in certain transactions (a) Mandatory identification Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and periodically thereafter, the Secretary shall identify and submit to the President a report identifying any foreign financial institution or foreign digital asset transaction facilitator that has knowingly— (1) facilitated a significant financial transaction with— (A) a Foreign Terrorist Organization; (B) a specially designated global terrorist organization; or (C) a person identified on the list of specially designated nationals and blocked persons maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of the Treasury, the property and interests in property of which are blocked pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act ( 50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq. ) for acting on behalf of or at the direction of, or being owned or controlled by, a Foreign Terrorist Organization or a specially designated global terrorist organization; or (2) engaged in money laundering to carry out an activity described in paragraph (1). (b) Imposition of sanctions (1) Foreign financial institutions The President shall prohibit, or impose strict conditions on, the opening or maintaining of a correspondent account or a payable-through account in the United States by a foreign financial institution identified under subsection (a). (2) Foreign digital asset transaction facilitators The President, pursuant to such regulations as the President may prescribe, shall prohibit any transactions between any person subject to the jurisdiction of the United States with a foreign digital asset transaction facilitator identified under subsection (a). (c) Implementation and penalties (1) Implementation The President may exercise all authorities provided under sections 203 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act ( 50 U.S.C. 1702 , 1704) to the extent necessary to carry out this Act. (2) Penalties The penalties set forth in subsections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act ( 50 U.S.C. 1705 ) shall apply to a person that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of regulations prescribed under this section to the same extent that such penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful act described in subsection (a) of such section 206. (d) Procedures for judicial review of classified information (1) In general If a finding under this section, or a prohibition, condition, or penalty imposed as a result of any such finding, is based on classified information (as defined in section 1(a) of the Classified Information Procedures Act (18 U.S.C. App.)), the Secretary may submit to a court reviewing the finding or the imposition of the prohibition, condition, or penalty such classified information ex parte and in camera. (2) Rule of construction Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to confer or imply any right to judicial review of any finding under this subsection or any prohibition, condition, or penalty imposed as a result of any such finding. (e) Waiver for national security The Secretary may waive the imposition of sanctions under this section with respect to a person if the Secretary— (1) determines that such a waiver is in the national interests of the United States; and (2) submits to Congress a notification of the waiver and the reasons for the waiver. (f) Exception for intelligence activities This section shall not apply with respect to any activity subject to the reporting requirements under title V of the National Security Act of 1947 ( 50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq. ) or any authorized intelligence activities of the United States. (g) Exception relating to importation of goods (1) In general The authorities and requirements under this section shall not include the authority or a requirement to impose sanctions on the importation of goods. (2) Good defined In this section, the term good means any article, natural or manmade substance, material, supply, or manufactured product, including inspection and test equipment, and excluding technical data. II Special measures for modern threats 201. Prohibitions or conditions on certain transmittals of funds Section 5318A of title 31, United States Code, is amended— (1) in subsection (a)(2)(C), by striking subsection (b)(5) and inserting paragraphs (5) and (6) of subsection (b) ; and (2) in subsection (b)— (A) in paragraph (5), by striking for or on behalf of a foreign banking institution ; and (B) by adding at the end the following: (6) Prohibitions or conditions on certain transmittals of funds If the Secretary finds a jurisdiction outside of the United States, 1 or more financial institutions operating outside of the United States, 1 or more types of accounts within, or involving, a jurisdiction outside of the United States, or 1 or more classes of transactions within, or involving, a jurisdiction outside of the United States to be of primary money laundering concern, the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, and the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, may prohibit, or impose conditions upon, certain transmittals of funds (as such term may be defined by the Secretary in a special measure issuance, by regulation, or as otherwise permitted by law), to or from any domestic financial institution or domestic financial agency if such transmittal of funds involves any such jurisdiction, institution, type of account, class of transaction, or type of account. . III Funding 301. Adequate funding to prevent evasion of counter-terrorism sanctions and financial crime enforcement There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of the Treasury such funds as are necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.