Opinion ID: 2968343
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Relevant Provisions

Text: A money transmitting business is one that, for a fee, accepts currency for transfer within or outside the United States through foreign currency exchanges and financial institutions. See 18 U.S.C.A. § 1960(b)(2); United States v. Velastegui, 199 F.3d 590, 592 (2d Cir. 1999). Many of these businesses are operated informally, by immigrants for fellow immigrants from their home countries. In 1992, Congress sought to combat the growing use of money transmitting businesses to transfer large amounts of the monetary proceeds of unlawful enterprises by enacting § 1960. Velastegui, 199 F.3d at 593. Prior to 2001, the statute provided, in pertinent part: (a) Whoever conducts, controls, manages, supervises, directs, or owns all or part of a business, knowing the business is an illegal money transmitting business, shall be fined in accordance with this title or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both. (b) As used in this section—
ness means a money transmitting business which affects interstate or foreign commerce in any manner or degree and— (A) is intentionally operated without an appropriate money transmitting license in a State where such operation is punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony under State law; or (B) fails to comply with the money trans- mitting business registration requirements under section 5330 of title 31, United States Code, or regulations prescribed under such section . . . . UNITED STATES v. TALEBNEJAD 5 18 U.S.C.A. § 1960, historical & statutory notes (West Supp. 2006) (emphasis added) (internal quotation marks omitted). On October 26, 2001, Congress amended the statute to provide, in relevant part, as follows: (a) Whoever knowingly conducts, controls, manages, supervises, directs, or owns all or part of an unlicensed money transmitting business, shall be fined in accordance with this title or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both. (b) As used in this section— (1) the term unlicensed money transmitting business means a money transmitting business which affects interstate or foreign commerce in any manner or degree and— (A) is operated without an appropriate money transmitting license in a State where such operation is punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony under State law, whether or not the defendant knew that the operation was required to be licensed or that the operation was so pun- ishable; [or] (B) fails to comply with the money trans- mitting business registration requirements under section 5330 of title 31, United States Code, or regulations prescribed under such section . . . . 18 U.S.C.A. § 1960 (emphasis added). The purpose of the amendment was to eliminate a potentially available affirmative defense that the defendant was unaware of applicable state licensing requirements. See H.R. Rep. No. 107-250, pt. I, at 54 (2001) (explaining that the amendment clarifies the scienter requirement in § 1960 to avoid the problems that occurred when the Supreme Court interpreted the currency transaction reporting statutes to require proof that the defendant knew that structuring a cash transaction to avoid the reporting requirements 6 UNITED STATES v. TALEBNEJAD had been made a criminal offense. See Ratzlaf v. United States, [510 U.S. 135,] 114 S. Ct. 655 (1994). The proposal makes clear that an offense under § 1960 is a general intent crime for which a defendant is liable if he knowingly operates an unlicensed money transmitting business.).
Maryland law prohibits a person from engaging in the business of money transmission unless that person is a licensee, is a delegate of a licensee, or is exempt from the licensing requirement. Md. Code Ann., Fin. Inst. § 12-405 (LexisNexis 2003). Money transmission is defined as the business of selling or issuing payment instruments or stored value devices, or receiving money or monetary value, for transmission to a location within or outside the United States and includes [a]ny informal money transfer system engaged in as a business for . . . facilitating the transfer of money outside the conventional financial institutions system to a location within or outside the United States. Md. Code Ann., Fin. Inst. § 12-401(l) (LexisNexis 2003). Maryland law sets forth criminal penalties for [a]ny person who knowingly and willfully violates the licensing requirement. Md. Code Ann., Fin. Inst. § 12-430 (LexisNexis 2003) (emphasis added).
Although § 1960 has made failure to comply with federal registration requirements punishable since 1994, see 18 U.S.C.A. § 1960, historical & statutory notes (West 2000), pertinent regulations were not promulgated until 1999 and did not become effective until December 31, 2001. The actual content of applicable federal regulations is not pertinent to the issues before us.