FinCEN Improvement Act of 2019

IIB 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1414 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 12, 2019 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs AN ACT To amend the duties of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to ensure FinCEN works with Tribal law enforcement agencies, protects against all forms of terrorism, and focuses on virtual currencies. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1414.RFS H1414 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 HR 1414 RFS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘FinCEN Improvement 2 Act of 2019’’. 3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 4 The Congress finds the following: 5 (1) The mission of the Financial Crimes En- 6 forcement Network (FinCEN) is to safeguard the fi- 7 nancial system from illicit use and combat money 8 laundering and promote national security through 9 the collection, analysis, and dissemination of finan- 10 cial intelligence and strategic use of financial au- 11 thorities. 12 (2) In its mission to safeguard the financial 13 system from the abuses of financial crime, including 14 terrorist financing, money laundering and other il- 15 licit activity, the United States should prioritize 16 working with partners in Federal, State, local, Trib- 17 al, and foreign law enforcement authorities. 18 (3) The Federal Bureau of Investigation has 19 stated that since the terror attacks on September 20 11, 2001, ‘‘The threat landscape has expanded con- 21 siderably, though it is important to note that the 22 more traditional threat posed by al Qaeda and its af- 23 filiates is still present and active. The threat of do- 24 mestic terrorism also remains persistent overall, with 25 actors crossing the line from First Amendment pro- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1414.RFS H1414 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 HR 1414 RFS tected rights to committing crimes to further their 1 political agenda.’’. 2 (4) Although the use and trading of virtual cur- 3 rencies are legal practices, some terrorists and crimi- 4 nals, including international criminal organizations, 5 seek to exploit vulnerabilities in the global financial 6 system and are increasingly using emerging payment 7 methods such as virtual currencies to move illicit 8 funds. 9 (5) In carrying out its mission, FinCEN should 10 prioritize all forms of terrorism and emerging meth- 11 ods of terrorism and illicit finance. 12 SEC. 3. STRENGTHENING FINCEN. 13 Section 310 of title 31, United States Code, is 14 amended— 15 (1) in paragraph (C)— 16 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘appropriate 17 Federal, State, local, and foreign law enforce- 18 ment agencies’’ and inserting ‘‘appropriate Fed- 19 eral, State, local, Tribal, and foreign law en- 20 forcement agencies’’; and 21 (B) in clause (vi), by striking ‘‘to protect 22 against international terrorism’’ and inserting 23 ‘‘to protect against terrorism’’; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1414.RFS H1414 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 HR 1414 RFS (2) in paragraph (E), by striking ‘‘appropriate 1 Federal, State, local, and foreign law enforcement 2 authorities’’ and inserting ‘‘appropriate Federal, 3 State, local, Tribal, and foreign law enforcement au- 4 thorities’’; 5 (3) in paragraph (F), by striking ‘‘Federal, 6 State, local, and foreign law enforcement’’ and in- 7 serting ‘‘Federal, State, local, Tribal, and foreign 8 law enforcement’’; and 9 (4) in paragraph (H), by striking ‘‘anti-ter- 10 rorism and anti-money laundering initiatives, and 11 similar efforts’’ and inserting ‘‘anti-terrorism and 12 anti-money laundering initiatives, including matters 13 involving emerging technologies or value that sub- 14 stitutes for currency, and similar efforts’’. 15 Passed the House of Representatives March 11, 2019. Attest: CHERYL L. JOHNSON, Clerk. VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1414.RFS H1414 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS