[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1359 Introduced in Senate (IS)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1359

To allow credit unions to provide international money transfer services 
   and to require disclosures in connection with international money 
        transfers from all money transmitting service providers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 26, 2003

   Mrs. Boxer introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
    referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To allow credit unions to provide international money transfer services 
   and to require disclosures in connection with international money 
        transfers from all money transmitting service providers.

    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 ``International Remittance Services 
Enhancement and Protection Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. FEDERAL CREDIT UNION ACT AMENDMENT.

    Paragraph (12) of section 107 of the Federal Credit Union Act (12 
U.S.C. 1757(12)) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(12) in accordance with regulations prescribed by the 
        Board--
                    ``(A) to sell or provide for a fee negotiable 
                checks (including travelers checks), money orders, 
                international money transfer services, and other 
                similar money transfer instruments and services; and
                    ``(B) to cash checks and money orders;''.

SEC. 3. DISCLOSURES REQUIRED.

    (a) Regulations.--Subject to paragraph (2), the appropriate Federal 
agencies shall jointly prescribe regulations that require any financial 
institution or money transmitting business which initiates an 
international money transfer on behalf of a consumer (whether or not 
the consumer maintains an account at such institution or business) to 
provide the following disclosures to the consumer before the 
consummation of the transaction:
            (1) Any fees to be charged to the recipient, including any 
        exchange rate or currency conversion fees.
            (2) A final itemization of all costs to the consumer, which 
        would include all fees charged, for the remittance.
            (3) The exact amount of foreign currency to be received by 
        the recipient in the foreign country.
    (b) Language Requirement.--The disclosures required under 
subsection (a) shall be in English and in any other language used by 
the financial institution or money transmitting business, or any of its 
agents, to advertise, solicit, or negotiate, either orally or in 
writing, at the office of the institution or business at which the 
international money transfer is initiated.
    (c) Definitions.--For purposes of this section, the following 
definitions shall apply:
            (1) Appropriate federal agency.--The term ``appropriate 
        Federal agency'' means--
                    (A) the appropriate Federal banking agency, in the 
                case of any insured depository institution;
                    (B) the National Credit Union Administration, in 
                the case of any insured credit union; and
                    (C) the Federal Trade Commission, in the case of 
                any financial institution or money transmitting 
                business that is not an insured depository institution 
                or insured credit union.
            (2) Appropriate federal banking agency.--The term 
        ``appropriate Federal banking agency'' has the same meaning as 
        in section 3 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act;
            (3) Insured credit union.--The term ``insured credit 
        union'' has the same meaning as in section 101 of the Federal 
        Credit Union Act;
            (4) Insured depository institution.--The term ``insured 
        depository institution'' has the same meaning as in section 3 
        of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act;
            (5) International money transfer.--The term ``international 
        money transfer'' means any money transmitting service 
        originating in the United States and involving an international 
        transaction which is provided by a financial institution or a 
        money transmitting business.
            (6) Money transmitting service.--The term ``money 
        transmitting service'' has the same meaning as in section 
        5330(d)(2) of title 31, United States Code.
            (7) Money transmitting business.--The term ``money 
        transmitting business'' means any business which--
                    (A) provides check cashing, currency exchange, or 
                money transmitting or remittance services, or issues or 
                redeems money orders, travelers' checks, and other 
                similar instruments; and
                    (B) is not a depository institution (as defined in 
                section 5313(g) of title 31, United States Code).
    (d) Administrative Enforcement.--
            (1) Depository institutions.--
                    (A) In general.--Compliance with the requirements 
                imposed under this section shall be enforced under--
                            (i) section 8 of the Federal Deposit 
                        Insurance Act, in the case of an insured 
                        depository institution, by the appropriate 
                        Federal banking agency; and
                            (ii) the Federal Credit Union Act, in the 
                        case of any insured credit union (as defined in 
                        section 101 of the Federal Credit Union Act), 
                        by the National Credit Union Administration.
                    (B) Applicability of other laws.--
                            (i) Violations of this section.--For the 
                        purpose of the exercise by any agency referred 
                        to in subparagraph (A) of its powers under any 
                        Act referred to in that subparagraph, a 
                        violation of any requirement imposed under this 
                        section shall be deemed to be a violation of a 
                        requirement imposed under that Act.
                            (ii) Other authority.--In addition to its 
                        powers under any provision of law specifically 
                        referred to in subparagraph (A), each of the 
                        agencies referred to in such subparagraph may 
                        exercise, for the purpose of enforcing 
                        compliance with any requirement imposed under 
                        this section, any other authority conferred on 
                        it by law.
            (2) Other money transmitting businesses.--
                    (A) Appropriate federal regulator.--Except to the 
                extent that enforcement of the requirements imposed 
                under this section is specifically committed to some 
                other Government agency under paragraph (1), the 
                Federal Trade Commission shall enforce such 
                requirements.
                    (B) Applicability of other laws.--
                            (i) Violations of this section.--For the 
                        purpose of the exercise by the Federal Trade 
                        Commission of its functions and powers under 
                        the Federal Trade Commission Act, a violation 
                        of any requirement imposed under this section 
                        shall be deemed a violation of a requirement 
                        imposed under that Act.
                            (ii) Other authority.--All of the functions 
                        and powers of the Federal Trade Commission 
                        under the Federal Trade Commission Act are 
                        available to the Commission to enforce 
                        compliance by any person subject to the 
                        jurisdiction of the Commission with the 
                        requirements imposed under this section, 
                        irrespective of whether that person is engaged 
                        in commerce or meets any other jurisdictional 
                        tests in the Federal Trade Commission Act.
    (e) Effective Date.--This section shall apply to any international 
money transfer initiated in the United States after the end of the 3-
month period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act.
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