[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 125 (Wednesday, July 25, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5380-S5381]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 3557. Ms. WARREN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to
amendment SA 3399 proposed by Mr. Shelby to the bill H.R. 6147, making
appropriations for the Department of the Interior, environment, and
related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2019, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the appropriate place, insert the following:
SEC. ____. ENDING BANKING FOR HUMAN TRAFFICKERS.
(a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the ``End
Banking for Human Traffickers Act of 2018''.
(b) Increasing the Role of the Financial Industry in
Combating Human Trafficking.--
(1) Treasury as a member of the president's interagency
task force to monitor and combat trafficking.--Section 105(b)
of the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of
2000 (22 U.S.C. 7103(b)) is amended by inserting ``the
Secretary of the Treasury,'' after ``the Secretary of
Education,''.
(2) Required review of procedures.--Not later than 180 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Financial
Institutions Examination Council, in consultation with the
Secretary of the Treasury, the private sector, victims of
severe forms of trafficking in persons, advocates of persons
at risk of becoming victims of severe forms of trafficking in
persons, and appropriate law enforcement agencies, shall--
(A) review and enhance training and examinations procedures
to improve the capabilities of anti-money laundering and
countering the financing of terrorism programs to detect
financial transactions relating to severe forms of
trafficking in persons;
(B) review and enhance procedures for referring potential
cases relating to severe forms of trafficking in persons to
the appropriate law enforcement agency; and
(C) determine, as appropriate, whether requirements for
financial institutions are sufficient to detect and deter
money laundering relating to severe forms of trafficking in
persons.
(3) Interagency task force recommendations targeting money
laundering related to human trafficking.--
(A) In general.--Not later than 270 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Interagency Task Force to
Monitor and Combat Trafficking shall submit to the Committee
on Financial Services and the Committee on the Judiciary of
the House of Representatives, the Committee on Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs and the Committee on the Judiciary
of the Senate, and the head of each appropriate Federal
banking agency--
(i) an analysis of anti-money laundering efforts of the
United States Government and United States financial
institutions relating to severe forms of trafficking in
persons; and
(ii) appropriate legislative, administrative, and other
recommendations to strengthen efforts against money
laundering relating to severe forms of trafficking in
persons.
(B) Required recommendations.--The recommendations under
subparagraph (A) shall include--
(i) feedback from financial institutions on best practices
of successful programs to combat severe forms of trafficking
in persons currently in place that may be suitable for
[[Page S5381]]
broader adoption by similarly situated financial
institutions;
(ii) feedback from stakeholders, including victims of
severe forms of trafficking in persons, advocates of persons
at risk of becoming victims of severe forms of trafficking in
persons, and financial institutions, on policy proposals
derived from the analysis conducted by the task force
referred to in subparagraph (A) that would enhance the
efforts and programs of financial institutions to detect and
deter money laundering relating to severe forms of
trafficking in persons, including any recommended changes to
internal policies, procedures, and controls relating to
severe forms of trafficking in persons;
(iii) any recommended changes to training programs at
financial institutions to better equip employees to deter and
detect money laundering relating to severe forms of
trafficking in persons;
(iv) any recommended changes to expand information sharing
relating to severe forms of trafficking in persons among
financial institutions and between such financial
institutions, appropriate law enforcement agencies, and
appropriate Federal agencies; and
(v) recommended changes, if necessary, to existing
statutory law to more effectively detect and deter money
laundering relating to severe forms of trafficking in
persons, where such money laundering involves the use of
emerging technologies and virtual currencies.
(4) Limitation.--Nothing in this section shall be construed
to--
(A) grant rulemaking authority to the Interagency Task
Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking; or
(B) authorize financial institutions to deny services to
victims of trafficking, victims of severe forms of
trafficking, or individuals not responsible for promoting
severe forms of trafficking in persons.
(5) Definitions.--As used in this subsection--
(A) the term ``appropriate Federal banking agency'' has the
meaning given the term in section 3(q) of the Federal Deposit
Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813(q));
(B) the term ``severe forms of trafficking in persons'' has
the meaning given such term in section 103 of the Trafficking
Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102);
(C) the term ``Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat
Trafficking'' means the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and
Combat Trafficking established by the President pursuant to
section 105 of the Victims of Trafficking and Violence
Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7103);
(D) the term ``law enforcement agency'' means an agency of
the United States, a State, or a political subdivision of a
State, authorized by law or by a government agency to engage
in or supervise the prevention, detection, investigation, or
prosecution of any violation of criminal or civil law; and
(E) the terms ``victim of a severe form of trafficking''
and ``victim of trafficking'' have the meanings given the
terms in section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection
Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102).
(c) Coordination of Human Trafficking Issues by the Office
of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence.--
(1) Functions.--Section 312(a)(4) of title 31, United
States Code, is amended--
(A) by redesignating subparagraphs (E), (F), and (G) as
subparagraphs (F), (G), and (H), respectively; and
(B) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the following:
``(E) combating illicit financing relating to severe forms
of trafficking in persons;''.
(d) Interagency Coordination.--Section 312(a) of title 31,
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(8) Interagency coordination.--The Secretary of the
Treasury, after consultation with the Undersecretary for
Terrorism and Financial Crimes, shall designate an office
within the OTFI that shall coordinate efforts to combat the
illicit financing of severe forms of trafficking in persons
with--
``(A) other offices of the Department of the Treasury;
``(B) other Federal agencies, including--
``(i) the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in
Persons of the Department of State; and
``(ii) the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat
Trafficking;
``(C) State and local law enforcement agencies; and
``(D) foreign governments.''.
(e) Definition.--Section 312(a) of title 31, United States
Code, as amended by this section, is further amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(9) Definition.--In this subsection, the term `severe
forms of trafficking in persons' has the meaning given such
term in section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act
of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102).''.
(f) Additional Reporting Requirement Under the Trafficking
Victims Protection Act of 2000.--Section 105(d)(7) of the
Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C.
7103(d)(7)) is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A)--
(A) by inserting ``the Committee on Financial Services,''
after ``the Committee on Foreign Affairs,''; and
(B) by inserting ``the Committee on Banking, Housing, and
Urban Affairs,'' after ``the Committee on Foreign
Relations,'';
(2) in subparagraph (Q)(vii), by striking ``; and'' and
inserting a semicolon;
(3) in subparagraph (R), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(S) the efforts of the United States to eliminate money
laundering relating to severe forms of trafficking in persons
and the number of investigations, arrests, indictments, and
convictions in money laundering cases with a nexus to severe
forms of trafficking in persons.''.
(g) Minimum Standards for the Elimination of Trafficking.--
Section 108(b) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of
2000 (22 U.S.C. 7106(b)) is amended by adding at the end the
following new paragraph:
``(13) Whether the government of the country, consistent
with the capacity of the country, has in effect a framework
to prevent financial transactions involving the proceeds of
severe forms of trafficking in persons, and is taking steps
to implement such a framework, including by investigating,
prosecuting, convicting, and sentencing individuals who
attempt or conduct such transactions.''.
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