[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 151 (Thursday, September 19, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H7810-H7812]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           ADVANCING INNOVATION TO ASSIST LAW ENFORCEMENT ACT

  Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass 
the bill (H.R. 2613) to require the Director of the Financial Crimes 
Enforcement Network to carry out a study on the use of emerging 
technologies within the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and for 
other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2613

       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 ``Advancing Innovation to 
     Assist Law Enforcement Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINCEN STUDY ON USE OF EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES.

       (a) Study.--
       (1) In general.--The Director of the Financial Crimes 
     Enforcement Network (``FinCEN'') shall carry out a study on--
       (A) the status of implementation and internal use of 
     emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence 
     (``AI''), digital identity technologies, blockchain 
     technologies, and other innovative technologies within 
     FinCEN;

[[Page H7811]]

       (B) whether AI, digital identity technologies, blockchain 
     technologies, and other innovative technologies can be 
     further leveraged to make FinCEN's data analysis more 
     efficient and effective; and
       (C) how FinCEN could better utilize AI, digital identity 
     technologies, blockchain technologies, and other innovative 
     technologies to more actively analyze and disseminate the 
     information it collects and stores to provide investigative 
     leads to Federal, State, Tribal, and local law enforcement, 
     and other Federal agencies (collective, ``Agencies''), and 
     better support its ongoing investigations when referring a 
     case to the Agencies.
       (2) Inclusion of gto data.--The study required under this 
     subsection shall include data collected through the 
     Geographic Targeting Orders (``GTO'') program.
       (b) Report.--Not later than the end of the 6-month period 
     beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
     Director shall issue a report to the Committee on Banking, 
     Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 
     Financial Services of the House of Representatives 
     containing--
       (1) all findings and determinations made in carrying out 
     the study required under subsection (a);
       (2) with respect to each of subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) 
     of subsection (a)(1), any best practices or significant 
     concerns identified by the Director, and their applicability 
     to AI, digital identity technologies, blockchain 
     technologies, and other innovative technologies with respect 
     to U.S. efforts to combat money laundering and other forms of 
     illicit finance; and
       (3) any policy recommendations that could facilitate and 
     improve communication and coordination between the private 
     sector, FinCEN, and Agencies through the implementation of 
     innovative approaches, in order to meet their Bank Secrecy 
     Act (as defined under section 5312 of title 31, United States 
     Code) and anti-money laundering compliance obligations.
       (c) Bank Secrecy Act Defined.--For purposes of this 
     section, the term ``Bank Secrecy Act'' means--
       (1) subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 31, United States 
     Code;
       (2) section 21 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act; and
       (3) chapter 2 of title I of Public Law 91-508.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Guam (Mr. San Nicolas) and the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. 
McHenry) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Guam.


                             General Leave

  Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend 
their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material 
thereon.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Guam?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2613, the Advancing 
Innovation to Assist Law Enforcement Act, and I urge all Members to 
support it.
  The financial services industry spends quite a bit of time 
considering how it can use new technologies to improve its data 
collection and analysis to detect and report suspected financial crime.
  This bill turns the lens onto the Financial Crime Enforcement 
Network, FinCen, to look at its use of artificial intelligence, digital 
identity technologies, blockchain, and other innovative technologies.
  The study required by H.R. 2613 will examine how this essential 
regulatory and data-driven agency could itself better utilize these 
technologies to more actively analyze and disseminate the information 
FinCen collects and stores to provide investigative leads to its law 
enforcement partners.
  The result of this study will help the agency and us in Congress to 
identify gaps that need to be filled with the same advanced tools that 
are being adapted by the industry.
  I applaud the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Gonzalez) for his work on this 
bill and recommend its passage.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McHENRY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2613, the Advancing 
Innovation to Assist Law Enforcement Act. I commend the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. Gonzalez), my colleague, for his work on this important 
bipartisan legislation.
  This--if I am not mistaken--is the gentleman's first piece of 
legislation coming out of the Committee on Financial Services here on 
the House floor, and it is quite a good thing. His constituents should 
know, Madam Speaker, about the type of legislating that he is trying to 
achieve.
  The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, what we commonly call 
FinCen, is tasked with receiving and maintaining financial transaction 
data. This includes analyzing and disseminating data for law 
enforcement purposes to safeguard the financial system from illicit 
use, to combat money laundering, and promote national security. If you 
think terrorism financing, if you think about laundering drug money, 
this is the agency that does it. In short, FinCen is in the data 
business.
  This bill directs FinCen to carry out a study on the implementation 
of artificial intelligence and digital identity technology to ensure 
that FinCen is equipped with all the tools it needs to thwart bad 
actors and protect the financial system.
  And so this takes, in many respects, Congressman Gonzalez' broad 
background and brings that experience here to the legislative body and 
to this important law enforcement agency. This legislation takes the 
first step to revolutionize the way law enforcement works to locate and 
stop criminal activity in the financial services industry, including 
potential terrorist threats using artificial intelligence, blockchain, 
and other emerging technologies.
  This a FinTech bill. This is a technology bill. I urge my colleagues 
to support this measure. This bill ensures that FinCen is innovating 
alongside industry and alongside other Federal agencies and law 
enforcement agencies. And it drives them to utilize the most advanced 
computing and advanced technology available anywhere in the world in 
the best practices when it comes to data analysis and use.
  The use of new technologies will always help streamline government 
operations, allowing FinCen to move quicker in the face of emerging 
threats.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill. I want to 
commend the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Gonzalez), my colleague, for his 
hard work on this bipartisan bill, and I reserve the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Madam Speaker, we have no additional speakers on 
this legislation. I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McHENRY. Madam Speaker, I yield the balance of my time to the 
gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Gonzalez), my colleague and author of the 
bill.
  Mr. GONZALEZ of Ohio. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of my bill, 
and I thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters), chairwoman of 
the Committee on Financial Services, and the gentleman from North 
Carolina (Mr. McHenry), my friend and ranking member, for his kind 
words and all his work to bring this legislation to the floor today.
  The Advancing Innovation to Assist Law Enforcement Act is a 
bipartisan bill that I introduced along with the gentleman from 
Minnesota (Mr. Emmer), my friend, and it is supported by the gentleman 
from Utah (Mr. McAdams), my friend from across the aisle.
  This bill takes a stand to block a major tool used by cartels, 
terrorist organizations, traffickers and the like, to finance their 
illegal activities and put our Nation and the people living in it at 
risk.
  Money laundering enables the shipment of deadly drugs like opioids 
and fentanyl into communities like mine in Ohio that has been 
disseminated by the opioid crisis. Money laundering finances cartels 
who wreak havoc on our southern border and the communities that 
surround it, as I saw on my recent bipartisan trip to the border. And 
money laundering proliferates the horrors of human trafficking, which 
continues to exist across our country, despite government and private 
industry attempts to better identify victims and cut off trafficking 
routes.

  My bill makes sure that we are using the best technology we have 
available to find and stop the money laundering that makes all these 
crimes not only possible, but financially profitable for cartels, 
traffickers, and terrorists.
  My bill requires the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCen, 
to

[[Page H7812]]

study the implementation and internal use of emerging technologies, 
including artificial intelligence, digital identity technologies, 
blockchain, and other new and innovative technologies to better 
identify and prevent money laundering in our financial services 
industry.
  Additionally, this bill would require the study of how FinCen could 
better utilize these technologies to more quickly disseminate the 
information it collects to Federal, State, Tribal, and local law 
enforcement.
  It is my firm belief that we must leverage the use of emerging 
technologies in order to make our government operations more efficient 
and upgrade the toolkit that enables our law enforcement to effectively 
go after bad actors.
  Finally, H.R. 2613 would require that the Director of the Financial 
Crimes Enforcement Service Network report to the House Committee on 
Financial Services and the Senate Banking Committee on policy 
recommendations. The recommendations would allow the private sector, 
FinCen, and other Federal agencies to improve coordination and 
communication through advance technologies. This will help Congress 
ensure that we are providing the necessary support for our law 
enforcement community to effectively fight illicit activity based on 
these recommendations.
  Madam Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation, 
and I thank those who have helped push it forward.
  Mr. McHENRY. Madam Speaker, I am prepared to close if the majority 
has no more speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Madam Speaker, we are prepared to close. I yield 
myself the balance of my time.
  Madam Speaker, I once again thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. 
Gonzalez) for bringing this bill before the House.
  Improving the use of technologies can only improve our response to 
the wide range of crimes that FinCen combats. I urge my colleagues to 
join me in supporting this important piece of legislation, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Guam (Mr. San Nicolas) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 2613.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________