Sec. 7206. Modernization and upgrading whistleblower protections
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/bill/116/hr/6395/pcs/section-7206·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Section 5323(d) of title 31, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: For the purposes of paying a reward under this section, the Secretary may, subject to amounts made available in advance by appropriation Acts, use criminal fine, civil penalty, or forfeiture amounts recovered based on the original information with respect to which the reward is being paid. . Chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code, is amended— by inserting after section 5323 the following: In this section:
The term covered judicial or administrative action means any judicial or administrative action brought by FinCEN under the Bank Secrecy Act that results in monetary sanctions exceeding $1,000,000. The term FinCEN means the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. The term monetary sanctions , when used with respect to any judicial or administrative action, means— any monies, including penalties, disgorgement, and interest, ordered to be paid; and any monies deposited into a disgorgement fund as a result of such action or any settlement of such action.
The term original information means information that— is derived from the independent knowledge or analysis of a whistleblower; is not known to FinCEN from any other source, unless the whistleblower is the original source of the information; and is not exclusively derived from an allegation made in a judicial or administrative hearing, in a governmental report, hearing, audit, or investigation, or from the news media, unless the whistleblower is a source of the information. The term related action , when used with respect to any judicial or administrative action brought by FinCEN, means any judicial or administrative action that is based upon original information provided by a whistleblower that led to the successful enforcement of the action.
The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Treasury. The term whistleblower means any individual who provides, or 2 or more individuals acting jointly who provide, information relating to a violation of laws enforced by FinCEN, in a manner established, by rule or regulation, by FinCEN. In any covered judicial or administrative action, or related action, the Secretary, under such rules as the Secretary may issue and subject to subsection (c), shall pay an award or awards to 1 or more whistleblowers who voluntarily provided original information to FinCEN that led to the successful enforcement of the covered judicial or administrative action, or related action, in an aggregate amount equal to not more than 30 percent, in total, of what has been collected of the monetary sanctions imposed in the action.
For the purposes of paying any award under paragraph (1), the Secretary may, subject to amounts made available in advance by appropriation Acts, use monetary sanction amounts recovered based on the original information with respect to which the award is being paid. The determination of the amount of an award made under subsection
(b)shall be in the discretion of the Secretary. In responding to a disclosure and determining the amount of an award made, FinCEN staff shall meet with the whistleblower to discuss evidence disclosed and rebuttals to the disclosure, and shall take into consideration— the significance of the information provided by the whistleblower to the success of the covered judicial or administrative action; the degree of assistance provided by the whistleblower and any legal representative of the whistleblower in a covered judicial or administrative action; the mission of FinCEN in deterring violations of the law by making awards to whistleblowers who provide information that lead to the successful enforcement of such laws; and such additional relevant factors as the Secretary may establish by rule. No award under subsection
(b)shall be made— to any whistleblower who is, or was at the time the whistleblower acquired the original information submitted to FinCEN, a member, officer, or employee of— an appropriate regulatory agency; the Department of Justice; a self-regulatory organization; or a law enforcement organization; to any whistleblower who is convicted of a criminal violation, or who the Secretary has a reasonable basis to believe committed a criminal violation, related to the judicial or administrative action for which the whistleblower otherwise could receive an award under this section; to any whistleblower who gains the information through the performance of an audit of financial statements required under the Bank Secrecy Act and for whom such submission would be contrary to its requirements; or to any whistleblower who fails to submit information to FinCEN in such form as the Secretary may, by rule, require. For any decision granting or denying an award, the Secretary shall provide to the whistleblower a statement of reasons that includes findings of fact and conclusions of law for all material issues. Any whistleblower who makes a claim for an award under subsection
(b)may be represented by counsel. Any whistleblower who anonymously makes a claim for an award under subsection
(b)shall be represented by counsel if the whistleblower anonymously submits the information upon which the claim is based. Prior to the payment of an award, a whistleblower shall disclose their identity and provide such other information as the Secretary may require, directly or through counsel for the whistleblower. Any determination made under this section, including whether, to whom, or in what amount to make awards, shall be in the discretion of the Secretary. Any such determination, except the determination of the amount of an award if the award was made in accordance with subsection (b), may be appealed to the appropriate court of appeals of the United States not more than 30 days after the determination is issued by the Secretary. The court shall review the determination made by the Secretary in accordance with section 706 of title 5. The Secretary of the Treasury shall issue regulations protecting a whistleblower from retaliation, which shall be as close as practicable to the employee protections provided for under section 1057 of the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010. ; and in the table of contents for such chapter, by inserting after the item relating to section 5323 the following new item: 5323A. Whistleblower incentives. .