WASHINGTON— Two reforms to the Anti-Money Laundering Act that have been requested by whistleblower advocates are included in a bill recently introduced by Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC).
“The AML Whistleblower Program aims to incentivize individuals to blow the whistle on money laundering to the Treasury Department by offering monetary awards and anti-retaliation protections,” Whistleblower Network News reported. “The whistleblower provisions of the AML Act were largely modeled off those of the Dodd-Frank Act, the law which established the highly successful SEC Whistleblower Program, but a few key differences have created the loopholes.”
One of the main loopholes in the current AML Act is the lack of a mandatory award minimum, according to the report.
‘Discretionary’ Rewards
“The lack of a mandatory minimum means that awards are purely discretionary and the Treasury Department could withhold an award from a fully qualified whistleblower. Prior to the passage of the AML Act, the National Whistleblower Center (NWC) sent a letter to Congress expressing their concerns about the lack of a provision requiring minimum awards,” Whistleblower Network News said. “According to NWC, the lack of a mandatory minimum award ‘greatly undercuts Congress’s intent to strengthen protection of whistleblowers with evidence of money laundering and terrorist financing’.”
Adams’ bill addresses this “shortcoming” by mandating that qualified whistleblowers receive an award of at least 10% of the monies collected by the government in the enforcement action related to their disclosure. This aligns the AML Act with the Dodd-Frank Act and other modern whistleblower award laws, Whistleblower Network News said.
The Other Loophole
“The other loophole Adams’ bill addresses is the current lack of funding for the AML Whistleblower Program,” according to Whistleblower Network News. “Unlike the Dodd-Frank Act, which established a fund to pay whistleblower awards entirely financed through sanctions collected in enforcement actions brought by whistleblowers, the AML Act relies on Congressional appropriation to receive funding to pay awards.”
Adams’ bill would establish the Financial Integrity Fund financed through money laundering sanctions. This Fund would guarantee that the AML Whistleblower Program is able to pay out awards to qualified whistleblowers. This would conform the AML Act with the Dodd-Frank Act, Whistleblower Network News added.
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