Grassley, Whistleblower Experts Urge Passing of New AML Bill

On December 8, Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley released a statement on the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Whistleblower Improvement Act (S.3316), which was unanimously approved by the Senate the night prior.

Grassley, Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, introduced this bill alongside cosponsors Senators Raphael Warnock (D-GA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).

Noting the success of whistleblower programs that he helped enact over a decade ago, Grassley emphasized the billions of dollars saved by the False Claims Act, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Whistleblower Program, and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Whistleblower Program.

ESTIMATED SAVINGS FOR TAXPAYERS SINCE PROGRAM/ACT ENACTMENT

False Claims Act: $70 BILLION

SEC Whistleblower Program: $4.8 BILLION+

IRS Whistleblower Program: $6 BILLION+

“I’m optimistic that our new program encouraging individuals to come forward for suspected sanctions violations will be successful as well,” Grassley said.

The AML Whistleblower Improvement Act will grant money laundering and sanctions-busting whistleblowers the same protections afforded under the highly successful Dodd-Frank Act: confidentiality, anonymity, and a guaranteed award of 10-30% of all sanctions collected.

National Whistleblower Center, Taxpayers Against Fraud, the Government Accountability Project, the Project on Government Oversight, and Transparency International have already enthusiastically endorsed this bill, which has seen bipartisan support in Congress.

The bill now awaits a vote in the House, where its companion H.R.7195 was introduced by cosponsors Alma Adams (D-N.C.) and Anthony Gonzalez (R-Ohio). Before the bill is sent to a vote, Chair of the House Appropriations Committee, Connecticut Representative Rosa DeLauro, must sign-off.

While the Appropriations Committee is holding onto the bill, no new funds will have to be appropriated for this act. This is accomplished, as Grassley explained, by creating a $300 million fund from fines collected by the Departments of Justice and Treasury, avoiding taxpayer spending altogether.

The call for swift action in advancing this bill stems from its ability to immediately empower overseas whistleblowers to come forward with information on criminal activity of Russian oligarchs.

“Given the expansive sanctions we’ve implemented on Russia as they wage an unjust war in Ukraine, our legislation is urgently needed to hold bad actors accountable,” Grassley said.

Whistleblowers in the geographic regions most connected to Russia through either proximity or long-standing trade histories – Austria, China, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Monaco, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Switzerland, Turley, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom – have already submitted over 2,000 tips through the SEC program since 2011.

Whistleblower expert Stephen M. Kohn says there is no reason to believe whistleblowers from these countries will not come forward with information on Russian activity, given the right safeguards.

Kohn recently discussed these developments alongside former FBI whistleblower and highly decorated 25-year veteran Special Agent Jane Turner for the Whistleblower Network News podcast.

“We see instances every day where whistleblowers wish to come forward with information on Russian money laundering but are hindered because of the weak existing law,” Ben Calitri, Public Interest Legal Fellow at Kohn, Kohn, and Colapinto LLP, said. “Granting these whistleblowers Dodd-Frank style protections can allow them to safely report.”

The National Whistleblower Center, along with other organizations and prominent whistleblowers, is asking supporters to contact DeLauro and encourage her to move the bill to a vote. Representative DeLauro’s office can be reached at (202) 225-3661 and the House Committee on Appropriations at (202) 225-2771.