Senators Pressure FinCEN to Fully Implement AML Whistleblower Program

A bipartisan group of senators have joined whistleblower advocates in calling on the Financial Crime Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to adopt regulations fully implementing the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Whistleblower Program. In a letter sent on February 2 to FinCEN Director Andrea Gacki, Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Raphael Warnock (D-GA) outline their concerns with the agency’s delay in the rulemaking process and emphasize the importance of the program.

“FinCEN and the Treasury Department have had over three years to propose rules for the AML Whistleblower Program; this delay is undermining a critical tool in the United States’ anti-corruption efforts,” said whistleblower attorney Stephen M. Kohn of Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto.

“It is encouraging that this bipartisan group of senators are joining in the calls for action, hopefully FinCEN will take note,” continued Kohn, who has sent a number of letters to FinCEN with rulemaking proposals.

Senators Grassley, Warren, and Warnock cosponsored the AML Whistleblower Improvement Act, which made necessary reforms to the AML Whistleblower Program after it was established in 2021. According to the senators, FinCEN’s failure to propose rules and set up an AML Whistleblower Program website “is unacceptable.”

“It is well established that whistleblower incentive programs are powerful tools to prevent, detect, and prosecute criminal misconduct, wrongdoing, and fraud,” the senators write. “Therefore, it is essential FinCEN prioritize the full implementation of the AML whistleblower program.”

As part of its pro bono work, Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto helped advocate for the passage of the AML Whistleblower Improvement Act in late 2022. Since then, they have been at the forefront of advocating for effective AML whistleblower rules which serve the interests of international whistleblowers and help advance the United States’ Strategy on Countering Corruption.