Open Government at FinCEN

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The Open Government Initiative

"My Administration is committed to creating an unprecedented level of openness in Government. We will work together to ensure the public trust and establish a system of transparency, public participation, and collaboration. Openness will strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness in Government."

- President Obama, January 21, 2009

In January 2009, President Obama issued a memorandum directing the Attorney General to issue new guidelines governing the Freedom of Information Act. He also issued a separate memorandum, promoting transparency, public participation, and collaboration in government, and calling for the creation of an Open Government Directive, which the Office of Management and Budget announced in December 2009. The directive requires each Federal agency to take immediate, specific steps to promote transparency, participation, and collaboration. This includes the creation of each agency's Open Government Web page to serve as the gateway for agency activities related to open government. As a result, the Department of the Treasury must publish all of its reports and data (including information from its bureaus) in one place (www.treasury.gov/open). A link to FinCEN's reports is located in the lower right corner of the page, under "Records and Reports."

Nothing in these policies or memoranda is inconsistent with, or lessens in any way, FinCEN's obligations to protect classified and other sensitive information, including, for example, Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) information and Personally Identifiable Information.

FinCEN's Commitment to Open Government

FinCEN promotes transparency, collaboration, and participation in its policies, rulemakings, programs, and partnerships with the regulatory and law enforcement communities. Click on each bullet below for more information.

Transparency
- IT Modernization: FinCEN's BSA IT Modernization Initiative is a Treasury effort to provide a modernized information technology foundation to collect, analyze, and share FinCEN data. Modernization is a critical component of government efforts to ensure the transparency of U.S. financial systems, detect and deter crime, strengthen national security, and achieve economic stability and growth. The benefits of this investment will be leveraged across the hundreds of Federal, State, and local agencies that rely on FinCEN data. The Modernization Initiative aims to develop a reliable and secure BSA information management and analysis framework that will provide better systems for filers and users, enhance data integrity, and improve analytical tools. FinCEN's BSA IT Modernization efforts will improve data quality, as well as its ability to share FinCEN data and IT systems with its law enforcement and regulatory partners.
- Reports & Publications: FinCEN posts its reports and publications on its Web site. Within this page are links (along the left menu) to The SAR Activity Review - Trends, Tips & Issues and The SAR Activity Review - By the Numbers, both of which contain data on the number and type of Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) filed by financial institutions for a given 6-month period. Various strategic and analytical reports focusing on emerging trends and patterns within the BSA data, as well as FinCEN's data-rich Annual Report, are located there.
- Enforcement and Compliance Information: All FinCEN enforcement actions and proposed, pending, and final rulemakings are immediately posted to FinCEN's Web site. As of May 2011, FinCEN has submitted its table of enforcement actions for posting on Data.gov.
- Support for BSA Filers: Providing meaningful, clear guidance and prompt support to BSA filers and others involved in implementing the BSA regulatory regime is essential to promoting transparency. Accordingly, FinCEN operates a BSA Resource Center Regulatory Helpline (1-800-949-2732) that provides support for financial institutions with questions on BSA regulatory and compliance matters. Resource Center staff members also monitor a BSA "Hotline" (1-866-556-3974) to assist financial institutions in reporting suspicious activity concerning terrorist financing in a time-critical fashion. FinCEN tracks questions asked by those who contact the BSA Resource Center to identify important concerns and trends with respect to BSA compliance, and to identify areas where FinCEN may need to clarify current regulations, rulings, or guidance. Based on these calls, Resource Center staff members develop guidance for FinCEN staff about specific topics of interest and the need to provide additional information and clarification to industry. FinCEN also posts direct links to useful information for addressing the most common and important questions asked of the Regulatory Helpline. The "Regulatory Helpline Hot Topics" page is updated regularly to reflect the changing nature of questions regarding anti-money laundering and BSA obligations.
- MSB Registration List: With few exceptions, a money services business (MSB) is required to register with FinCEN. An entity acting as an MSB that fails to register as required is subject to civil money penalties and possible criminal prosecution. Every month FinCEN publishes an updated list of registered MSBs.
- 314(a) Facts and Figures: FinCEN publishes updated numbers every month on the 314(a) information sharing program (under Section 314(a) of the USA PATRIOT Act). These numbers can be found here under the headings 314(a) Facts and Figures and Law Enforcement Information Sharing with the Financial Industry.
- Law Enforcement Cases Supported by BSA Filings: Financial data, collected from financial institutions by FinCEN under the BSA, has proven to be of considerable value to law enforcement officials when investigating financial crimes. When combined with other data collected by law enforcement and the intelligence communities, BSA data assists investigators in connecting the dots in their investigations by allowing for a more complete identification of the respective subjects. FinCEN posts an index of some BSA case examples on its Web site.
- New Data on Mortgage Fraud: FinCEN has released expanded data with geographic breakdowns of subjects identified in SAR filings on suspected mortgage fraud. The files contain metadata expanding on the derivation, use, and limitations of FinCEN Mortgage Fraud SAR data, and are available in Excel and Adobe formats.
- Data.gov: FinCEN has published two datasets on www.data.gov as part of its commitment to open government. By going to http://www.data.gov/raw/4494, users will see the January 2011 issue of The SAR Activity Review - By the Numbers (Issue 15). By going to http://explore.data.gov/d/8gmh-j3qr, users will see enforcement actions that FinCEN has brought for violations of the BSA. Data.gov is a Web site dedicated to increasing the public's access to high value datasets generated by the Federal Government.
Participation
- Feedback from the public: FinCEN actively solicits feedback after the launch of new informational Web pages, as well as at the end of all of its public reports. In addition, FinCEN always welcomes general inquiries as well as technical questions, comments, or suggestions about the FinCEN Web site. Please e-mail the FinCEN Webmaster at webmaster@fincen.gov.
- Comments on Regulatory Proposals: Public comments received electronically or through the U.S. Postal Service sent in response to a "Notice and Request for Comment" will be made available for public review as soon as possible on www.regulations.gov. All comments received may be physically inspected in the FinCEN reading room located in Vienna, VA. Reading room appointments are available weekdays (excluding holidays) between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., by calling the Disclosure Officer at (703) 905-5034 (not a toll free call). FinCEN posts links to all comments received on pending and past regulatory proposals.
- FOIA: FinCEN maintains records that primarily pertain to its practices, operations as a network, and means of bringing people and information together to fight the complex problem of money laundering and terrorist financing. FinCEN makes certain records available without requiring a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, including news releases and announcements, testimony and speeches, advisories, bulletins, rulings, fact sheets, reports, Federal Register Notices, copies of records disclosed in response to a FOIA request that have become or are likely to become the subject of subsequent requests, and FinCEN's FOIA Annual Reports. Individuals should ensure that the information they seek is not already in the public domain before submitting FOIA requests. FinCEN has some information available to the public listed in its electronic reading room at http://www.fincen.gov/foia/foia_readingroom.html. Also, a search of the FinCEN homepage can assist requesters in locating information about FinCEN and lists of available publications. If the information is not in the public domain, FinCEN provides suggestions for preparing a FOIA request.
Collaboration
- Outreach to Financial Institutions: FinCEN is engaged in a variety of initiatives to ensure that its mission and its role as administrator of the BSA is carried out in the most efficient and effective manner possible. In furtherance of these goals, FinCEN has initiated an outreach effort with representatives from a variety of industries that fall under BSA regulatory requirements. This outreach assists in FinCEN's ongoing work with the financial industry as institutions strive to comply with their responsibility to report certain information and suspicious activities to FinCEN, as well as FinCEN's responsibility to ensure this useful information is made available to law enforcement, as appropriate. FinCEN has concluded its meetings with some of the largest depository institutions, money services businesses, and depository institutions with less than $5 billion in assets. Periodically, FinCEN publishes reports to share information gathered as part of its outreach initiative. In February 2011, Director Freis provided remarks to the American Bankers Association's National Conference for Community Bankers, where he highlighted FinCEN's commitment to the principals of open government and announced the release of FinCEN's Report on Outreach to Depository Institutions with Assets Under $5 Billion.
- Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF): President Obama established the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) in November 2009 to hold accountable those who helped bring about the last financial crisis, and to prevent another crisis from happening. FinCEN is playing an active role within the FFETF at both the committee and working group levels, building upon its experience in fighting financial crime and longstanding relationships in sharing information with other government agencies. FinCEN has been actively involved in these efforts because of its ability to build upon an existing network of support to financial regulators and Federal, State, and local law enforcement. Of the three Task Force committees enumerated in the President's Executive Order, FinCEN serves together with the Justice Department's Executive Office for United States Attorneys as co-chair of the Training and Information Sharing Committee.
- Collaborative Efforts to Fight Mortgage Fraud: FinCEN has a unique capacity to network and facilitate information sharing. As a result, FinCEN analysts continue to work with other Federal agencies on mortgage fraud investigations. FinCEN staff provides support through analyses based on Bank Secrecy Act data and knowledge of the potential types of criminal activity and possible participants in mortgage fraud. FinCEN's first published study noting the emergence of mortgage fraud was in 2003, and it has since published numerous analytical reports for regulators and law enforcement, and to better inform the financial industry about the risks of mortgage loan fraud. In addition, FinCEN is working closely with the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office of the Inspector General to raise awareness of an apparent increase in fraudulent activity involving reverse mortgages, including through an advisory on these concerns, so that financial institutions may better assist law enforcement when filing SARs.
- Using Innovative Technology to Enhance External and Internal Collaboration: The Department of the Treasury is actively engaged in identifying and planning for the use of new technologies as opportunities arise for alignment with mission objectives and open government activities. FinCEN's Technology Solutions and Services Division (TSSD) has completed an evaluation, pilot, and subsequent acquisition of a webinar service. Webinars present a time-efficient and cost-effective way to facilitate online communication between a small number of presenters and a remote audience of up to 1,000 participants. Two of the technology's key capabilities are presentations and training sessions. Presenters display information on their computer screen, which then becomes visible to all participants. The webinar software enables interaction between the presenter and the audience and allows the presenter to control the participants' verbal commentary either via the keyboard or audio connection. Audio connectivity is available via landline telephone conferencing or via Internet phone connectivity. In order to support this new service, TSSD has appointed a webinar coordinator within FinCEN to work with employees requesting a webinar. FinCEN has begun conducting webinars, and continues to seek innovative ways to use this technology, including for certain outreach efforts with financial institutions. FinCEN officials have conducted webinars for training remote law enforcement users on the use of the online system through which law enforcement accesses BSA data. TSSD staff is working with FinCEN's Office of Training to develop webinar-based training.

Treasury's Flagship Initiative

Treasury's flagship initiative - "Moving to a Paperless Treasury" - is designed to improve the public's experience interacting with Treasury while effecting operational efficiencies of several key Treasury activities. The desired outcome of paperless disbursement and collection activities are cost savings/avoidance for the government and improved flexibility and response to customers.

FinCEN continues to encourage financial institutions to electronically file BSA reports, and has issued a brochure highlighting the benefits of using the Bank Secrecy Act Electronic Filing System (BSA E-Filing). BSA E-Filing is a free, Web-based system that allows financial institutions subject to BSA reporting requirements to electronically file a variety of BSA forms. Electronically filing these forms makes them available to and searchable by law enforcement in 2 days, rather than up to 11 days if filed on paper. E-Filing BSA information increases the timeliness of data availability, reduces the cost of paper processing, and improves data quality. FinCEN is committed to working with financial institutions to increase their understanding of the value that E-Filing provides, accomplishing joint efforts to get important information relating to money laundering and terrorist financing to law enforcement in the quickest manner possible.

FinCEN's recent improvements to the E-Filing system support Treasury's paperless initiative by providing cost savings for the Department and improved service delivery for FinCEN stakeholders. Filers now receive e-mail notifications when there are errors in their submitted batch files. FinCEN has issued guidance to assist filers in correcting identified errors and preventing errors in future submissions, thus improving data quality. During fiscal year 2010, FinCEN developed a new system that collects and stores data from FinCEN's E-Filing system and provides trending information via reports on BSA electronic filing error patterns.

Approximately 83 percent of BSA reports were electronically filed during fiscal year 2010, up from 82 percent in fiscal year 2009. The cost to the government per E-filed report was $0.10 in fiscal year 2010, well below the $0.15 target cost. In comparison, in 2006 approximately 48 percent were filed electronically at a cost of $0.22 per report.

Useful Links

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