Senate bill would make needed updates to SAR/CTR thresholds

Legislation introduced this week by Sens. John Kennedy, R-La and Tim Scott, R-S.C., and., would make needed updates to outdated Bank Secrecy Act reporting thresholds.

The Streamlining Transaction Reporting and Ensuring Anti-Money Laundering Improvements for a New Era (STREAMLINE) Act (S. 3017) would update the Currency Transaction Report (CTR) threshold to $30,000 (up from the current $10,000) and the Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) threshold to $10,000 (up from the current $5,000). In addition to Scott, the Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, the bill has 7 additional Republican Senators as cosponsors.

“Modernizing outdated Bank Secrecy Act reporting thresholds is a commonsense step that reduces unnecessary burdens without compromising safety or soundness. Once these rules are updated, credit unions will be able to devote more resources to serving their members and strengthening their communities while balancing law enforcement's needs,” said America’s Credit Unions President/CEO Jim Nussle, who wrote a letter of support for the legislation Tuesday.

“Credit unions strongly support Senator Scott’s leadership in modernizing outdated reporting thresholds that have burdened community financial institutions for decades,” said Billy Boylston, Carolinas Credit Union League senior vice president of advocacy. “Adjusting these limits to reflect today’s economy allows credit unions to focus resources on truly suspicious activity—rather than routine transactions—while continuing to protect the integrity of our financial system and the members we serve.”

“We commend Senator Kennedy for introducing this bill to raise the thresholds for currency transaction reports and suspicious activity reporting. Credit unions in Louisiana are deeply committed to the integrity of the financial system. At the same time, we believe regulatory relief that aligns compliance burden with actual risk will better enable credit unions to serve their members and focus resources on advancing financial well-being,” said Juan Fernández Ceballos, president/CEO of Luminate – Louisiana’s Credit Unions. “This proposal strikes the right balance between safeguarding against illicit activity and empowering credit unions to responsibly innovate and support their communities.”

America’s Credit Unions strongly supports updated SAR/CTR reporting thresholds, backing a House bill to update the CTR threshold, and has advocated for these updates at a Treasury roundtable and in a letter to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

Read the letter of support