§ 9703.1 Department of the Treasury Forfeiture Fund.
(a)
In General.—
There is established in the Treasury of the United States a fund to be known as the “Department of the Treasury Forfeiture Fund” (referred to in this section as the “Fund”). The Fund shall be available to the Secretary, without fiscal year limitation, with respect to seizures and forfeitures made pursuant to any law (other than section 7301 or 7302 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) enforced or administered by the Department of the Treasury or the United States Coast Guard for the following law enforcement purposes:
(1)
(A)
Payment of all proper expenses of seizure (including investigative costs incurred by a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization leading to seizure) or the proceedings of forfeiture and sale, including the expenses of detention, inventory, security, maintenance, advertisement, or disposal of the property, and if condemned by a court and a bond for such costs was not given, the costs as taxed by the court.
(B)
Payment for—
(C)
Awards of compensation to informers under section 619 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1619).
(D)
Satisfaction of—
(i)
liens for freight, charges, and contributions in general average, notice of which has been filed with the appropriate Customs officer according to law; and
(ii)
subject to the discretion of the Secretary, other valid liens and mortgages against property that has been forfeited pursuant to any law enforced or administered by a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization. To determine the validity of any such lien or mortgage, the amount of payment to be made, and to carry out the functions described in this subparagraph, the Secretary may employ and compensate attorneys and other personnel skilled in State real estate law.
(F)
Payment of claims of parties in interest to property disposed of under section 612(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1612
(b)), in the amounts applicable to such claims at the time of seizure.
(G)
Equitable sharing payments made to other Federal agencies, State and local law enforcement agencies, and foreign countries pursuant to section 616(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1616a
(c)), section
981 of title
18, or subsection (h) of this section, and all costs related thereto.
(H)
Payment for services of experts and consultants needed by a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization to carry out the organization’s duties relating to seizure and forfeiture.
(I)
payment [2] of overtime salaries, travel, fuel, training, equipment, and other similar costs of State or local law enforcement officers that are incurred in joint law enforcement operations with a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization; [3]
(J)
payment [2] made pursuant to guidelines promulgated by the Secretary, if such payment is necessary and directly related to seizure and forfeiture program expenses for—
(2)
At the discretion of the Secretary—
(A)
payment of awards for information or assistance leading to a civil or criminal forfeiture involving any Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization participating in the Fund;
(B)
purchases of evidence or information by—
(ii)
the United States Customs Service with respect to drug smuggling or a violation of section
542 or
545 of title
18 (relating to fraudulent customs invoices or smuggling);
(iii)
the United States Secret Service with respect to a violation of—
(iv)
the United States Customs Service or the Internal Revenue Service with respect to a violation of chapter
53 of this title (relating to the Bank Secrecy Act).
(C)
payment of costs for publicizing awards available under section 619 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1619);
(D)
payment for equipment for any vessel, vehicle, or aircraft available for official use by a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization to enable the vessel, vehicle, or aircraft to assist in law enforcement functions, and for other equipment directly related to seizure or forfeiture, including laboratory equipment, protective equipment, communications equipment, and the operation and maintenance costs of such equipment;
(E)
the payment of claims against employees of the Customs Service settled by the Secretary under section 630 of the Tariff Act of 1930;
(F)
payment for equipment for any vessel, vehicle, or aircraft available for official use by a State or local law enforcement agency to enable the vessel, vehicle, or aircraft to assist in law enforcement functions if the vessel, vehicle, or aircraft will be used in joint law enforcement operations with a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization;
(G)
reimbursement of private persons for expenses incurred by such persons in cooperating with a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization in investigations and undercover law enforcement operations; [5]
(H)
payment for training foreign law enforcement personnel with respect to seizure or forfeiture activities of the Department of the Treasury; and [6]
(b)
Limitations.—
(1)
Any payment made under subparagraph (D) or (E) of subsection (a)(1) with respect to a seizure or a forfeiture of property shall not exceed the value of the property at the time of the seizure.
(2)
Any payment made under subsection (a)(1)(G) with respect to a seizure or forfeiture of property shall not exceed the value of the property at the time of disposition.
(3)
The Secretary may exempt the procurement of contract services under the Fund from section 3709 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (41 U.S.C. 5), title III of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 251 et seq.), and other provisions of law as may be necessary to maintain the security and confidentiality of related criminal investigations.
(4)
The Secretary shall assure that any equitable sharing payment made to a State or local law enforcement agency pursuant to subsection (a)(1)(G) and any property transferred to a State or local law enforcement agency pursuant to subsection (h)—
(A)
has a value that bears a reasonable relationship to the degree of participation of the State or local agency in the law enforcement effort resulting in the forfeiture, taking into account the total value of all property forfeited and the total law enforcement effort with respect to the violation of law on which the forfeiture is based; and
(5)
Amounts transferred by the Attorney General pursuant to section
524
(c)(1) of title
28, or by the Postmaster General pursuant to section
2003 of title
39, and deposited into the Fund pursuant to subsection (d), shall be available for Federal law enforcement related purposes of the Department of the Treasury law enforcement organizations.
(c)
Funds Available to United States Coast Guard.—
(1)
The Secretary shall make available to the United States Coast Guard, from funds appropriated under subsection (g)(2) in excess of $10,000,000 for a fiscal year, an amount equal to the net proceeds in the Fund derived from seizures by the Coast Guard.
(2)
Funds made available under this subsection may be used to—
(A)
pay for equipment for any vessel, vehicle, or aircraft available for official use by the United States Coast Guard to enable the vessel, vehicle, or aircraft to assist in law enforcement functions;
(B)
pay for equipment for any vessel, vehicle, equipment, or aircraft available for official use by a State or local law enforcement agency to enable the vessel, vehicle, or aircraft to assist in law enforcement functions if the vessel, vehicle, or aircraft will be used in joint law enforcement operations with the United States Coast Guard;
(d)
Deposits and Credits.—
(1)
With respect to fiscal year 1993, there shall be deposited into or credited to the Fund—
(2)
With respect to fiscal years beginning after fiscal year 1993, there shall be deposited into or credited to the Fund—
(A)
all currency forfeited after fiscal year 1993, and all proceeds from forfeitures after fiscal year 1993, under any law (other than sections 7301 and 7302 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) enforced or administered by a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization or the United States Coast Guard;
(e)
Investments.—
Amounts in the Fund, and in any holding accounts associated with the Fund, which are not currently needed for the purposes of this section may be kept on deposit or invested in obligations of, or guaranteed by, the United States and all earnings on such investments shall be deposited in the Fund.
(f)
Reports to Congress.—
The Secretary shall transmit to the Congress, not later than February 1 of each year—
(1)
a report on—
(2)
a report on—
(B)
liens and mortgages paid and the amount of money shared with Federal, State, local, and foreign law enforcement agencies during the preceding fiscal year;
(C)
the net amount realized from the operations of the Fund during the preceding fiscal year, the amount of seized cash being held as evidence, and the amount of money that has been carried over into the current fiscal year;
(D)
any defendant’s property, not forfeited at the end of the preceding fiscal year, if the equity in such property is valued at $1,000,000 or more;
(E)
the total dollar value of uncontested seizures of monetary instruments having a value of over $100,000 which, or the proceeds of which, have not been deposited into the Fund pursuant to subsection (d) within 120 days after seizure, as of the end of the preceding fiscal year;
(G)
the net amount, if any, of the excess unobligated amounts remaining in the Fund at the end of the preceding fiscal year and available to the Secretary for Federal law enforcement related purposes;
(H)
a complete set of audited financial statements (including a balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow analysis) prepared in a manner consistent with the requirements of the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 (Public Law 101–576); and
(I)
an analysis of income and expenses showing the revenue received or lost—
(i)
by property category (such as general property, vehicles, vessels, aircraft, cash, and real property); and
(ii)
by type of disposition (such as sale, remission, cancellation, placement into official use, sharing with State and local agencies, and destruction).
The Fund shall be subject to annual financial audits as authorized in the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 (Public Law 101–576).
(g)
Appropriations.—
(1)
There are hereby appropriated from the Fund such sums as may be necessary to carry out the purposes described in subsection (a)(1).
(2)
There are authorized to be appropriated from the Fund to carry out the purposes set forth in subsections (a)(2) and (c) not to exceed—
(3)
(A)
Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), at the end of each of fiscal years 1994, 1995, 1996, and 1997, the Secretary shall transfer from the Fund not more than $100,000,000 to the Special Forfeiture Fund established by section 6073 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988.[7]
(B)
Transfers pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall be made only from excess unobligated amounts and only to the extent that, as determined by the Secretary, such transfers will not impair the future availability of amounts for the purposes described in subsection (a). Further, transfers under subparagraph (A) may not exceed one-half of the excess unobligated balance for a year. In addition, transfers under subparagraph (A) may be made only to the extent that the sum of the transfers in a fiscal year and one-half of the unobligated balance at the beginning of that fiscal year for the Special Forfeiture Fund does not exceed $100,000,000.
(C)
The Secretary of the Treasury shall reserve an amount not to exceed $30,000,000 from the unobligated balances remaining in the Customs Forfeiture Fund on September 30, 1992, and such amount shall be transferred to the Fund on October 1, 1992, or, if later, the date that is 15 days after the date of the enactment of this section. Such amount shall be available for any expenses or activities authorized under this section. At the end of fiscal year [8] 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1996, the Secretary shall reserve in the Fund an amount not to exceed $50,000,000 of the unobligated balances in the Fund, or, if the Secretary determines that a greater amount is necessary for asset specific expenses, an amount equal to not more than 10 percent of the total obligations from the Fund in the preceding fiscal year. At the end of fiscal year 1997, and at the end of each fiscal year thereafter, the Secretary shall reserve any amounts that are required to be retained in the Fund to ensure the availability of amounts in the subsequent fiscal year for purposes authorized under subsection (a). Unobligated balances remaining pursuant to section 4(B) of 9703(g) [9] shall also be carried forward.
(4)
(A)
After reserving any amount authorized by paragraph (3)(C), any unobligated balances remaining in the Fund on September 30, 1993, shall be deposited into the general fund of the Treasury of the United States.
(B)
After reserving any amount authorized by paragraph (3)(C) and after transferring any amount authorized by paragraph (3)(A), any unobligated balances remaining in the Fund on September 30, 1994, and on September 30 of each fiscal year thereafter, shall be available to the Secretary, without fiscal year limitation, for transfers pursuant to subparagraph (A)(ii) [7] and for obligation or expenditure in connection with the law enforcement activities of any Federal agency or of a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization.
(h)
Retention or Transfer of Property.—
(1)
The Secretary may, with respect to any property forfeited under any law (other than section 7301 or 7302 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) enforced or administered by the Department of the Treasury—
(2)
The Secretary may transfer any forfeited personal property or the proceeds of the sale of any forfeited personal or real property to any foreign country which participated directly or indirectly in the seizure of [10] forfeiture of the property, if such a transfer—
(i)
Regulations.—
The Secretary may prescribe such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out this section.
(j)
Customs Forfeiture Fund.—
Notwithstanding any other provision of law—
(1)
during any period when forfeited currency and proceeds from forfeitures under any law (other than section 7301 or 7302 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) enforced or administered by the Department of the Treasury or the United States Coast Guard, are required to be deposited in the Fund pursuant to this section—
(k)
Limitation of Liability.—
The United States shall not be liable in any action relating to property transferred under this section or under section 616 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1616a) if such action is based on an act or omission occurring after the transfer.
(l)
Authority To Warrant Title.—
Following the completion of procedures for the forfeiture of property pursuant to any law enforced or administered by the Department of the Treasury, the Secretary is authorized, at the Secretary’s discretion, to warrant clear title to any subsequent purchaser or transferee of such forfeited property.
(m)
Forfeited Property.—
For purposes of this section and notwithstanding section
524
(c)(11) [7] of title
28 or any other law—
(1)
during fiscal year 1993, property and currency shall be deemed to be forfeited pursuant to a law enforced or administered by the United States Customs Service if it is forfeited pursuant to—
(2)
after fiscal year 1993, property and currency shall be deemed to be forfeited pursuant to a law enforced or administered by a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization if it is forfeited pursuant to—
(n)
Transfers to Attorney General and Postmaster General.—
(1)
The Secretary shall transfer from the Fund to the Attorney General for deposit in the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund amounts appropriate to reflect the degree of participation of participating Federal agencies in the law enforcement effort resulting in the forfeiture pursuant to laws enforced or administered by a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization. For purposes of the preceding sentence, a “participating Federal agency” is an agency that participates in the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund.
(2)
The Secretary shall transfer from the Fund to the Postmaster General for deposit in the Postal Service Fund amounts appropriate to reflect the degree of participation of the United States Postal Service in the law enforcement effort resulting in the forfeiture pursuant to laws enforced or administered by a Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization.
(o)
Definitions.—
For purposes of this section—
(1)
Department of the treasury law enforcement organization.—
The term “Department of the Treasury law enforcement organization” means the United States Customs Service, the United States Secret Service, the Tax and Trade Bureau, the Internal Revenue Service, the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and any other law enforcement component of the Department of the Treasury so designated by the Secretary.
[1] Another section 9703 is set out preceding section 9704 of this title.
[2] So in original. Probably should be capitalized.
[3] So in original. The semicolon probably should be a period.
[4] So in original. Probably should be “of”.
[5] So in original. Probably should be followed by “and”.
[6] So in original. The “; and” probably should be a period.
[7] See References in Text note below.
[8] So in original. Probably should be “years”.
[9] So in original. Probably should be “paragraph (4)(B)”.
[10] So in original. Probably should be “or”.