Armando Ibarra: Filling the gaps — Congress must act to stop foreign criminal threats

US dollar banknotes hanging on rope for money laundering conept

America’s law enforcement agencies are struggling.

Unprecedented amounts of fentanyl are being trafficked into our country, while threats from Russian and Chinese criminal networks loom larger than ever.

Just last year, America was bestowed the distinguished title of “best country to hide money illegally.” It has become increasingly evident that our government’s current approach to fighting transnational crime is falling short.

The United States is the most powerful nation in the world — why is our national security community struggling to rein in this crisis? The answer is as simple as it is infuriating: they have been policing this crime wave with one hand tied behind their back.

While federal law requires banks and other financial institutions to have anti-money laundering requirements, including that they report potentially illegal or suspect financial transactions to law enforcement, these requirements do not apply to non-banking entities, which have increasingly become the go-to movers of dirty money in our country. These non-banking entities are professionals who provide certain financial services for their clients, such as incorporating or registering a company, forming a trust or managing money, and include U.S. investment advisers, lawyers and accountants.

Multiple investigations, including most recently the Pandora Papers, have revealed that a substantial number of corrupt government officials, human rights violators, and transnational crime syndicates from China, Russia, Cuba, and Venezuela utilize these professionals to exploit these legal gaps and move illicit funds into the United States. This stands as an unacceptable infringement on our national security.

Fortunately, there is a bipartisan proposal, known as the ENABLERS Act, which would fix this loophole in our system. Sponsored by U.S. Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar, Chair of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee in the House of Representatives, the bill would extend the anti-money laundering obligations that apply to banks to certain non-banking professionals in specific circumstances, thus creating a major new hurdle for foreign criminals seeking to hide the proceeds of their crimes in the United States.

According to an investigative report by The Sentry, an investigative policy organization, the U.S. is among the last 10% of countries in the world to not have adopted and implemented the anti-money laundering rules included in the ENABLERS Act. This common-sense proposal stands as an easy fix to a harrowing gap in our legal framework.

Second, one of the most powerful actions Congress can take to bolster national security against these threats is very straightforward: increasing funding for the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), which serves as the financial intelligence unit of the United States. By doing so, Congress can ensure that our government’s financial crime fighters have the resources to detect and block illicit funds that enter our country.

While FinCEN has received moderate funding increases in recent years, it remains chronically underfunded and understaffed, which in turn has delayed the rollout of new rules that would help prevent fentanyl traffickers and other criminals from moving and hiding their money inside the U.S.

With a fully funded FinCEN, our intelligence agencies stand a much better chance of interrupting the flood of illicit money pouring into our financial system.

Amid this foreign crime wave, these reforms aren’t just mere options — they are essential to preserving our national security.

America’s adversaries and exploiters are keenly aware of the cracks within our system; they know our government can be inherently slow to react, and they have widely succeeded in getting past our defenses.

Congress must not stand idly by.

I strongly urge Salazar, one of the original co-sponsors of the ENABLERS Act, to continue advocating for the passage of this pivotal legislation and I encourage U.S. Rep. Carlos Giménez to join her in this effort.

At the same time, I urge both Salazar and Giménez to support a significant funding increase for FinCEN to ensure that our law enforcement agencies have the resources they need to fully tackle this crisis here in South Florida and across the country.

These problems are significant, but nowhere near unsolvable. By passing the right legislation, Congress can finally plug the gaps in our national security that have inadvertently helped criminal empires and foreign adversaries to thrive. It’s time to send an unequivocal message: America is closed for illicit business.

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Armando J. Ibarra is a government affairs executive and policy adviser for companies, organizations and leaders in the U.S. and Latin America. He serves as an adviser to the Fundación para la Democracia Panamericana and as Chair of the Miami Young Republicans.