The Trade Transparency Unit Strategy Act requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to submit a plan to Congress within 180 days for expanding Trade Transparency Units — joint U.S.-foreign customs partnerships that share data to catch international money laundering. The plan must cover how agencies like Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security Investigations, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and the Commerce Department will better share information with each other and with foreign customs counterparts. After the plan is submitted, the Government Accountability Office gets another 180 days to assess it and report back to Congress. The bill primarily affects federal law enforcement and trade agencies, with no direct impact on household finances or private businesses.
Transparency & Accountability
- Interagency Trade Transparency strategy — written plan due to Congress within 180 days
- GAO assessment — independent review due 180 days after strategy submission
Congressional Summary
Trade Transparency Unit Strategy ActThis bill requires a strategy and report related to the expansion of trade transparency units. Trade transparency units examine trade anomalies and financial irregularities associated with trade-based money laundering, customs fraud, contraband smuggling, and tax evasion.Specifically, the Department of Homeland Security must coordinate with the Departments of State, Commerce, and the Treasury to submit a strategy to Congress. This strategy must (1) expand information sharing between U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security Investigations of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, appropriate elements of the Department of Commerce, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network of the Department of the Treasury, and appropriate counterparts of foreign customs agencies through trade transparency units; and (2) improve intra-agency, interagency, and other multilateral information sharing with respect to these units.The Government Accountability Office must submit a report to Congress that includes an assessment of the strategy.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- House
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in House
- Action Date
- 2026-01-08
- Date Added
- 2026-05-28
- Source
- Congress.gov →
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