ENGROSSED

Senate Bill No. 416

(By Senators Minard and Kessler)

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[Introduced March 7, 2001; referred to the

Committee on Banking and Insurance;

and then to the Committee on Finance.]

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A BILL to amend and reenact sections one and two, article two, chapter thirty-two-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, all relating to the regulation of money transmission services; defining terms; and requiring license.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections one and two, article two, chapter thirty-two-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. CHECKS AND MONEY ORDER SALES, MONEY TRANSMISSION SERVICES, TRANSPORTATION AND CURRENCY EXCHANGE.

§32A-2-1. Definitions.
(1) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of banking of this state.
(2) "Check" or "payment instrument" means any check, traveler's check, draft, money order or other instrument for the transmission or payment of money whether or not the instrument is negotiable. The term does not include a credit card voucher, a letter of credit or any instrument that is redeemable by the issuer in goods or services.
(3) "Currency" means a medium of exchange authorized or adopted by a domestic or foreign government.
(4) "Currency exchange" means the conversion of the currency of one government into the currency of another government, but does not include the issuance and sale of travelers checks denominated in a foreign currency. Transactions involving the electronic transmission of funds by licensed money transmitters which may permit, but do not require, the recipient to obtain the funds in a foreign currency outside of West Virginia are not currency exchange transactions: Provided, That they are not reportable as currency exchange transactions under federal laws and regulations.
(5) "Currency exchange, transportation, transmission business" means a person who is engaging in currency exchange, currency transportation or currency transmission as a service or for profit.
(6) "Currency transmission" or "money transmission" means engaging in the business of selling or issuing checks or the business of receiving currency or the payment of money by any means for the purpose of transmitting the that currency, payment of money or its equivalent by wire, facsimile or other electronic means, or through the use of a financial institution, financial intermediary, the federal reserve system or other funds transfer network. It includes the transmission of funds through the issuance and sale of stored value cards which are intended for general acceptance and used in commercial or consumer transactions.
(7) "Currency transportation" means knowingly engaging in the business of physically transporting currency from one location to another in a manner other than by a licensed armored car service exempted under section three of this article.
(8) "Licensee" means a person licensed by the commissioner under this article.
(9) "Money order" means any instrument for the transmission or payment of money in relation to which the purchaser or remitter appoints or purports to appoint the seller thereof as his agent for the receipt, transmission or handling of money, whether the instrument is signed by the seller, the purchaser or remitter, or some other person.
(10) "Person" means any individual, partnership, association, joint stock association, limited liability company, trust or corporation.
(11) "Principal" means a licensee's owner, president, senior officer responsible for the licensee's business, chief financial officer or any other person who performs similar functions or who otherwise controls the conduct of the affairs of a licensee. A person controlling ten percent or more of the voting stock of any corporate applicant is a principal under this provision.
(12) "Securities" means all bonds, debentures or other evidences of indebtedness: (a) Issued by the United States of America or any agency thereof, or guaranteed by the United States of America, or for which the credit of the United States of America or any agency thereof is pledged for the payment of the principal and interest thereof; and/or (b) which are direct general obligations of this state, or any other state if unconditionally guaranteed as to the principal and interest by the other state and if the other state has the power to levy taxes for the payment of the principal and interest thereof and is not in default in the payment of any part of the principal or interest owing by it upon any part of its funded indebtedness; and/or (c) which are general obligations of any county, school district or municipality in this state, issued pursuant to law and payable from ad valorem taxes levied on all of the taxable property located therein, if the county, school district or municipality is not in default in the payment of any part of the principal or interest on any debt evidenced by its bonds, debentures or other evidences of indebtedness.
§32A-2-2. License required.
(a) Except as provided by section three of this article, a person may not engage in the business of currency exchange, transportation or transmission in this state without a license issued under this article. For purposes of this article, a person is considered to be engaging in those businesses in this state if he or she makes available, from a location inside or outside this state, an internet website West Virginia citizens may access in order to enter into those transactions by electronic means.
(b) Any person who was previously licensed as a check seller under this chapter who holds a valid license on the effective date of this article shall be issued a provisional license under this article without the need of an additional application and fee. This provisional license shall expire upon six months of its issuance, during which time the licensee may continue to conduct its check selling business, provided that it maintains the net worth and security required under its previous license. The commissioner may require the licensee to obtain expanded bond coverage consistent with this article for the protection of purchasers of money transmission services and currency exchange services, as well as for covered currency transportation services, when the licensee conducts one or more of these businesses. At the expiration of a provisional license granted by this section, any person who wishes to continue to engage in any business regulated in this article shall apply for a license and meet the criteria under the provisions of this article. A provisional license granted by this section may upon hearing be suspended or revoked by the commissioner for good cause shown.
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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to clarify that persons who induce West Virginia citizens to transmit money via internet credit card transactions are subject to licensing and regulation under this article.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.)
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BANKING AND INSURANCE COMMITTEE AMENDMENT


On page one, by striking out the title and substituting therefor a new title, to read as follows:
Eng. Senate Bill No. 416--A Bill to amend and reenact sections one and two, article two, chapter thirty-two-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, all relating to the regulation of money transmission services; defining terms; currency transmission; money transmission; and providing that engaging in the business of currency exchange includes making such services available to West Virginia citizens via an internet website.