Saving Privacy Act
Sponsored By: Senator Mike Lee
Introduced
Summary
This bill would create stronger limits on government access to personal financial records by centering access on search warrants and extending Fourth Amendment protections. It also remakes financial privacy penalties, ends certain market data systems, bans retail central bank digital currency, and adds a congressional approval step for major agency rules.
Show full summary
- It would tighten the Right to Financial Privacy framework and add enforcement tools. Federal employees who knowingly obtain or disclose records could face criminal penalties including a fine up to $5,000. The bill also allows civil penalties of at least $1,000 per violation per day and authorizes legal relief for victims.
- It would force major agency rules to get explicit congressional approval through a joint resolution and sets strict review timelines, including a 70 session/legislative-day outer deadline for approval and expedited procedures for committees and debate.
- It would require the Securities and Exchange Commission to terminate the Consolidated Audit Trail within 30 days and require refunds of fees within 1 year. The measure also bans issuance of a retail central bank digital currency, protects use of self‑hosted cryptocurrency wallets, and restores third‑party transaction reporting rules.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
6 provisions identified: 4 benefits, 0 costs, 2 mixed.
Ban Fed retail digital dollar
If enacted, the bill would bar the Federal Reserve, Treasury, and related agencies from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) directly to individuals. It would also bar those entities from holding U.S. government‑issued digital currency on Federal Reserve balance sheets or keeping individual accounts for people.
Congress must approve major rules
If enacted, most major federal rules would only take effect if Congress passes a joint resolution approving them. Agencies would send full rule text and cost studies to Congress and the Comptroller General. If Congress does not approve within 70 session or legislative days, the rule could not take effect, with one narrow 90‑day emergency exception. Rules covered by this process that affect budget numbers would be assumed effective for budgeting unless Congress disapproves.
End consolidated stock data system
If enacted, the SEC would have 30 days to end the Consolidated Audit Trail. The CAT operators would have one year to reimburse fees they collected earlier. After termination, federal agencies and exchanges could not create a similar centralized database of U.S. citizens' personally identifiable trading data unless Congress expressly authorizes it.
Stronger bank-record privacy rules
If enacted, the government generally could not get your bank or transaction records from a financial institution unless it uses a proper search warrant. The bill would create civil remedies of at least $1,000 per violation per day plus attorney fees and compensatory damages, and criminal penalties up to $5,000 and 5 years for knowing violations. It would repeal and reorganize many Bank Secrecy Act and Right to Financial Privacy provisions and clarify which firms count as financial institutions. The bill would also require the $3,000 statutory threshold to be adjusted each year by the CPI‑U after enactment.
Higher small-seller reporting thresholds
If enacted, third‑party payment networks would report payees only when both conditions are met in a year: more than $20,000 in payments and more than 200 transactions. This applies to returns for calendar years beginning after December 31, 2021. Many small sellers and gig workers could avoid receiving those informational reports.
Protect crypto wallets and payments
If enacted, federal agencies could not ban or broadly restrict a person's ability to use convertible virtual currency to buy goods or to use a self‑hosted wallet. The bill protects individual control of privately held crypto wallets and ordinary personal transactions with crypto.
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Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Mike Lee
UT • R
Cosponsors
Rick Scott
FL • R
Sponsored 2/27/2025
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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