A proposal from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) would require all firms to file their Bank Secrecy Act reports electronically - beginning 6/30/12.  That, simply is not enough lead time, according to SIFMA VP and Assistant GC Ryan Foster, who recommends in a Comment Letter that FinCEN push back the starting date to 12/31/12. The SARs Factor. The most common filing for non-bank financial firms is the suspicious activity reports (SARs), and many firms use case management systems to document their investigations of escalated suspicious activity.  Many of those firms also use their respective systems to file SARs electronically with FinCEN.  As SIFMA indicated in an earlier comment letter, oftentimes these systems are substantially configured and customized to support the particular data elements and source systems specific to the firms that utilize them. As a result, firms use significant and diverse technology-related requirements necessary to comply with multiple aspects of the proposed data fields. In addition, further clarification is needed for certain fields and defined terms found in SAR filings - prior to asking firms to adjust their databases. Other considerations for extending the start date. Extra time would enable firms to work with internal partners and/or external vendors to develop and adequately test their e-filing capabilities as well as implement related processes, policies, procedures and training, particularly with the expanded SAR data fields, to mitigate the risk that firms will not meet the effective date of the e-filing final rule, once issued. SIFMA also seeks further clarification from FinCEN that filing institutions are permitted to file BSA forms electronically on behalf of their employees, as appropriate

- e.g., a firm that maintains accounts with foreign financial institutions will have one or more employees who have signature authority over such accounts. These employees may have a Report of Foreign Bank or and Financial Accounts (FBAR) filing obligation by virtue of their job responsibility of having signature authority.  As an accommodation, some firms have gathered the relevant information and filed these FBARs on behalf of their employees in the past and would like to continue to do so in the future.

Lastly, SIFMA respectfully requests that FinCEN permit firms to file BSA forms in a hard copy format as a contingency alternative if material issues arise with their respective e-filing systems or FinCEN's database, which would prevent firms from, among other things, batch filing their SARs. It would be inefficient and burdensome for firms with large volumes of SARs to use other e-filing methods, such as filing SARs on a one-by-one basis, using FinCEN's website. Given the increased burden on firms to comply with the e-filing and SAR data field guidance, SIFMA would also like to highlight for FinCEN that implementing the requirement may have a chilling effect on the voluntary filing of SARs by firms not yet subject to the SAR filing requirement. For the complete Comment Letter, go to:   [SIFMA Comment Letters, 11/15/11].