What is the Patriot Act’s implication for auto dealerships?
The Act requires dealerships to establish and maintain anti-money laundering programs. As of November 18, 2002, final rules implementing these requirements had not been published by the Treasury Department. The Act also requires dealers to respond to information requests from Federal government law enforcement agencies. Upon receipt of such a request, a dealership must expeditiously search its records to determine whether it maintains or has maintained any account for, or has engaged in any transaction with, each individual, entity or organization named in the government’s request. The final rule implementing this requirement was published September 26, 2002 and was effective immediately.
