12 U.S.C. § 5566 — Referrals for criminal proceedings

Page 1989 TITLE 12—BANKS AND BANKING § 5567 1 See References in Text note below. be deducted from any sums owing by the United States to the person charged. (5) Notice and hearing No civil penalty may be assessed under this subsection with respect to a violation of any Federal consumer financial law, unless— (A) the Bureau gives notice and an oppor- tunity for a hearing to the person accused of the violation; or (B) the appropriate court has ordered such assessment and entered judgment in favor of the Bureau. (Pub. L. 111–203, title X, § 1055, July 21, 2010, 124 Stat. 2029.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective on the designated transfer date, see section 1058 of Pub. L. 111–203, set out as a note under section 5561 of this title. § 5566. Referrals for criminal proceedings If the Bureau obtains evidence that any per- son, domestic or foreign, has engaged in conduct that may constitute a violation of Federal criminal law, the Bureau shall transmit such evidence to the Attorney General of the United States, who may institute criminal proceedings under appropriate law. Nothing in this section affects any other authority of the Bureau to dis- close information. (Pub. L. 111–203, title X, § 1056, July 21, 2010, 124 Stat. 2031.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective on the designated transfer date, see section 1058 of Pub. L. 111–203, set out as a note under section 5561 of this title. § 5567. Employee protection (a) In general No covered person or service provider shall terminate or in any other way discriminate against, or cause to be terminated or discrimi- nated against, any covered employee or any au- thorized representative of covered employees by reason of the fact that such employee or rep- resentative, whether at the initiative of the em- ployee or in the ordinary course of the duties of the employee (or any person acting pursuant to a request of the employee), has— (1) provided, caused to be provided, or is about to provide or cause to be provided, infor- mation to the employer, the Bureau, or any other State, local, or Federal, government au- thority or law enforcement agency relating to any violation of, or any act or omission that the employee reasonably believes to be a vio- lation of, any provision of this title 1 or any other provision of law that is subject to the ju- risdiction of the Bureau, or any rule, order, standard, or prohibition prescribed by the Bu- reau; (2) testified or will testify in any proceeding resulting from the administration or enforce- ment of any provision of this title 1 or any other provision of law that is subject to the ju- risdiction of the Bureau, or any rule, order, standard, or prohibition prescribed by the Bu- reau; (3) filed, instituted, or caused to be filed or instituted any proceeding under any Federal consumer financial law; or (4) objected to, or refused to participate in, any activity, policy, practice, or assigned task that the employee (or other such person) rea- sonably believed to be in violation of any law, rule, order, standard, or prohibition, subject to the jurisdiction of, or enforceable by, the Bu- reau. (b) Definition of covered employee For the purposes of this section, the term ‘‘covered employee’’ means any individual per- forming tasks related to the offering or provi- sion of a consumer financial product or service. (c) Procedures and timetables (1) Complaint (A) In general A person who believes that he or she has been discharged or otherwise discriminated against by any person in violation of sub- section (a) may, not later than 180 days after the date on which such alleged violation oc- curs, file (or have any person file on his or her behalf) a complaint with the Secretary of Labor alleging such discharge or discrimi- nation and identifying the person respon- sible for such act. (B) Actions of Secretary of Labor Upon receipt of such a complaint, the Sec- retary of Labor shall notify, in writing, the person named in the complaint who is al- leged to have committed the violation, of— (i) the filing of the complaint; (ii) the allegations contained in the com- plaint; (iii) the substance of evidence supporting the complaint; and (iv) opportunities that will be afforded to such person under paragraph (2). (2) Investigation by Secretary of Labor (A) In general Not later than 60 days after the date of re- ceipt of a complaint filed under paragraph (1), and after affording the complainant and the person named in the complaint who is alleged to have committed the violation that is the basis for the complaint an oppor- tunity to submit to the Secretary of Labor a written response to the complaint and an op- portunity to meet with a representative of the Secretary of Labor to present state- ments from witnesses, the Secretary of Labor shall— (i) initiate an investigation and deter- mine whether there is reasonable cause to believe that the complaint has merit; and (ii) notify the complainant and the per- son alleged to have committed the viola- tion of subsection (a), in writing, of such determination. (B) Notice of relief available If the Secretary of Labor concludes that there is reasonable cause to believe that a