Washington, D.C.--U.S. Senators Mike Crapo, Jim Risch (both R-Idaho) and Rick Scott (R-Florida) with U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Chairman Patrick McHenry (R-North Carolina) and 76 of their colleagues wrote U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Andrea Gacki urging the administration to delay the implementation of new reporting requirements for small businesses.
“On behalf of the millions of small businesses in our states, we write to you today with significant concerns regarding the implementation of the beneficial ownership reporting requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA),” wrote the elected officials. “ . . . While the goal of this new law is to target shell companies involved in illicit financial transactions, the CTA defines covered entities as those having 20 or fewer employees and under $5 million in revenue. In other words, not just shell companies, but nearly every small business in America.”
“Unfortunately, FinCEN is woefully behind in educating small business owners and stakeholders of their new obligations under the CTA that begin in just a few short weeks . . . This lack of awareness and education is alarming and must be addressed before the law is implemented,” continued the leaders. “FinCEN has yet to finalize the two final BOI rulemakings that are critical to protecting small businesses’ personal information. We strongly request that FinCEN delay the January 1, 2024, effective date for all BOI requirements by a minimum of one year and FinCEN has finalized all outstanding rulemakings. We believe a year’s delay will provide FinCEN and the business community with more time to educate owners of their new obligations. It will also give FinCEN time to review the new rules and improve and finalize the statute’s regulatory framework.”
The full letter is available here.
Joining Senators Crapo, Risch and Scott are U.S. Senators Mike Rounds (R-North Dakota), John Thune (R-South Dakota), Shelley Moore Capito (R-West Virginia), John Barrasso (R-Wyoming), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Mike Braun (R-Indiana), Roger Marshall (R-Kansas), Dan Sullivan (R-Alabama), Bill Hagerty (R-Tennessee), Pete Ricketts (R-Nebraska), Ted Budd (R-North Carolina), Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina), James Lankford (R-Oklahoma), Jerry Moran (R-Kansas), Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin), Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Mississippi), Katie Boyd Britt (R-Alabama), Steve Daines (R-Montana), J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyoming), Kevin Cramer (R-North Dakota) and John Kennedy (R-Louisiana).
The letter is also supported by numerous organizations, including: