TXCPA Asks Lawmakers to Co-Sponsor Bill to Delay BOI Reporting Requirement
Aug. 22, 2023
TXCPA has serious concerns with the Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) that small businesses will be required to report to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) starting in 2024. We believe many businesses – including CPA firms – will be unprepared to meet their reporting obligation and face significant consequences including civil and criminal penalties for failure to report.
This week, TXCPA asked our Texas delegation to cosponsor H.R. 4035, the Protecting Small Business Information Act of 2023 and Senate companion bill S. 2623, to delay the BOI reporting requirements until all three rules under the Corporate Transparency Act have been finalized with a concurrent effective date. We are pleased that Reps. Monica De La Cruz (R-15) and Roger Williams (R-25) have shown early support.
Background
The Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting requirement is an anti-money laundering initiative enacted through the Corporate Transparency Act in 2021. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN – pronounced “fin-sen”) is a division of the U.S. Treasury Department which will begin requiring small businesses including small CPA firms to report information on the “owner” of an entity beginning in 2024. Existing small businesses, formed before December 31, 2023, have one year to file – the filing deadline for these small businesses is January 1, 2025. Small businesses formed starting January 2024 or those that have a change in owner information throughout the year have 30 days to file. For more information see the AICPA’s resource landing page by visiting this link: AICPA BOI Resource Page. On the resource page, you will find many additional resources including AICPA’s FAQ sheet for firm practitioners which you can also access directly at this link: AICPA BOI FAQ Highlights
Two bills have been introduced in U.S. Congress to delay this rule – H.R. 4035 and S. 2623, both titled the Protecting Small Business Information Act of 2023. These identical bills introduced in the U.S. House by Representative Patrick McHenry and introduced in the U.S. Senate by Senator Mike Rounds would delay the start date of the rule providing additional time for small businesses to learn about and better understand their new reporting requirements. AICPA wants to obtain as many cosponsors in both the U.S. House and U.S. Senate as possible, to keep these bills moving.
Member Advocacy
AICPA asks that CPAs reach out to your House of Representatives Member to ask them to cosponsor H.R. 4035, and to also reach out to your two United States Senators to ask them to cosponsor S. 2623.
How to contact your U.S. Senators and Representatives:
Two ways to reach out to Congress – phone call or email
The two easiest ways to get your message to your Members of Congress is either via a phone call or through their website messaging system. See instructions below and sample information you can edit to fit your personal experience and any expected challenges or concerns you have with these new small business reporting requirements. Please note “Member of Congress” refers to either Senators or Representatives.
Thank you for reaching out to your Senators and Representative to share the profession’s advocacy position on the BOI reporting rule and the legislation to delay the rule. If you have questions, please send an email to CongAffairs@aicpa.org.