Call to Action: Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting Deadline
Together with the AICPA, TSCPA is urging society members to contact their members of U.S. Congress to support the delay in implementation of Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting requirements.
Background on the Issue
The BOI reporting requirement is an anti-money laundering initiative enacted through the Corporate Transparency Act in 2021. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) is a division of the U.S. Treasury Department that 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 Dec. 31, 2023, have one year to file – the filing deadline for these small businesses is Jan. 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 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. We want to obtain as many cosponsors in both the U.S. House and U.S. Senate as possible to keep these bills moving. We are asking you to reach out to your House of Representatives Member to ask them to cosponsor H.R. 4035 and to also reach out to your two U.S. Senators to ask them to cosponsor S. 2623.
How To Contact Your U.S. Senators and Representatives
- You can find your House of Representatives member at: https://www.house.gov/
- You can find your two U.S. Senators at: https://www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm
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 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.
The AICPA is requesting that emails to Congress be sent by Aug. 31, 2023.
Earlier this month, TSCPA sent letters to Tennessee’s Congress members requesting their co-sponsorship of the legislation that would delay the effective date of the reporting requirements.