Did you know?

Small business owners are being required to register their business! Or else!

In 2021, Congress passed the Corporate Transparency Act. "This law creates a new beneficial ownership information reporting requirement as part of the U.S. government’s efforts to make it harder for bad actors to hide or benefit from their ill-gotten gains through shell companies or other opaque ownership structures."

FinCEN launched the BOI E-Filing website for reporting beneficial ownership information (https://boiefiling.fincen.gov) on January 1, 2024.

• A reporting company created or registered to do business before January 1, 2024, will have until January 1, 2025, to file its initial BOI report.
• A reporting company created or registered in 2024 will have 90 calendar days to file after receiving actual or public notice that its creation or registration is effective.
• A reporting company created or registered on or after January 1, 2025, will have 30 calendar days to file after receiving actual or public notice that its creation or registration is effective.

https://www.fincen.gov/boi

Many are now fighting back against this government intrusion with the argument,

"The rule violates my rights to privacy and to being presumed innocent until proven guilty. If FinCEN wants to target criminals, they should be using the tools of our US court system, based on hard evidence.

The CTA BOI rule is not only unconstitutional, but creates privacy issues, asking us to report personal, sensitive information and identification that could be used by hackers and fraudsters, placing my business and that of millions of others at risk."

SMALL BUSINESSES: SUBMIT YOUR LETTER AGAINST THE CTA BOI RULE

Please use the form below to submit your letter by April 19, 2024. You must be a US-based small business to participate. A sample letter is provided below the block where you type in yours, but we will include it here again:

[Name]

[Company Name]

[Any Additional Details, Such as Email, Website, Address]

I’m ____________ and have a small business that does ___________________.

I am asking you to immediately overturn the Corporate Transparency Act’s Beneficial Ownership Information (“CTA BOI”) rule passed by Congress that unfairly targets American small businesses.

The rule violates my rights to privacy and to being presumed innocent until proven guilty. If FinCEN wants to target criminals, they should be using the tools of our US court system, based on hard evidence.

The CTA BOI rule is not only unconstitutional, but creates privacy issues, asking us to report personal, sensitive information and identification that could be used by hackers and fraudsters, placing my business and that of millions of others at risk.

I shouldn’t have to choose between the protection of a business entity like an LLC or S-Corp and being a target of government overreach.

The stated reason for the rule is to prevent financial crimes, such as those committed via money laundering and cartel activity. It is unlikely that any individual who would engage in such unlawful acts would voluntarily give accurate information willingly to FinCEN. If financial criminals are willing to break the laws at such a level, they would hardly care about additional rules and laws. That means the only people reporting to FinCEN are law-abiding small business owners, because big businesses are exempt from the rule reporting requirement.

Not only is this unfair to small businesses, but it also can turn us into criminals if we don’t comply, even by accident. Why should law-abiding small business owners be threatened with jail time and financial penalties?

Small businesses make up the backbone of the United States economy. We provide vital goods and services, generate significant economic activity, and create employment for ourselves and others. Yet, the US government always seems to favor big businesses, and the CTA BOI rule is just another example of the government tipping the scale in favor of the big guys.

It is a challenge to be a small business owner but also a privilege. We just want to be left to be a vital and vibrant part of the US economy.

I respectfully ask Congress to immediately overturn the powers given to FinCEN and revoke the CTA BOI rule and any further rules that unfairly, unconstitutionally target American small business owners.

Thank you.

[FULL NAME/COMPANY NAME]

COPY ALL OF THE ABOVE THEN PASTE IT IN THE FORM ON THE FOLLOWING WEBSITE:

https://www.carolroth.com/cta/

Carol Roth

12+ years of on camera experience. Judge, America’s Greatest Makers (TBS). Host, Microsoft’s Office Small Business Academy. Panelist, Closing Bell (CNBC) and Bulls and Bears (Fox Business). Radio Host (WGN). Host of Don’t Quit Your Day Job…Yet (CNBC.com).

2x New York Time Best Selling Author