Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senate and House leaders are urging the Supreme Court to uphold the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), which is a critical law that helps protect taxpayers and public safety.

Senators Elizabeth Warren, Jack Reed, Sheldon Whitehouse and Ron Wyden, andRepresentative Maxine Waters worked with Democracy Forward to submit an amicus brief to the Supreme Court, clearly outlining how the CTA stops anonymous shell corporations from harming the United States’ national security, foreign affairs, foreign and interstate commerce and tax interests. 

“Efforts to repeal the Corporate Transparency Act threaten small businesses by forcing them to compete on an unfair playing field, and hurts the government’s ability to fight global money laundering and other financial crimes,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “The Corporate Transparency Act’s reporting requirements are simple, bipartisan rules that protect small businesses’ by stopping large corporations from hiding their true owners and violating sanctions, money-laundering and dodging tax laws. Democracy Forward is proud to work with members of Congress who have an important perspective in this case and are calling for the Supreme Court to uphold the government’s ability to create important protections for small businesses across America.”

The law, which went into effect on January 1, 2024, requires companies to submit simple and straightforward information about their ownership to the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). These requirements were challenged in federal district court in Alabama shortly after taking effect, and on March 1, 2024 the district court ruled the Act to be unconstitutional. The government appealed the ruling and announced that FinCEN will continue to enforce the Act, except as to those individuals and entities that are plaintiffs in that Alabama case cited above.

For more information about Democracy Forward, please visit www.democracyforward.org. 

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