The Maryland Association of CPAs has called on federal legislators to support two bills that have been introduced – Senate Bill S. 2623 and companion legislation in the House, H.R. 4035, "The Protecting Small Business Information Act of 2023." This legislation would delay the start date for the Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting requirements until all required rulemaking is final, and all rules would take effect on the same date.

The BOI reporting requirement is an anti-money laundering initiative enacted through the Corporate Transparency Act in 2021, which mandates that BOI information is reported to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

• Read more about Beneficial Ownership Information here. 

In conjunction with the American Institute of CPAs, the MACPA will continue to advocate for a delay in the implementation of the BOI, and for additional time for small businesses and their CPA business advisors to understand the potential impact of these reporting requirements, including steep penalties for non-compliance. MACPA officials have already send letters to Maryland's congressional delegation seeking lawmakers' support of these measures.

The MACPA also is among a large number of accounting professionals advocating for this delay, including the AICPA and a coalition of organizations that includes the following:

• Latino Tax Pro
• National Association of Black Accountants
• National Association of Enrolled Agents
• National Association of Tax Professionals
• National Conference of CPA Practitioners
• National Society of Accountants
• National Society of Black Certified Public Accountants
• National Society of Tax Professionals
• Padgett Business Services
• Diverse Organization of Firms
• H&R Block
• Prosperity Now

“The MACPA has been in contact with our state’s federal legislators to ask for their co-sponsorship of this legislation,” said MACPA President and CEO Rebekah Brown, CPA, “and we share the AICPA’s concerns about the reporting requirements and the negative impact it will have on small CPA practitioners and small businesses.”

Here's how you can help
To keep the bills in question moving, the MACPA and the AICPA would like to obtain as many co-sponsors as possible in both the U.S. House and U.S. Senate. We are asking members to reach out to their House of Representatives member to ask them to co-sponsor H.R. 4035, and to also reach out to their two United States Senators to ask them to co-sponsor S. 2623.

• You can find your House of Representatives member here. 
• You can find your two U.S. senators here. 

Two ways to reach out to Congress: Phone call or e-mail
The two easiest ways to get your message to lawmakers in Congress is either via a phone call or through their website messaging system.

For a phone call with Congressional staff or legislators

1. From your member of Congress’ website, call the Washington, D.C., office and ask to speak to the “legislative staff member” responsible for “financial services issues.”  If the staff person is not available, you can leave a message on the staff person’s voicemail or ask for a call back.
2. Identify yourself as a CPA and as a voting constituent of the Representative or Senator. You may be asked to share your e-mail or street address so they can respond to you via a letter or e-mail.
3. Tell the staff person that you are calling to discuss your concerns with the FinCEN (pronounced fin-sen) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Requirements.

Please note: You can use as many or as few of the talking points below as you are comfortable with.  Also, please feel free to speak from your own experience.  Personal experience does wonders to help your Member of Congress understand an issue.

Talking points for a phone call with your Member of Congress’ staff:

• I am calling to discuss my concerns with the FinCEN (pronounced fin-sen) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Requirements.
• The FinCEN rule goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2024. Many small businesses do not know this filing requirement will impact them beginning in 2024. We are deeply concerned that the small business community will not be ready to comply and request that you co-sponsor (in the House) H.R. 4035 or (in the Senate) S. 2623, the "Protecting Small Business Information Act of 2023."
• By FinCEN’s own calculations, they expect 32.6 million filings in the first year that filings are due, and 5 or 6 million filings every year thereafter.
• Most businesses will be subject to the filing requirement. Certain large operating entities and certain publicly traded companies are exempt. There is a list of 23 exceptions, but most businesses are not exempt. Most 501(c) and 501(a) organizations are exempt from filing.
• Penalties on the taxpayer are steep – $500 per day (up to $10,000) and up to two years of imprisonment for willfully not filing.
• Given the steep penalties, we expect many small businesses will seek the assistance of a trusted financial professional to assist with their reporting requirement.
• Any change in beneficial ownership information must be reported to FinCEN within 30 days. This could potentially mean that this would become a monthly reporting tracking requirement for tax professionals to keep up with client information changes to ensure they are compliant with the reporting requirements.
• There is debate that a tax professional providing any business advice as to who the beneficial owner or company applicant is could be deemed the unauthorized practice of law. CPAs across the country will be contacting their state regulators, insurance carriers, and / or legal counsel to further discuss this issue. At the moment, no state has issued any specific guidance regarding whether providing advice on the BOI reporting requirement is considered unauthorized practice of law.
• Because of these concerns, we ask that your office cosponsor the “Protecting Small Business Information Act of 2023” (H.R. 4035 or S. 2623). This legislation will provide a delay allowing small businesses to ensure they are prepared to report their beneficial ownership information.
• To conclude the call, offer to be a resource to staff on this issue in the future.

For an e-mail to your Member of Congress

1. From your Member of Congress’ website homepage, typically you can select the “Contact me” or “Connect” or similar link on your Member of Congress’ homepage and it will take you to their online form. 
2. Fill out the required information, and if you are asked to select the specific issue type, you can select economy, financial services, tax, or any other issue that sounds like it might fit. 
3. In the comment box, you can copy / paste the following message. Remember, you may edit as you would like to fit your personal narrative on this issue. The more personal experience you share, the better your message will be received by your Members of Congress. 

I am a CPA practitioner and constituent. I am writing today to urge you to co-sponsor the "Protecting Small Business Information Act of 2023" introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives as H.R. 4035 and in the U.S. Senate as S. 2623. This legislation would delay the start date of the Financial Crime Enforcement Network (FinCEN’s) Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting requirements and would provide additional time for small businesses to learn about and better understand their new reporting requirements under the rule.

We have concerns with the rule as many small businesses do not know this filing requirement will impact them beginning in 2024. It is expected that there will be 32.6 million filings in the first year that filings are due, and 5 or 6 million filings every year thereafter. 

Existing small businesses have one year, until Jan. 1, 2025, to comply with the reporting requirements.  New small businesses formed in 2024 and any existing business with changes in beneficial ownership information must report to FinCEN within 30 days.

Penalties for non-compliance on small business owners are steep – $500 per day (up to $10,000) and up to two years of imprisonment for willfully not filing. Given these steep penalties, we expect many small businesses to seek the expertise and assistance from the trusted financial professionals whom they often turn to for help with various reporting requirements. 

A delay would provide small businesses and their trusted financial professionals with the necessary time to prepare for BOI reporting. Please consider co-sponsoring H.R. 4035 or S. 2623, the "Protecting Small Business Information Act of 2023," to signal your support of the small business community.

Thank you for your consideration and please do not hesitate to reach out to me for further information on this issue.

You can personalize this message with any additional information you would like your Members of Congress to know about this issue.