H.R. 3829 — FinCEN–SBA Coordination on Beneficial Ownership Registration Act

This section expresses the sense of Congress that malign actors conceal ownership of U.S. corporations, limited liability companies, and similar entities to facilitate illicit activities (e.g., money laundering, terrorism financing, tax fraud, human and drug trafficking); that federal collection of beneficial ownership information is needed to set standards, protect national security and commerce, aid law enforcement, and comply with international anti-money laundering standards; and that full implementation of the Corporate Transparency Act (enacted as part of the FY2021 National Defense Authorization Act) is critical.

This section defines terms used in the Act, including “small business concern” (as defined in section 3 of the Small Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 632); “resource partner” (small business development centers, women’s business centers under section 29 of the Small Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 656, and veteran business outreach centers under section 32 of the Small Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 657b); and “covered agencies” (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and Small Business Administration). It also defines terms related to beneficial ownership information reporting requirements under section 5336 of title 31, United States Code (e.g., “beneficial ownership requirements,” “covered information,” “reporting company”).

This section requires the Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Director to meet within 30 days of enactment to discuss, and to enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) within 90 days of enactment, to jointly disseminate information on beneficial ownership reporting requirements (i.e., under the Corporate Transparency Act) to reporting companies, trade associations, and small business entities. The MOU must cover (1) dissemination through SBA resource partners; (2) availability of information in English, Spanish, and additional languages as determined; (3) a link on the SBA website homepage to FinCEN's relevant webpages; (4) a plan to identify, counter, and educate on scams related to beneficial ownership reporting; (5) hosting in-person town halls and webinars organized by SBA offices featuring FinCEN staff presentations, advertised to reporting companies and small business representatives; (6) use of SBA field offices and FinCEN Domestic Liaisons for such events; and (7) any other activities to increase compliance. The agencies must publicly post the MOU on their websites within 7 days of execution and convene review meetings every 6 months thereafter (without compensation) to assess coordination, compliance challenges, reasons for noncompliance, and collaboration strategies.

This section requires the Director of the Small Business Administration and the FinCEN Director—beginning no later than 30 days after entering into the memorandum of understanding under section 3(b), and every 30 days thereafter—to jointly submit reports to the Senate Committees on Small Business and Entrepreneurship and Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and the House Committees on Small Business and Financial Services. Each report must cover (1) for the preceding 30-day period, (A) actions taken under the memorandum to provide outreach to reporting companies (i.e., entities subject to beneficial ownership reporting under the Corporate Transparency Act) that failed to comply with those requirements, (B) the estimated number of such companies that received covered information or other assistance from SBA or FinCEN as a result, and (C) the number of reporting companies in compliance; and (2) planned actions under the memorandum for the following 30-day period to provide such information to noncompliant reporting companies.