In a letter to House Financial Services Committee Chair Patrick McHenry (R-NC-10), NCACPA announced its support for legislation that would delay the effective date for new beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting requirements on small businesses, including many CPA firms.
Read the letter and learn more.
Beginning in January 2024, an estimated 32.6 million companies will have to submit BOI reports to a division of the Treasury Department known as the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). The BOI reporting requirement is an anti-money laundering initiative authorized by the 2021 Corporate Transparency Act. Failure to comply with the reporting requirements carries significant civil and criminal liability.
H.R. 4035, the Protecting Small Business Information Act of 2023, is sponsored by Chairman McHenry. The bill would delay the effective date of the BOI reporting rule until FinCEN’s finalizes two additional rules related to the Corporate Transparency Act.
“NCACPA is acutely concerned that small businesses in North Carolina and across the country are not aware of the rule,” wrote CEO Sharon Bryson. “We are further troubled that many small businesses will require professional expertise to comply with the BOI reporting requirements, and accounting professionals may not be able to assist if their actions are deemed as unauthorized practice of law.”
NCACPA has contacted the North Carolina State Bar to seek a determination about whether non-attorney CPAs who assist clients with the preparation and filing of BOI reports constitutes unauthorized practice of law.
There are approximately 3,200 CPA firms registered in North Carolina. NCACPA estimates that approximately 2,700 are smaller firms and that about 2,000 are sole practitioners.
NCACPA will be reaching out to the other members of the North Carolina delegation to encourage them to sign on as cosponsors of H.R. 4035.
Beneficial Ownership Information Resources:
If you have questions about this issue or other policy matters, please contact NCACPA Director of Advocacy Robert Broome, CAE.