The U.S. Treasury attempts to control and penalize mom-n-pop operations in the name of ‘Anti-Terrorism’ and ‘Anti-Money Laundering’ efforts, while exempting financial industries and government entities.
Editorial
While the courts are duking it out over the outrageous Federal law known as the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), small business owners remain frustrated and confused over the mandatory reporting of beneficial ownership information and what could happen to their sole means of income should they run afoul of the U.S. Treasury.
As of December 27, another court panel within the Fifth District issued a nationwide injunction, which effectively voids the Fifth District Court of Appeal stay of a previous injunction on December 23. According to an alert dated December 27 from the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, all submissions are currently voluntary and the deadline for reporting has been stayed.
In truth, the law appears to be so complicated that many businesses, and their lawyers, cannot figure out how to comply to satisfy all criteria without potential mistakes that automatically incur penalties and interest.
While the court battles are critical to the ultimate conclusion of the situation, the more interesting nugget of information is the 23 categories of exemptions that the Federal law grants in their quest to “protect the U.S. and international financial systems, as well as people across the country, from illicit finance threats like terrorist financing, drug trafficking, and money laundering.”
You see, the most prolific and noteworthy financial crimes do not come from everyday mom-n-pop operations, like your favorite local eatery, hair salon, local media, or critical care clinic. The crimes come from nonprofits, venture capital funds, government entities, and giant corporations — all exempt from the Treasury’s mandatory reporting requirements.
If one goes to https://fincen.gov/boi and clicks on the “Do I qualify for an exemption?” link, you will find this list:
| 1 | Securities reporting issuer |
| 2 | Governmental authority |
| 3 | Bank |
| 4 | Credit union |
| 5 | Depository institution holding company |
| 6 | Money services business |
| 7 | Broker or dealer in securities |
| 8 | Securities exchange or clearing agency |
| 9 | Other Exchange Act registered entity |
| 10 | Investment company or investment adviser |
| 11 | Venture capital fund adviser |
| 12 | Insurance company |
| 13 | State-licensed insurance producer |
| 14 | Commodity Exchange Act registered entity |
| 15 | Accounting firm |
| 16 | Public utility |
| 17 | Financial market utility |
| 18 | Pooled investment vehicle |
| 19 | Tax-exempt entity |
| 20 | Entity assisting a tax-exempt entity |
| 21 | Large operating company |
| 22 | Subsidiary of certain exempt entities |
| 23 | Inactive entity |
It is the opinion of this publication that the Federal government itself is the largest purveyor of financial crimes, including funding terrorism, aiding organized criminal operations, and money laundering.
Let’s not forget:
- The Department of Defense is on record as having “lost” more than $824 billion and has failed seven consecutive audits.
- Countless pallets of U.S. dollars have been shipped into the Middle-East during the course of the War on Terror.
- The U.S. Department of Justice funneled arms to Mexican cartels during Eric Holden’s Fast and Furious scandal.
- Direct financial aid is regularly given to terrorist groups inside Lebanon and Palestine and many other countries with bad actors in control, all in the name of humanitarian relief.
- The Federal government funds biolabs around the world, specifically in Ukraine and China, that are creating biological weapons, like Covid-19.
- The Biden Administration gave trillions of dollars of military equipment/supplies and operating airfields to terrorists and communist regimes when it abandoned everything in the embarrassing and treasonous Afghan withdrawal at Abbey Gate that cost 13 American soldiers their lives.
- Billions of dollars of Federal grants handed out to international and American based nonprofits that directly aid the movement of both drugs and human beings onto U.S. soil.
So, which is it? Is the Federal government operating in good faith in its demands on millions of small business owners across the nation? Or is it creating yet another bureaucratic headache, costing Americans millions, subjecting them to financial penalties without due process of law, and violating the separation of powers while engaging in far worse crimes.
