WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association (NLBMDA) has sent a letter to the Trump Administration calling on the president to issue a long-term administrative delay of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) as several courts consider the legality of the law. The letter, which was cosigned by over 60 trade associations, shares the small business perspective with the president and outlines the immediate impacts of not issuing an indefinite CTA delay.

The letter writes in part, “By placing [small businesses] in a law enforcement database, the CTA effectively treats law-abiding entrepreneurs and small business owners like criminals, keeping a register which FinCEN has indicated it intends to actively share with not just domestic law enforcement, but also foreign governments, law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges. Moreover, as recently demonstrated by revelations of data breaches at Treasury, we are further concerned that such a database risks the potential exposure of sensitive, personally-identifying information to a variety of malicious actors. On top of all of this, penalties small business owners face for noncompliance are stiff: civil fines of as much as $500 per day, and criminal penalties up to $10,000 in fines and two years in prison.”

NLBMDA continues to be at the forefront on this issue and is a leading advocate to delay and/or permanently repeal the law. According to a report released by the National Small Business Association, the overwhelming majority of small businesses are still unaware of the CTA and its reporting requirements. Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a nationwide injunction halting the CTA’s reporting requirements. While FinCEN has since released guidance stating it will continue to halt reporting requirements due to a second nationwide injunction, an indefinite delay regardless of the law's everchanging legal status would provide small businesses and LBM dealers with much needed stability.

“For over 100 years, NLBMDA has proudly represented the interests of the lumber and building materials (LBM) industry in Washington,” said NLBMDA President & CEO Jonathan Paine. “We remain driven in our mission to champion policies which enable small business growth, not inhibit it. Indefinitely delaying the CTA until Congress enacts a full repeal would serve as a strong demonstration of President Trump’s support for small business and LBM dealers.”