Washington Wire

Main Street Asks Treasury for CTA Relief

February 4, 2025|

Over 120 trade associations today called on the Treasury Department to offer Main Street some relief and certainty by delaying the CTA through at least the end of this year. As the letter sent to Secretary Scott Bessent reads:

Despite massive public awareness campaigns by the groups represented here, as of December 1, 2024 – just one month before a year-end deadline – FinCEN had received less than 30 percent of the required filings. Had

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CTA Update | January 31, 2025

January 31, 2025|

Notable Developments

  • FinCEN halts CTA enforcement
  • S-Corp Advisor in the WSJ
  • Our Latest Podcast with CIR Litigation Director
  • Delay Bill Reintroduced

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FinCEN Halts CTA Enforcement (Despite SCOTUS Ruling)

Last Friday the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network announced that businesses and covered entities are still not obligated to file under the CTA, so long as the ruling in Smith v. Treasury remains in place. Here’s the alert:

On January 23, 2025, the Supreme Court granted

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The Experts are Wrong (Part V)

January 30, 2025|

Several months ago, we asked Penn Wharton to help us score some ideas on tax reform.  They politely declined.  Too busy analyzing the 199A deduction, apparently. Their new paper on the deduction makes two points — the first is wrong and the second, while interesting, is not particularly helpful.

Their first point is that “Section 199A provides a 20 percent reduction in the tax rate for qualified business income relative to ordinary income tax rates.”

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Talking Taxes in a Truck Episode 40: Decoding the CTA Legal Fight with Caleb Kruckenberg

January 29, 2025|

The Corporate Transparency Act enforcement has been on quite a roller coaster in the past two months, so Main Street businesses can be forgiven if they have lost track of their filing obligations. To help shed some light on the issue, we’re joined by Caleb Kruckenberg, the Center for Individual Rights’ Litigation Director. Caleb breaks down the latest rulings out of SCOTUS and the Texas Eastern District, the interplay between cases currently being appealed in

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The Winds of Change (and Taxes)

January 28, 2025|

The Senate confirmed Scott Bessent to run the Treasury Department yesterday, which means there’s a new sheriff in town. That’s good news for the millions of Main Street businesses targeted by the Biden Administration for higher taxes and more onerous regulations.

But Main Street didn’t have to wait for Bessent’s confirmation to see how the landscape has changed under Trump. We’ve already seen material differences that promise relief now and in the future.

Example one

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CTA Filing Pause Still in Effect

January 24, 2025|

Good news! While the Supreme Court yesterday sided with the federal government in striking down an injunction against the Corporate Transparency Act, FinCEN quickly stepped in with an announcement that the filing requirements remain on hold so long as a second ruling remains in place. Here’s the notice currently posted on FinCEN’s website:

On January 23, 2025, the Supreme Court granted the government’s motion to stay a nationwide injunction issued by a federal judge

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Main Street Tax Certainty in the House (and Senate)

January 23, 2025|

Earlier today Senator Steve Daines and Congressman Lloyd Smucker reintroduced their Main Street Tax Certainty Act, legislation to make permanent the Section 199A deduction. The bills mirror S. 1706 and H.R.  4706 from last Congress, meaning the campaign to protect Main Street from looming tax hikes is once again a bicameral and bipartisan effort.

The legislation introduced today builds on our prior success in a big way. Whereas the previous House bill garnered support from 91

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Main Street Rallies Around 199A Permanence

January 22, 2025|

More than 230 trade associations came out in support today of legislation to make permanent the Section 199A deduction. Appropriately named the Main Street Tax Certainty Act, the bill is set to be reintroduced tomorrow by Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) and Representative Lloyd Smucker (R-PA), two of the Main Street business community’s staunchest allies.

The deduction was enacted in 2017 to encourage job creation and new investment by private businesses.  It also helps private

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