As the clock continues to tick down, Congressional leaders have finally released the text of a proposed funding measure to keep the lights on. As expected, it’s a short-term bill intended to fund the government through March 14, 2025. Without any action by Friday, December 20, 2024, funding will run out for several government agencies.
Don’t be fooled by the “short” in the phrase “short-term”: the bill runs 1,547 pages long. (By contrast, the September 25, 2024, continuing resolution, which extended funding through December 20, 2024, was just 21 pages.)
Key Provisions
The bill is chockfull of programs and tweaks. Here’s a look at some of the key (and interesting) features in the bill.
As before, the continuing resolution largely funds most programs and activities, including the military, at the fiscal year 2024 levels.
The bill also includes about $100 billion in federal aid for natural disasters, including money for those impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, and an additional $29 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster fund (you may recall that the agency announced in August that the disaster fund had run out of money).
The bill would also fund the rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore after it was damaged by the cargo ship Dali in March of this year.
The bill also provides $21 billion in economic assistance for farmers impacted by disasters—a move that was slowing down earlier negotiations—but does not address IRS funding. (As noted previously, without further changes, a continuing resolution that would extend funding levels from 2024 would include an additional $20 billion funding cut to the IRS.)
There are provisions on literacy, mental health, hotel fees, ticket prices, and the blockchain—as well as pages (and pages) of healthcare provisions, including funding for public health programs, oversight of pharmacy benefit management services, and overdose and suicide prevention programs.
There’s something for everyone, it seems, except for National Football Conference – Eastern Division fans who do not support the Commanders. The bill includes a provision to transfer jurisdiction of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus site from the federal government to the city of D.C. for 99 years. That would allow the Commanders to negotiate a new stadium at the site (the team’s lease at FedEx Field ends in 2027.)
Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) Extension
Also tucked into the bill? Language that would delay the BOI reporting requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). The CTA, intended to make it harder for bad actors to hide their identities and ill-gotten gains through shell companies or opaque corporate structures, pulls in companies and owners. The information that must be reported includes details about the owners, including the name, date of birth, address, and a scanned image of an identifying document like a driver’s license or passport—from each so-called “beneficial owner.” The same information, generally, has to be reported for a company applicant—typically the person who helped organize the company (most commonly, a corporate formation company or a lawyer).
Those reports are filed online with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). FinCEN expected to receive over 32 million reports in the first year that the law was effective—this year, 2024.
The move was cheered by the National Small Business Association, with NSBA President and CEO Todd McCracken saying, “NSBA has been leading the charge against the CTA for years. There is widespread confusion and massive concern among America’s smallest businesses about the BOI reports, and by including this delay it provides much-needed predictability for small businesses.”
McCracken thanked lawmakers, saying that the “NSBA will continue to fight against this law through our lawsuit, the first one filed in the nation which is now awaiting judgment from the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals.” The lawsuit that
Months after the CTA was enacted, the NSBA filed suit in federal court. On March 1, 2024, U.S. District Judge Liles C. Burke of the Northern District of Alabama, Northeastern Division, found the CTA unconstitutional. In his opinion, Burke, a Trump appointee, wrote, “Congress sometimes enacts smart laws that violate the Constitution.” This case, he continued, “illustrates that principle.” The Government immediately appealed the ruling to the Eleventh Circuit, and the oral arguments were heard in October of this year.
Other lawsuits followed suit, including a decision in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. In that case, Judge Mazzant, an Obama appointee, granted the request of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) for a preliminary injunction, blocking the U.S. Department of Treasury from enforcing the CTA’s reporting requirements. Because NFIB and its nearly 300,000 members were a party to this case, the judge blocked enforcement of the BOI reporting requirements nationwide. The U.S. government appealed, and the matter is winding its way through the Fifth Circuit.
In the meantime, FinCEN has backed off of its position that filings should continue, announcing on its website, “While this litigation is ongoing, FinCEN will comply with the order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas for as long as it remains in effect.” For now, reports are voluntary.
The result has been confusing for business owners and advisors. A Congressional delay would give all involved some additional breathing room while the matter is settled in court.
As written, the bill would change the reporting date for existing entities. Specifically, the new language would read, “In accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury, any reporting company that has been formed or registered before January 1, 2024, shall, not later than January 1, 2026, submit to FinCEN a report that contains the information described in paragraph (2).”
McCracken said, about the amendment, “This delay is a perfectly timed holiday gift to the millions of small-business owners across the country who were facing a wildly complex regulatory regime, and fines that could exceed $591 per DAY and up to two years of jail time.”
More About The Bill
There are no offsets in the bill—spending only.
(There are no mentions of Social Security and Medicare plans—there’s no need. The so-called entitlement programs renew automatically and are not subject to discretion.)
Republicans have a slim lead in the House, and need Democratic support to pass the bill—House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) seems to believe he has it. However, the timing for a vote on the spending bill has not yet been announced.
You can read the text of the bill here (have a cup of coffee nearby).
Read the full article here
