House Bill Contains Additional Funding for FinCEN

The U.S. House last week passed a bill that would increase funding for FinCEN, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network of the U.S. Treasury. The bill, HR 8294, would increase FinCEN's 2023 budget by a little more than 30%.

FinCEN is the agency charged with implementing the Corporate Transparency Act, which would create a national database of beneficial ownership data for private U.S. companies. FinCEN was supposed to have issued final regulations to implement the CTA by December 31, 2021, but missed that deadline.

When questioned by a Congressional committee last month, the executive director of FinCEN blamed his organization's lack of funding for the delay. 

Ian Gary, executive director of the FACT Coalition, said: 

“By approving this budgetary increase for the nation’s financial crime fighters, the House of Representatives has demonstrated its commitment to safeguarding the U.S. economy from becoming a magnet for the world’s illicit funds – whether from Russian oligarchs, global kleptocrats, criminals, or U.S. adversaries. The Senate must now follow suit and approve $210.33 million for FinCEN’s fiscal year 2023 budget."

The FACT Coalition advocates for increased transparency in corporate beneficial ownership reporting as a means to combat money laundering and other illicit activities.