The most Sweeping Overhaul of Financial Crime Safeguards is poised to be Attached to Must-Pass Defense Legislation in the coming weeks, a product of behind-the-scenes Negotiations between Lawmakers and Trump Administration officials who are usually at odds.
Advocates were bolstered by increasingly Vocal Law Enforcement Groups and National Security Experts seeking to Thwart the Companies. The push chipped away at Resistance from Business Groups who Complained that the New Requirement would be a Regulatory Burden.
The Legislation, hammered out by Progressive Democrats, Conservative Republicans, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, would require Millions of Business Entities to Reveal their Owners to the Federal Government in an attempt to Deter the use of Anonymous Shell Companies by Criminals evading Anti-Money Laundering Rules.
Congressional Aides confirmed that the Group has reached an Agreement, teeing up the Legislation for Inclusion in the Annual National Defense Authorization Act, one of the Last Major Bills Lawmakers are expected to pass this year.
"It is certainly the most significant anti-money laundering reform in 20 years," said Clark Gascoigne, Senior Policy Adviser for the Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition, which led Lobbying efforts on the Bill. "And probably the most significant anti-corruption reform as well."
Success would cap a long Struggle, starting with a 2008 Bill co-sponsored by then Sen. Barack Obama, to rein in the use of Shell Companies in the U.S., some of which have allowed Drug Traffickers, Terrorists, and Foreign Adversaries to operate freely. Evidence of Abuse has mounted over the years, including the spectacular 2016 Leak of the Panama Papers that Documented how the Rich and Powerful: World Leaders, Celebrities, Business Titans, used the Anonymous Entities to Hide their Wealth.
The Deal, which was negotiated by a Group including House Financial Services Chairwoman, Maxine Waters (D-CA, 43rd District) and Senate Banking Chairman, Mike Crapo (R-ID), follows years of Lobbying by Transparency Advocates who were able to convince Big Banks and other Business Groups to join the Cause.
The effort is now facing one more big Hurdle. While Key Lawmakers have a Deal in place, the Broader Defense Bill is still being Finalized by Members of the House and Senate in a Conference Committee. That has left an Opening for the remaining Opponents of the Disclosure Requirements.
The Group is continuing to Fight the Legislation though Congressional Aides said it's expected to include Several Exemptions designed to Spare Legitimate Businesses from the Ownership Reporting Rules. "I'm disappointed in the transparency of this process," said Kevin Kuhlman, Director of Legislative Affairs at (NFIB). "Now we'll focus on the conferees and leadership and just say this has very little to do with traditional defense authorization and does not belong in a defense bill."
The First move to require Corporations to Disclose their True Owners came from a Bill sponsored a Dozen years ago by then Sens. Carl Levin (D-MI) and Norm Coleman (R-MN), along with Obama, an Illinois Democrat. It followed a Series of Government Investigations that found States were inadvertently Helping give Cover to Criminals by allowing Individuals to Set-Up Corporate Entities with No Meaningful Oversight of who was behind them. The Findings were a Wake-Up Call.
“It doesn’t make a lot of sense for countries around the world to spend billions of dollars to combat trillions of dollars of illicit finance and on the other hand weaponize illicit actors by being serial incorporators of anonymous entities," said Chip Poncy, who focused on Financial Crime as a Treasury Department Official from 2002 to 2013. "It’s sort of masochistic.”
The Legislation stayed Alive thanks in large part to Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY, 12th District) and my Congress Representative, a Member of the House Financial Services Committee who continued to introduce similar Bills for years.
The continuing Trickle of damning Leaks and Stories over the years "were enormously helpful because it managed to recruit a number of the constituency groups," said Gary Kalman, who Leads the U.S. Office of Transparency International and Advocated for the Legislation for several years.
Around 2016, the Effort got a Major Boost when Big Banks began to put their Lobbying Muscle behind the Ownership Disclosure Rules and a broader Revamp of Anti-Money Laundering Rules. Banks are obligated to Police their Customers' Accounts for Illegal Activity and have a huge stake in whether they're used by Criminals to Access the Financial System. At the time, Banks were also facing the Prospect of having to Comply with Separate Customer Due Diligence Rules from the Treasury Department.
"We put together a unique coalition of us, on behalf of the banks and particularly large banks that spend the most money on this and the most time," said Greg Baer, the President and CEO of the Bank Policy Institute, a Bank Lobbying Group that Kalman brought into the fold in 2016. "But then also reputable people who clearly didn't have banks' interests at heart."
The work accelerated in 2018 when Democrats won back the House and were able to Pass Maloney's Bill for the First time. In the Senate, Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) took the Lead on a similar Proposal with Members of the Banking Committee. Once Warner's Bill was done and had Significant Bipartisan support, the Banking Committee's Leaders, Crapo and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), worked out their own deal.
Mnuchin supported the Legislation and had become Personally involved in the Talks.
While Lawmakers have mostly stayed mum on the outcome of the talks, Maloney in a Statement said it was a "hard-fought" Compromise.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
No comments:
Post a Comment