BITES&BRIEFS


Texas court strikes down Corporate Transparency Act


Businesses not currently mandated to file beneficial ownership A


U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued a nationwide preliminary injunction December 3 that blocks enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act. The move comes less than one month before the rule’s year-end filing deadline hits.


The Corporate Transparency Act was enacted in 2021 to crack down on money laundering operations posing as businesses, requiring qualifying businesses to disclose their beneficial ownership information to a database maintained by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.


But in Texas Top Cop Shop v. Garland, the plaintiffs alleged that the Corporate Transpar- ency Act oversteps Congress’ jurisdiction to regulate interstate and foreign commerce and infringes on First Amendment protections. Judge Amos L. Mazzant III agreed that the act appears ‘likely unconstitutional.’


“For good reason, plaintiffs fear this flanking, quasi-Orwellian statute and its implications on our dual system of government. As a result, plaintiffs contend that the [Corporate Trans- parency Act] violates the promises our Constitution makes to the people and the states,” the judge wrote. “Despite attempting to reconcile the [Corporate Transparency Act] with the Constitution at every turn, the government is unable to provide the court with any tenable theory that the [Corporate Transparency Act] falls within Congress’s power.”


The decision follows a March case, National Small Business United v. Yellen, in which a federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama ruled that the Corporate Transparency Act is unconstitutional. FinCEN appealed the decision, which is currently pending in the 11th Circuit.


It is unclear how FinCEN will respond to the nationwide injunction, but affected entities are currently no longer mandated to comply with the Corporate Transparency Act filing January 1, 2025, filing deadline.


The ADA said it will continue to work with Congress, its small businesses D.C. partners and the new administration to look for a permanent solution.


“The ADA will continue to advocate to remove unnecessary and non-relevant regulatory burden, allowing dentists to prioritize their time for patient care,” said Dr. Shane Ricci, chair of the ADA Council on Dental Practice. Visit fincen.gov/boi for more information on the Corporate Transparency Act and beneficial ownership.


This article originally appeared in the ADA News at bit.ly/4fscNF4. 8 focus | WINTER 2024 | ISSUE 4


MDA Introduces Meet Your Colleague Series


T


his October, the MDA began a new series called Meet Your MDA Colleague,


a member-centric page designed to make the MDA cozier as we profile members from around the state in hopes other members will make professional and personal connections.


Members come in all different shapes and sizes, so to speak … new grads and longtime legacies; rural and metro residents; all manner of practice models; a diverse set of hobbies and interests and much more. This unique fabric weaves together around the common bond of dentistry to make a beautiful mosaic we can all share in.


Each month we will randomly select a mem- ber from a different local society and post the selection on MDA’s social channels. We then link those online, where you can read a more robust profile. We may randomly draw your name and hope you’ll let us introduce you in this series!


We’ve featured three members so far: Drs. Robin Hildebrand, Tad Edwardson and Kevin Kaiser. Read these online and follow us on Instagram and Facebook to see when we post each month’s fea- tured member.


MODENTAL.ORG/MEETYOURCOLLEAGUE


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