May 10, 2021
NBAA recently joined with the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) in submitting comments to an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking regarding implementation of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) and its requirement that certain entities, such as limited liability corporations (LLCs), report ultimate beneficial owner information.
Enacted into law as part of the fiscal year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, the CTA includes added powers for the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) tasked with collecting and analyzing information about financial transactions to combat domestic and international money laundering and other financial crimes. Under the CTA, these would include beneficial ownership information from LLCs, owner-held trusts and other commonly-utilized aircraft ownership structures.
While the FinCEN database will not be accessible to the general public, the associations noted the privacy concerns inherent with those expanded powers. “For corporate and industrial security reasons, it is critical that beneficial ownership information is maintained in a confidential, secure and non-public database,” read the comments. “We trust that FinCEN will keep data security at the forefront as this system is developed.”
Read the full NBAA/GAMA comments. (PDF)
Given the prevalence of LLCs and similar ownership structures in aviation, the groups encouraged FinCEN to consider the industry as a unique stakeholder as CTA regulations are developed. NBAA and GAMA also emphasized the importance of collaboration with the FAA to prevent conflicts or duplication of information reported to the FinCEN and the agency’s upcoming modernized aviation registry.
“Collaboration between the FAA and FinCEN on standards for beneficial ownership reporting will be critical to ensuring that the aviation industry has a clear set of reporting requirements,” said Scott O’Brien, NBAA senior director for government affairs. “NBAA fully supports the goals of the CTA and looks forward to working with FinCEN on a system that takes into account unique business aviation concerns while protecting sensitive beneficial ownership information.”
NBAA and GAMA further encouraged the FinCEN to reach out to their respective memberships “to ensure awareness and understanding” of the upcoming CTA requirements and protections.
This initial notice is the first step to implementing the CTA. Regulations implementing the reporting requirements must be promulgated by Jan. 1, 2022, with the final effective date for beneficial ownership reporting to be determined.
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.