Farmers and ranchers may be feeling like they’re on a roller coaster when it comes to Beneficial Ownership Information reporting requirements. A previously reinstated filing requirement has once again been put on hold. Dustin Sherer, director of government affairs for the American Farm Bureau Federation, says a federal court has again delayed a requirement to report information to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN.

"The same circuit court, but a different panel, the Merits Panel, said we agree to hear this appeal, but we are vacating the stay of the injunction that was issued in the meantime, in order to maintain the constitutional status quo," Sherer said. "Once again, we are back where we were on December 3, which is there is no filing deadline for this information, as of right now."

American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall commented on the ping pong of court orders that ended with a court-ordered reprieve from Treasury Department reporting requirements for many small businesses.

"Farm Bureau appreciates the court’s recognition that a last-minute reinstatement of reporting requirements caused an unwelcome scramble for small businesses, including more than 230,000 farmers. The latest court decision to postpone the filing requirement is the right thing to do, but the legal back and forth created a stressful holiday season for many farm families. Lack of guidance and poor public outreach from the government have left many farmers in the dark about whether they’re expected to file.”

Sherer said farmers and ranchers may have to wait a little while longer before a permanent decision is made.

"I would expect something to happen within the next month or two, but obviously, that also coincides with some political changes," Sherer said. "We have a new Congress getting sworn in January 3. We have a new administration getting sworn in on January 20. I expect the incoming administration to have a different view of the Corporate Transparency Act than the current one."

Sherer said any small business owner who may be required to file should have their paperwork in place, just in case.

"That is our recommendation," Sherer said. "If you have consulted with an attorney or CPA or looked at the rules yourself and believe that you are a business owner who has a small business who is subject to these filing requirements, it is our strong recommendation that you have all this information gathered up and ready to file, should the court decide to reinstate the deadline at some point in the near future."

The Utah Farm Bureau agrees with Sherer, and recommends its members connect with their CPA or whoever handles their financial and tax documents to determine if they need to comply with the rule and how to do so. Under the BOI requirement, businesses that fail to file or do not update records when needed could face criminal fines up to $10,000 and additional civil penalties of up to $591 per day. Failure to file could also lead to felony charges and up to two years in prison.

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