II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5631 

To amend title 31, United States Code, to provide for access to certain 

beneficial ownership information. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 19 (legislative day, DECEMBER 16), 2024 

Mr. DAINES (for himself and Mr. VAN HOLLEN) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

A BILL 

To amend title 31, United States Code, to provide for access 

to certain beneficial ownership information. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ownership Clarity 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ACCESS TO BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP INFORMA7 TION. 

8 Section 5336 of title 31, United States Code, is 

9 amended— 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
2 

•S 5631 IS

1 (1) by redesignating subsection (j) as sub2 section (k); and 

3 (2) by inserting after subsection (i) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(j) ACCESS TO BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP INFORMA6 TION.— 

7 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

8 ‘‘(A) ACCESS LICENSE.—The term ‘access 

9 license’ means a license to access beneficial 

10 ownership information in accordance with this 

11 subsection. 

12 ‘‘(B) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘cov13 ered entity’ means a financial institution that 

14 provides, or an entity that assists a financial in15 stitution in providing, screening services. 

16 ‘‘(C) PERMITTED PERSONNEL.—The term 

17 ‘permitted personnel’ means personnel of a cov18 ered entity who are permitted to access bene19 ficial ownership information in accordance with 

20 this subsection. 

21 ‘‘(D) PERMITTED PURPOSE.—The term 

22 ‘permitted purpose’ means the use of beneficial 

23 ownership information for screening services. 

24 ‘‘(E) SCREENING SERVICES.—The term 

25 ‘screening services’ means the risk management 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
3 

•S 5631 IS

1 procedures and activities undertaken by per2 mitted personnel for the protection of the 

3 United States national security from inter4 national illicit actors and corrupt foreign offi5 cials who seek to exploit the financial systems 

6 of the United States by engaging in illicit activ7 ity such as serious tax fraud, human and drug 

8 trafficking, money laundering, financing ter9 rorism. 

10 ‘‘(2) ACCESS LICENSES.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

12 other provision of this section, the Director 

13 shall establish a process by which covered enti14 ties may apply to the Director for an access li15 cense. 

16 ‘‘(B) DETERMINATION.—The Director may 

17 not issue an access license to a covered entity 

18 unless the Director determines that— 

19 ‘‘(i) access to beneficial ownership in20 formation under this subsection is predi21 cated upon a reasonable concern for 

22 United States national security and United 

23 States economic stability, by identifying 

24 international illicit actors and corrupt forVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:14 Jan 30, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5631.IS S5631

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
4 

•S 5631 IS

1 eign officials and preventing international 

2 illicit activity such as— 

3 ‘‘(I) international terrorist fi4 nancing; 

5 ‘‘(II) any activity engaged in by 

6 an agent of the Government of Iran, 

7 North Korea, Syria, or any other gov8 ernment the Secretary of State has 

9 determined has repeatedly provided 

10 support for acts of international ter11 rorism for purposes of— 

12 ‘‘(aa) section 

13 1754(c)(1)(A)(i) of the Export 

14 Control Reform Act of 2018 (50 

15 U.S.C. 4813(c)(1)(A)(i)); 

16 ‘‘(bb) section 620A of the 

17 Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 

18 (22 U.S.C. 2371); 

19 ‘‘(cc) section 40(d) of the 

20 Arms Export Control Act (22 

21 U.S.C. 2780(d)); or 

22 ‘‘(dd) any other provision of 

23 law; 

24 ‘‘(III) any activity engaged in by 

25 any individual or entity included on 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
5 

•S 5631 IS

1 the list of specially designated nation2 als and blocked persons maintained by 

3 the Office of Foreign Assets Control 

4 of the Department of the Treasury; or 

5 ‘‘(IV) any other illicit financial 

6 conduct directly or indirectly sup7 porting a transnational criminal orga8 nization, transnational drug traf9 ficking organization, or transnational 

10 money laundering organization; 

11 ‘‘(ii) the covered entity limits access 

12 to and use of the beneficial ownership in13 formation to permitted personnel of the 

14 covered entity in connection with, or to 

15 support, screening services; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) the use, disclosure, and reten17 tion of the beneficial ownership informa18 tion is strictly limited to a permitted pur19 pose. 

20 ‘‘(C) DURATION.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—An access license 

22 issued under this subsection shall expire on 

23 the date that is 2 years after the date on 

24 which the license is issued. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
6 

•S 5631 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) RENEWAL.—An expired access li2 cense may be renewed for 2-year periods in 

3 accordance with the process established 

4 under this paragraph. 

5 ‘‘(3) REGULATIONS.—The Director shall pro6 mulgate regulations governing the use, disclosure, 

7 and retention of the beneficial ownership information 

8 accessed pursuant to an access license issued under 

9 this subsection.’’. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB