[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 20 (Tuesday, January 30, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5995-6000]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-01828]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Financial Crimes Enforcement Network


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Beneficial Ownership Information Requests

AGENCY: Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), Treasury.

[[Page 5996]]


ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: FinCEN invites all interested parties to comment on the 
proposed information collection associated with requests made to 
FinCEN, by certain persons, for beneficial ownership information, 
consistent with the requirements of the Beneficial Ownership 
Information Access and Safeguards final rule. The details included in 
the information collection are listed below. This request for comment 
is made pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before April 1, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods:
    <bullet> Federal E-rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Refer to Docket Number 
FINCEN-2024-0002 and the specific Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
control number 1506-0077.
    <bullet> Mail: Policy Division, Financial Crimes Enforcement 
Network, P.O. Box 39, Vienna, VA 22183. Refer to Docket Number FINCEN-
2024-0002 and OMB control number 1506-0077.
    Please submit comments by one method only. Comments will be 
reviewed consistent with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) and 
applicable OMB regulations and guidance. Comments submitted in response 
to this notice will become a matter of public record. Therefore, you 
should submit only information that you wish to make publicly 
available.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The FinCEN Resource Center at 1-800-
767-2825 or electronically at https://www.fincen.gov/contact.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Statutory and Regulatory Provisions

    FinCEN issued the Beneficial Ownership Information Access and 
Safeguards final rule (the ``BOI Access Rule'') on December 22, 
2023,\1\ regarding access by authorized recipients to beneficial 
ownership information (BOI) that will be reported to FinCEN pursuant to 
Section 6403 of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), enacted into law 
as part of National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 
(NDAA).\2\ The BOI Access Rule implements the strict protocols required 
by the CTA to protect sensitive personally identifiable information 
(PII) reported to FinCEN and establish the circumstances in which 
specified recipients have access to BOI, along with the data protection 
protocols and oversight mechanisms applicable to each recipient 
category. The disclosure of BOI to authorized recipients in accordance 
with appropriate protocols and oversight will help law enforcement and 
national security agencies prevent and combat money laundering, 
terrorist financing, tax fraud, and other illicit activity, as well as 
protect national security.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ FinCEN, Beneficial Ownership Information Access and 
Safeguards, 88 FR 88732 (Dec. 22, 2023), available at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/12/22/2023-27973/beneficial-ownership-information-access-and-safeguards.
    \2\ Specifically, the CTA is Title LXIV of the William M. (Mac) 
Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, 
Public Law 116-283 (Jan. 1, 2021). Division F of the NDAA is the 
Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020, which includes the CTA. Section 
6403 of the CTA, among other things, amends the Bank Secrecy Act 
(BSA) by adding a new section 5336, Beneficial Ownership Information 
Reporting Requirements, to subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 31, 
United States Code.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

II. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 <SUP>3</SUP>
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ Public Law 104-13, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Title: Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) Requests.
    OMB Control Number: 1506-0077.
    Type of Review: Regular.
    Description: As explained in the regulatory impact analysis (RIA) 
of the BOI Access Rule, the rule requires State, local, and Tribal 
agencies and financial institutions that access BOI to satisfy certain 
security and confidentiality requirements, including establishing 
certain standards and procedures, and developing and implementing 
safeguards. As a prerequisite for access to BOI, the rule also requires 
State, local, and Tribal agencies and financial institutions to provide 
a certification for each BOI request. Along with the certification, 
State, local, and Tribal agencies and financial institutions will also 
provide information by filling out data fields for each BOI request; 
these data fields are set out in the Appendix. While some data fields 
will be optional, others will be required.
    As previewed in the BOI Access Rule, FinCEN is issuing this notice 
with regard to the information collection associated with such BOI 
requests. Thus, this notice seeks comment only on the burden for the 
information collection associated with such BOI requests, which 
corresponds to the burden associated with ``submit[ting] written 
certification for each request that it meets certain requirements.'' 
Further details about those burdens are set forth in the BOI Access 
Rule RIA (see Action G within Tables 1 and 2) and below. Also, as 
previously noted in the BOI Access Rule, FinCEN intends to provide 
additional detail regarding the form and manner of BOI requests for all 
categories of authorized recipients through specific instructions and 
guidance.
    The following analysis represents the entirety of the burden under 
OMB control number 1506-0077, which is associated with the BOI Access 
Rule. FinCEN previously solicited public comment on the full burden of 
the Access Rule, including the certification requirement for the 
information collection associated with BOI requests, as part of that 
rulemaking.
    Form: None.
    Affected Public: State, local and Tribal agencies, self-regulatory 
organizations (SROs), and financial institutions with customer due 
diligence requirements under applicable law, as defined in the final 
BOI access rule. While Federal and foreign requesters are able to 
access BOI after meeting specific requirements, FinCEN does not include 
them in the PRA analysis because the regulations implementing the PRA 
define ``person'' as an individual, partnership, association, 
corporation (including operations of government-owned contractor-
operated facilities), business trust, or legal representative, an 
organized group of individuals, a State, territorial, tribal, or local 
government or branch thereof, or a political subdivision of a State, 
territory, Tribal, or local government or a branch of a political 
subdivision.\4\ For foreign requesters in particular, FinCEN assumes 
that such requests will be made at the national level.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \4\ See 5 CFR 1320.3(k).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Estimated Number of Respondents: 15,934 entities. This total is 
composed of an estimated 215 State, local, and Tribal agencies, of 
which 158 are State, local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies and 57 
are State regulatory agencies, 3 SROs, and 15,716 financial 
institutions.\5\ While the requirements in the rule are only imposed on 
those that optionally access BOI, for purposes of PRA burden analysis, 
FinCEN assumes maximum participation from State, local, and Tribal 
agencies, SROs, and financial institutions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \5\ See Table 1 in the RIA of the BOI Access Rule for the types 
of financial institutions covered by this notice. 88 FR 88789 (Dec. 
22, 2023).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Frequency of Response: As required; varies depending on the 
requirement.
    Estimated Time per Respondent: See ``Hours per Entity'' column in 
Table 1 below for estimated time for each requirement per respondent.
    Estimated Total Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping Burden: FinCEN 
estimates that during year 1 the annual

[[Page 5997]]

hourly burden will be 8,743,781 hours. In year 2 and onward, FinCEN 
estimates that the annual hourly burden will be 3,616,964 hours. The 
annual estimated burden hours for State, local, and Tribal entities and 
SROs is 2,268,789 hours in the first year, and 1,699,612 hours in year 
2 and onward. As shown in Table 1 below, the hourly burden in year 1 
for State, local, and Tribal agencies and SROs includes the hourly 
burden associated with the following requirements in the rule: enter 
into an agreement with FinCEN and establish standards and procedures 
(Action B); establish a secure system to store BOI (Action D); 
establish and maintain an auditable system of standardized records for 
requests (Action E); submit written certification for each request that 
it meets certain requirements (Action G); restrict access to 
appropriate persons within the entity (Action H); conduct an annual 
audit and cooperate with FinCEN's annual audit (Action I); obtain 
certification of standards and procedures, initially and then semi-
annually, by the head of the entity (Action J); and provide annual 
reports on procedures (Action K). The hourly burden in year 2 and 
onward for State, local, and Tribal agencies and SROs is associated 
with the same requirements as year 1, with the exception of Action B 
because FinCEN expects this action will result in costs for these 
entities in year 1 only.
    The annual estimated hourly burden for financial institutions is 
6,474,992 hours in the first year and 1,917,352 hours in year 2 and 
onward. The hourly burden for financial institutions in year 1 is 
associated with the following: develop and implement administrative and 
physical safeguards (Action A); develop and implement technical 
safeguards (Action C); obtain and document customer consent (Action F); 
submit certification for each request that it meets certain 
requirements (Action G); undergo training (Action H); comply with 
certain geographic restrictions (Action L); and notify FinCEN if they 
receive an information demand from a foreign government (Action M). The 
hourly burden in year 2 and onward for financial institutions is 
associated only with the requirements for Actions F, G, and H because 
FinCEN expects the other actions will result in costs for these 
entities in year 1 only.
    Annual estimated burden declines in year 2 and onward because 
State, local, and Tribal agencies, SROs, and financial institutions no 
longer need to complete Actions A and B, and have a lower hourly burden 
for Actions E and F. State, local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies 
have a lower hourly burden for Action G. Table 1 lists the type of 
entity, the number of entities, the hours per entity, and the total 
hourly burden by action. For Actions A, B, C, D, E, F, I, J, K, L, and 
M the hours per entity are the maximum of the range estimated in the 
cost analysis of the RIA. For Action G and H, the hours per entity 
calculations are specified in footnotes to Table 1. Total annual hourly 
burden is calculated by multiplying the number of entities by the hours 
per entity for each action. In each subsequent year after initial 
implementation, FinCEN estimates that the total hourly annual burden is 
3,616,964. This results in a 5-year average burden estimate of 
approximately 4,642,327 hours.\6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \6\ The 5-year average equals the sum of (Year 1 burden hours of 
8,743,781 + Year 2 burden hours of 3,616,964 + Year 3 burden hours 
of 3,616,964 + Year 4 burden hours of 3,616,964 + Year 5 burden 
hours of 3,616,964) divided by 5.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    This notice seeks comment on the estimated total annual reporting 
and recordkeeping burden for the information collection associated with 
BOI requests, specifically the requirement to submit written 
certification for each request that it meets certain requirements 
(Action G in Table 1 below). FinCEN previously provided notice and an 
opportunity for public comment on all actions that constitute the 
reporting and recordkeeping burden associated with the BOI Access Rule, 
including the certification requirement, as well as the estimated total 
annual burden, through the BOI Access rulemaking. As explained above, 
FinCEN is issuing this notice with regard to the information collection 
associated with BOI requests; therefore, this notice seeks comment only 
on the certification requirement.

                         Table 1--Annual Hourly Burden Associated With Rule Requirements
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                           Number of                         Total annual hourly
              Action                  Type of entity       entities       Hours per entity          burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A. Develop and implement           Financial                    15,716  240 in Year 1; 0 in  3,771,840 in Year
 administrative and physical        institutions.                        Years 2+.            1; 0 in Years 2+.
 safeguards.
B. Enter into an agreement with    State, local, and               218  300 in Year 1; 0 in  65,400 in Year 1; 0
 FinCEN and establish standards     Tribal agencies                      Years 2+.            in Years 2+.
 and procedures.                    and SROs.
C. Develop and implement           Financial                    15,716  0 in Year 1; 0 in    0 in Year 1; 0 in
 technical safeguards.              institutions.                        Years 2+.            Years 2+.
D. Establish a secure system to    State, local, and               218  300 in Year 1; 4 in  65,400 in Year 1;
 store BOI.                         Tribal agencies                      Years 2+.            872 in Years 2+.
                                    and SROs.
E. Establish and maintain an       State, local, and               218  200 in Year 1; 20    43,600 in Year 1;
 auditable system of standardized   Tribal agencies                      in Years 2+.         4,360 in Years 2+.
 records for requests.              and SROs.
F. Obtain and document customer    Financial                    15,716  70 in Year 1; 20 in  1,100,120 in Year
 consent.                           institutions.                        Years 2+.            1; 314,320 in
                                                                                              Years 2+.
G. Submit certification for each   Financial                    15,716  94 in Year 1; 94 in  1,474,161 in Year
 request that it meets certain      institutions.                        Years 2+.            1; 1,474,161 in
 requirements \1\.                                                                            Years 2+.
G. Submit written certification    State, local, and               158  12,975 in Year 1;    2,050,003 in Year
 for each request that it meets     Tribal law                           10,443 in Years 2+.  1; 1,649,994 in
 certain requirements, including    enforcement.                                              Years 2+.
 court authorization.
G. Submit written certification    State regulatory                 60  125 in Year 1; 125   7,500 in Year 1;
 for each request that it meets     agencies and SROs.                   in Years 2+.         7,500 in Years 2+.
 certain requirements.

[[Page 5998]]

 
H. Undergo training \2\..........  Financial                    15,716  8 in Year 1; 8 in    128,871 in Year 1;
                                    institutions.                        Years 2+.            128,871 in Years
                                                                                              2+.
H. Restrict access to appropriate  State, local, and               218  9 in Year 1, 9 in    2,006 in Year 1;
 persons within the entity, which   Tribal agencies                      Years 2+.            2,006 in Years 2+.
 specifies that appropriate         and SROs.
 persons will undergo training
 \3\.
I. Conduct an annual audit and     State, local, and               218  160 in Year 1; 160   34,880 in Year 1;
 cooperate with FinCEN's annual     Tribal agencies                      in Years 2+.         34,880 in Years
 audit.                             and SROs.                                                 2+.
J. Obtain certification of         State, local, and               218  Included in I......  Included in I.
 standards and procedures           Tribal agencies
 initially and then semi-           and SROs.
 annually, by the head of the
 entity.
K. Provide initial and then an     State, local, and               218  Included in I......  Included in I.
 annual report on procedures.       Tribal agencies
                                    and SROs.
L. Comply with certain geographic  Financial                    15,716  0 in Year 1; 0 in    0 in Year 1; 0 in
 restrictions.                      institutions.                        Years 2+.            Years 2+.
M. Notify FinCEN of information    Financial                    15,716  0 in Year 1; 0 in    0 in Year 1; 0 in
 demand from foreign government.    institutions.                        Years 2+.            Years 2+.
                                  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total Annual Hourly Burden...  ...................  ..............  ...................  8,743,781 in Year
                                                                                              1; 3,616,964 in
                                                                                              Years 2+.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ For all types of entities, the hours per entity for Action G is the per entity share of the aggregate burden
  estimated in the RIA.
\2\ For financial institutions, the hours per entity for Action H equals the weighted average of the large and
  small financial institutions' maximum burden estimated in the RIA.
\3\ For State, local, and Tribal agencies and SROs, the hours per entity for Action H equals the per entity
  share of the aggregate burden.

    Estimated Total Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost: As 
described in Table 3 of the BOI Access Rule RIA, FinCEN calculated the 
fully loaded hourly wage for each type of affected entity type.\7\ 
Using these estimated wages, the total cost of the annual burden in 
year 1 is $868,200,270. In year 2 and onward, FinCEN estimates that the 
total cost of the annual burden is $339,309,502, owing to Actions A and 
B only imposing burdens in year 1, Actions D and E having lower annual 
per entity burdens, and Action G having lower burden per request for 
State, local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies. The annual estimated 
cost for State, local, and Tribal agencies and SROs is $181,851,118 in 
the first year and $136,070,190 in year 2 and onward. The annual 
estimated cost for financial institutions is $686,349,152 in the first 
year and $203,239,312 in year 2 and onward. The 5-year average annual 
cost estimate is $445,087,656.\8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \7\ 88 FR 88791 (Dec. 22, 2023).
    \8\ The 5-year average equals the sum of (Year 1 costs of 
$868,200,270 + Year 2 costs of $339,309,502 + Year 3 costs of 
$339,309,502 + Year 4 costs of $339,309,502 + Year 5 costs of 
$339,309,502) divided by 5.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    This notice seeks comment on the estimated total annual reporting 
and recordkeeping cost for the information collection associated with 
BOI requests, specifically the requirement to ``submit written 
certification for each request that it meets certain requirements'' 
(Action G in Table 2 below). FinCEN previously provided notice and an 
opportunity for public comment on all actions that constitute the 
reporting and recordkeeping cost associated with the BOI Access Rule, 
including the certification requirement, as well as the estimated total 
annual reporting and recordkeeping cost, through the BOI Access 
rulemaking. As FinCEN is issuing this notice with regard to the 
information collection associated with BOI requests, this notice seeks 
comment only on the certification requirement.

                             Table 2--Annual Cost Associated With Rule Requirements
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                        Total annual hourly
              Action                  Type of entity      Hourly wage          burden         Total annual cost
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A. Develop and implement           Financial                      $106  3,771,840 in Year    $399,815,040 in
 administrative and physical        institutions.                        1; 0 in Years 2+.    Year 1; $0 in
 safeguards.                                                                                  Years 2+.
B. Enter into an agreement with    State, local, and                80  65,400 in Year 1; 0  $5,232,000 in Year
 FinCEN and establish standards     Tribal agencies.                     in Years 2+.         1; $0 in Years 2+.
 and procedures.
C. Develop and implement           Financial                       106  0 in Year 1; 0 in    $0 in Year 1; $0 in
 technical safeguards.              institutions.                        Years 2+.            Years 2+.
D. Establish a secure system to    State, local, and                80  65,400 in Year 1;    $5,232,000 in Year
 store BOI.                         Tribal agencies.                     872 in Years 2+.     1; $69,760 in
                                                                                              Years 2+.

[[Page 5999]]

 
E. Establish and maintain an       State, local, and                80  43,600 in Year 1;    $3,488,000 in Year
 auditable system of standardized   Tribal agencies.                     4,360 in Years 2+.   1; $348,800 in
 records for requests.                                                                        Years 2+.
F. Obtain and document customer    Financial                       106  1,100,120 in Year    $116,612,720 in
 consent.                           institutions.                        1; 314,320 in        Year 1;
                                                                         Years 2+.            $33,317,920 in
                                                                                              Years 2+.
G. Submit certification for each   Financial                       106  1,474,161 in Year    $156,261,066 in
 request that it meets certain      institutions.                        1; 1,474,161 in      Year 1;
 requirements.                                                           Years 2+.            $156,261,066 in
                                                                                              Years 2+.
G. Submit written certification    State, local, and                80  2,050,003 in Year    $164,000,240 in
 for each request that it meets     Tribal law                           1; 1,649,994 in      Year 1;
 certain requirements, including    enforcement.                         Years 2+.            $131,999,520 in
 court authorization.                                                                         Years 2+.
G. Submit written certification    State regulatory                 80  7,500 in Year 1;     $600,000 in Year 1;
 for each request that it meets     agencies.                            7,500 in Years 2+.   $600,000 in Years
 certain requirements.                                                                        2+.
H. Undergo training..............  Financial                       106  128,871 in Year 1;   $13,660,326 in Year
                                    institutions.                        128,871 in Years     1; $13,660,326 in
                                                                         2+.                  Years 2+.
H. Restrict access to appropriate  State, local, and                80  2,006 in Year 1;     $160,480 in Year 1;
 persons within the agency, which   Tribal agencies.                     2,006 in Years 2+.   $160,480 in Years
 specifies that appropriate                                                                   2+.
 persons will undergo training.
I. Conduct an annual audit and     State, local, and                80  34,880 in Year 1;    $2,790,400 in Year
 cooperate with FinCEN's annual     Tribal agencies.                     34,880 in Years 2+.  1; $2,790,400 in
 audit.                                                                                       Years 2+.
J. Obtain certification of         State, local, and                80  Included in I......  Included in I.
 standards and procedures           Tribal agencies.
 initially and then semi-
 annually, by the head of the
 entity.
K. Provide initial and then an     State, local, and                80  Included in I......  Included in I.
 annual report on procedures.       Tribal agencies.
L. Comply with certain geographic  Financial                       106  0 in Year 1; 0 in    $0 in Year 1; $0 in
 restrictions.                      institutions.                        Years 2+.            Years 2+.
M. Notify FinCEN of information    Financial                       106  0 in Year 1; 0 in    $0 in Year 1; $0 in
 demand from foreign government.    institutions.                        Years 2+.            Years 2+.
Actions B, D, E, G, H, I-K.......  SRO................             106  3,283 in Year 1;     $347,998 in Year 1;
                                                                         955 in Years 2+.     $101,230 in Years
                                                                                              2+.
                                  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total Annual Cost............                       ..............                       $868,200,270 in
                                                                                              Year 1;
                                                                                              $339,309,502 in
                                                                                              Years 2+.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Request for Comments:
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid 
OMB control number. Comments submitted in response to this notice will 
be summarized and included in the request for OMB approval. All 
comments will become a matter of public record. Comments are invited 
on: (a) whether the collection of information is necessary for the 
proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether 
the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 
agency's estimate of the burden of the collection of information; (c) 
ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on respondents, including through the use of technology; 
and (e) estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, 
maintenance, and purchase of services required to provide information.

(Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.)

Andrea M. Gacki,
Director, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

Appendix--Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) Request: Summary of 
Data Fields by Authorized Recipient

I. Financial Institutions

    Proposed data fields and certification:

Company name (reporting company legal name)
Identifier type (reporting company tax identification number type; 
select one from list of options)
    <bullet> EIN (Employer Identification Number)
    <bullet> SSN/ITIN (Social Security Number/Individual Taxpayer 
Identification Number)
    <bullet> Foreign
Company identifier (reporting company tax identification number)

    [Select ``I agree''] I certify on behalf of the financial 
institution making this request that: The financial institution is 
subject to customer due diligence requirements under applicable law 
and is requesting beneficial ownership information from FinCEN to 
facilitate the financial institution's compliance with those 
requirements; the financial institution has obtained and documented 
the consent of the above identified company to request its 
beneficial ownership information from FinCEN; and the financial 
institution has fulfilled all other requirements of 31 CFR 
1010.955(d)(2).

II. State, Local, and Tribal Law Enforcement Agencies

    Proposed data fields and certification:

Agency Reference (agency's internal reference name for BOI Request)

[[Page 6000]]

Name of court of competent jurisdiction
Date of court authorization
Court authorization description (description of the information the 
court has authorized the agency to seek)
Checkbox Request on behalf of another person in the same agency 
(select this checkbox if the BOI Request is made on behalf of 
another person in the same agency; provide the following information 
for this person, as applicable: first name; middle name; last name; 
title; city; country/jurisdiction; state; ZIP/foreign postal code)

    [Select ``I agree''] I certify that a court of competent 
jurisdiction has authorized my agency to seek this information in a 
criminal or civil investigation and that the requested information 
is relevant to the criminal or civil investigation.

III. State Regulatory Agencies

    Proposed data fields and certification:

Financial Institution(s)
Financial Institution Employer Identification Number
Reporting Company Legal Name
Reporting Company Tax Identification Number
Start Date
End Date

    [Select ``I agree''] I certify that my agency is authorized by 
law to assess, supervise, enforce, or otherwise determine the 
compliance of a relevant financial institution with customer due 
diligence requirements under applicable law and that my agency will 
use the requested information solely for the purpose of conducting 
such activities.

[FR Doc. 2024-01828 Filed 1-29-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-02-P