This week, the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) announced a major shift in its approach to the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), marking a significant victory for American small businesses, including those in the lighting industry.

Effective immediately, Treasury will not enforce any penalties or fines associated with the Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting rule under the current deadlines. Furthermore, after forthcoming rule changes take effect, U.S. citizens, domestic reporting companies, and their beneficial owners will be permanently exempt from penalties and fines related to the BOI reporting requirement. Treasury has confirmed that a new proposed rulemaking will narrow the scope of the CTA BOI rule to apply only to foreign reporting companies.

If enacted, the CTA would have required most small businesses to file reports disclosing their beneficial owners and other private details, with steep fines and potential criminal penalties for mistakes or failure to comply. For lighting manufacturers, retailers, and distributors, this would have meant shifting focus and resources away from operations and growth to meet new administrative demands. Thankfully, the Treasury has stepped in to put a stop to these burdensome new requirements. 

This decision reflects a commitment to reducing burdensome regulations on American businesses and ensuring that compliance measures are fairly and appropriately targeted. In the words of U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent: “This is a victory for common sense… Today’s action is part of President Trump’s bold agenda to unleash American prosperity by reining in burdensome regulations, in particular for small businesses that are the backbone of the American economy.”

This is a tremendous win for ALA members and small businesses across the country who have been pushing for relief from these new reporting requirements for over two years through the ups and downs of court cases and Congressional delays.

ALA remains committed to following government actions, policy decisions, and regulatory matters that affect the lighting industry. Follow ALA on LinkedIn to stay up-to-date on the latest news from the association.