Cohousing-L Mailing List: Fwd: Posts from CAI Advocacy Blog for 09/12/2024

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

In some states homeowner associations are corporations. The CAI is challenging 
this because it will require condos to file moe paper work. And probably hire 
someone to figure out how to do it.

Sharon

> From: CAI Government Affairs <government [at] caionline.org>
> Subject: Posts from CAI Advocacy Blog for 09/12/2024
> Date: September 12, 2024 at 2:00:59 PM EDT
> 
> This is an update from the CAI Advocacy Blog.

> Protecting Community Associations: CAI Files Lawsuit Against the United 
> States Department of TreasuryBy Dawn Bauman, CAE on Sep 12, 2024

> On September 10, 2024, Community Associations Institute filed a lawsuit 
> against the United States Department of Treasury challenging the application 
> of the Corporate Transparency Act beneficial ownership interest filing 
> requirements on community associations.
> After extensive efforts to work with the U.S. Department of the Treasury and 
> the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to secure an exemption and equally 
> extensive lobbying efforts to secure and exemption, CAI filed a lawsuit 
> against the Treasury Department.
> The lawsuit challenges the application of the CTA to community associations 
> and highlights several key issues:
>     • Exemption from the Corporate Transparency Act) Community should be 
> exempt from the CTA’s reporting requirements, as they are nonprofit 
> organizations under section 528 of the IRS code.
>     • Improper Rulemaking Procedures: FinCEN issued FAQs without following 
> proper notice-and-comment procedures required by the Administrative Procedure 
> Act, making these rules invalid.
>     • Arbitrary and Capricious Action: FinCEN’s refusal to exempt community 
> associations from the CTA is arbitrary and capricious, as it fails to 
> consider the low risk of illicit financial activity by such entities.
>     • Constitutional Violations: The act violates their constitutional rights 
> under the Fourth, Fifth, and Ninth Amendments by requiring invasive personal 
> disclosures without adequate privacy protections or sufficient cause.
>     • Overreach of Federal Powers: The act unlawfully usurps state authority 
> to regulate corporate formation and governance, exceeding the federal 
> government’s constitutional powers.
>     • Equal Protection Violation: The act discriminates against community 
> associations by not exempting them as nonprofit organizations, unlike similar 
> entities under section 501(c) of the IRS code.
> To protect our members, CAI seeks a judicial review of our exemption request 
> and asks the court to declare the act inapplicable to community associations. 
> Alongside this, CAI filed for a preliminary injunction to halt the 
> application of the act until a final court ruling is made.
> The Corporate Transparency Act deadline for compliance of January 1, 2025, 
> remains and community associations should be prepared to file. For more 
> information and to stay informed, visit www.caionline.org/cta.
>  
> The post Protecting Community Associations: CAI Files Lawsuit Against the 
> United States Department of Treasury appeared first on CAI Advocacy Blog.