Resources | Page 47 | The FACT Coalition

Hidden in Plain Sight: How Corporate Secrecy Facilitates Human Trafficking in Illicit Massage Parlors

April 1, 2018

Illicit massage businesses, commonly known as “massage parlors,” have been ubiquitous in the American landscape for decades. Today, new research finds an estimated 9,000-plus of these businesses are operating in every state in the country, with earnings totaling nearly $2.5 billion a year across the industry.

What is unique about this form of trafficking is that massage parlor traffickers actually go through the process of registering their businesses as if they were legitimate. Conceivably then, it should be relatively simple to determine the basics about these businesses — such as what products or services they provide and who ultimately controls and makes money from the business. The actual or “beneficial” owner would then in most cases be the trafficker and could be prosecuted as such.

Letter to House and Senate Committees on Appropriation Calling for $495 Million in Additional Funding for the IRS to Implement TCJA

March 20, 2018

The Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition (FACT Coalition) sent a letter to House and Senate Committees on Appropriation calling for an additional $495 Million in funding for the IRS to Implement TCJA. The full letter can be read below or downloaded here.

FACT Joined a Coalition of Nearly 30 NGOs in Letter Supporting Administration’s Actions Under the Global Magnitsky Act

March 5, 2018

The FACT Coalition joined 28 other organizations on March 5, 2018 in sending a letter supporting the administration’s December designations under the Global Magnitsky Act, an important measure to fight corruption and human rights abuses. The letter also expresses disappointment that designations weren’t made in key regions and countries. The full letter can be read below or downloaded here.

Letter from the National Association of Realtors Endorsing Beneficial Ownership Transparency.

February 6, 2018

Dear Chairman Grassley and Ranking Member Feinstein: On behalf of the 1.3 million members of the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), I thank you for holding the hearing on “Beneficial Ownership: Fighting Illicit International Financial Networks Through Transparency.” REALTORS® appreciate the attention on policy that promotes national security and helps the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) mitigate risks posed to interstate and international commerce.

Testimony to Senate Judiciary Committee on TITLE Act S. 1454

February 6, 2018

The Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition (FACT Coalition) testified in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee at a hearing on True Incorporation Transparency for Law Enforcement Act or TITLE Act, S. 1454 which would end the abuse of anonymous shell companies by simply requiring companies to list the beneficial owner at the time of corporate formation. The full testimony can be read below or downloaded here.

Briefing Memo: Ending Offshore Tax Avoidance

January 31, 2018

There is widespread agreement, across the political spectrum, that the gaming of the tax code by multinational corporations is a problem. When profits and jobs are shipped offshore, we not only harm the U.S. economy, we fuel a tax haven industry that drains wealth around the world.

The tax system under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act includes loopholes and incentives to shift money and jobs overseas.