Procurement | The FACT Coalition

Comments to GSA Urging Non-Proprietary, Open Identifier System in Procurement

March 10, 2017

The Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition (FACT Coalition) submitted the below comments to the General Services Administration (GSA), in response to RFI #ID15170001, urging the agency to adopt a non-proprietary, open identifier system for use in federal procurement that includes the collection of information on the real people who own and control bidders of federal contracts and grants (also known as ‘beneficial owners’).

Joint Letter to Congress Urging Beneficial Ownership Transparency in Procurement

October 28, 2016

The FACT Coalition joined 24 other organizations in sending a letter to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on October 28, 2016. The letter calls upon Congress to urge the Administration to begin exploring alternatives for how contractors are identified without delay, to adopt a contractor identifier that is a non-proprietary, open system and that includes the collection and publication of beneficial ownership information.

Just the FACTs: August 19, 2016

August 19, 2016

In May, the Treasury Department released a final rule that was meant to increase scrutiny on banks to know the customers with which they do business. Despite the fact that we believe the Treasury rule should have been much stronger, banks are on the front-line of the battle against terror financing and criminal money laundering and do have real anti-money laundering obligations. But, there’s just one problem. Banks are having a tough time verifying who their customers are because incorporating a company in the U.S. doesn’t require owners to disclose their real names. Banks are now asking that the federal government change that.

The Clearing House Association, which represents the largest commercial banks, sent a letter to congressional lawmakers in support of the bipartisan Incorporation Transparency and Law Enforcement Assistance Act (H.R.4450, S.2489). The Clearing House includes major banks like Bank of America, Citibank, and JPMorgan Chase, and Wells Fargo. As FACT member Global Witness explains, “without a way to ensure there’s comprehensive collection of beneficial ownership information for U.S. companies, it will be hard for banks to comply with new regulations that require them to find out who are the beneficial owners of their corporate clients.”

Just the FACTs: August 5, 2016

August 10, 2016

It’s no secret, secret shell companies are dangerous. A report by FACT member Global Witness in early July showed us how these companies are being used to defraud the federal government and put our armed forces at risk. This week, a new report from another FACT member, Fair Share Education Fund, exposed connections to shell companies and the opioid epidemic. The report, “Anonymity Overdose”, explains how ending the use of anonymous shell companies could make it significantly harder to keep drug profits hidden from law enforcement.

Likewise, shell companies are often used to launder illicit money through real estate. A geographic targeting order from the Treasury Department began collecting information on high risk purchases in two of the biggest U.S. housing markets back in March. According to an article in The New York Times, more than a quarter of the all-cash luxury home purchases made using shell companies in Manhattan and Miami were flagged as suspicious. The Treasury Department will now expand the program to other major housing markets across the country.

An Urgent Call for Action: Stop Anonymous Shell Companies from Fleecing American Taxpayers

May 11, 2016

For three and a half years, a former Pentagon supplier used two shell companies in Wyoming and pretended they were largely owned by ethnic minorities to win preferential treatment for government contracts so that he could profit from supplying substandard parts to the military. These schemes happen all too often. In another, conspirators used sham companies from North Carolina, Nevada and Tennessee to steal more than $2 million from subcontractors that they tricked into fulfilling contracts.

The US Administration is coming upon a key moment tomorrow at the international Anti-Corruption Summit hosted by the UK where it can keep the criminal and corrupt from ripping off our public budget while hiding behind the veil of an anonymous shell company.

Rooting Out Waste and Fraud in the U.S. to Advance Responsible Business Conduct

November 9, 2015

More than 30 Organizations call on U.S. Government to Commit to Collecting and Publishing Information about the Real Owners of Companies Involved in Federal Procurement
Today, Global Witness joined the FACT Coalition and 30 other organizations in calling for the U.S. Administration to make a commitment to collect and publish information about the real owners of companies (also called “beneficial owners”) that participate in federal procurement, under its first National Action Plan on Responsible Business Conduct.

The U.S. government expects to use this plan to demonstrate how it encourages companies to achieve high standards of behavior and to champion those that reach such best practices. The plan is also a way for the government to highlight what it is doing to encourage an enabling environment for responsible business conduct.

To achieve these objectives, the Administration must work to curb fraud and corruption, and to protect against related human rights abuses. Federal procurement is an important area where the Administration has the authority to act without Congress, and to significantly impact fraud and abuse that has devastating consequences to human rights. By leveraging the vast purchasing power of the U.S. government ($445 billion in 2014), the procurement sector has the potential to be a force for good.