Congressional hearings about the perils of shell companies over the past decade have spurred Delaware officials to make a few changes -- most notably a requirement that every business registered there list the name and telephone number of at least one contact person, usually a lawyer.

“It’s pointless,” said Heather Lowe, legal counsel and director of government affairs at Global Financial Integrity, a non-profit that advocates for greater transparency. “The bottom line is the state still has no idea who owns or controls the company. There’s not an officer, director or shareholder. Just a lawyer and they protect the identity because of lawyer-client confidentiality.”

No state requires companies to list beneficial ownership. Delaware has shown little inclination to be the first -- a move that would almost certainly drive businesses to seek more private filings in Wyoming, Nevada or other states. Instead, Governor Jack Markell and other leaders have expressed support for a proposal from President Barack Obama’s administration that would apply to all states: Require every U.S. business entity to obtain a tax ID number that the Treasury Department could share with law enforcement agencies.

Such proposals have been blocked in Congress, where they’re opposed by the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups as well as the National Association of Secretaries of State. There’s little indication that’ll change, said J. Richard Harvey, a former top tax official at the IRS and Treasury Department who now teaches law at Villanova University.

“I would not hold my breath waiting unless the Panama Papers and U.S. corporations can be directly linked to terrorist financing,” Harvey said. If a strong link to terrorism were established, he said, “U.S. policy could change and change quickly.”

First « 1 2 3 » Next