The House on Tuesday passed legislation aimed at cracking down on the use of anonymous shell companies for illicit activities.

The bill passed by a vote of 249-173. Twenty-five Republicans joined most Democrats in voting for the bill, while five Democrats voted against it.

The vote comes after the House Financial Services Committee advanced the measure in June.

Under the bill, certain corporations and limited liability companies would be required to disclose their true owners to the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) at the time they are formed. They’d also have to submit annual filings with FinCEN listing their current true owners and any changes to ownership. There would be penalties for people who intentionally submit fraudulent or incomplete information.

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The disclosure requirements don’t apply to companies that have more than 20 employees and $5 million in gross receipts because these companies are less likely to be anonymous shell companies.

The bill would also make major updates to the Bank Secrecy Act for the first time since 2001.

Supporters of the bill argue that it would be helpful in combating money laundering, terror financing and tax evasion.

“It will make our country safer,” said Rep. Carolyn Maloney Carolyn Bosher MaloneyPelosi, Democrats unveil bills to rein in alleged White House abuses of power Government watchdog recommends creation of White House cyber director position Top Democrats call for DOJ watchdog to probe Barr over possible 2020 election influence MORE (D-N.Y.), who introduced the bill.

House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters Maxine Moore WatersPowell, Mnuchin stress limits of current emergency lending programs Pelosi: House will stay in session until agreement is reached on coronavirus relief Omar invokes father's death from coronavirus in reaction to Woodward book MORE (D-Calif.) said that the bill is “an important commonsense measure that stops criminals from being able to hide behind anonymous shell companies.”

The bill has the backing of a number of stakeholders, including from law enforcement, anti-corruption, human rights and banking groups.

But it’s opposed by some GOP lawmakers and business groups, such as the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) and the National Retail Federation, which argue that the legislation would impose steep compliance costs for small businesses and raises privacy concerns.

“This bill before us is a new small-business mandate on the smallest businesses in America,” said Rep. Patrick McHenry Patrick Timothy McHenryCheney battle raises questions about House GOP's future Hillicon Valley: Democrats request counterintelligence briefing | New pressure for election funding | Republicans urge retaliation against Chinese hackers House Republicans urge Trump to take action against Chinese hackers targeting coronavirus research MORE (N.C.), the top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee.

Brad Close, senior vice president of public policy for the NFIB, said that banks are already required to collect ownership info from all their clients and that the government can get access to that information.

“We don’t think this bill is the way to go,” he said.

The Trump administration spoke positively about the bill, saying in a statement of administration policy that the measure “represents important progress in strengthening national security, supporting law enforcement, and clarifying regulatory requirements.” But the administration also said that steps need to be taken to improve the bill as it moves through Congress, including improvements that protect small businesses from burdensome reporting requirements.

A version of the bill has been offered in the Senate by Sens. Ron Wyden Ronald (Ron) Lee WydenHillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns On The Money: Anxious Democrats push for vote on COVID-19 aid | Pelosi, Mnuchin ready to restart talks | Weekly jobless claims increase | Senate treads close to shutdown deadline Democratic senators ask inspector general to investigate IRS use of location tracking service MORE (D-Ore.) and Marco Rubio Marco Antonio RubioGOP lawmakers distance themselves from Trump comments on transfer of power McConnell pushes back on Trump: 'There will be an orderly transition' Graham vows GOP will accept election results after Trump comments MORE (R-Fla.).

Wyden said in a statement after the House passage that "with the White House supporting this effort there’s no excuse for further delay in acting on this legislation."