Good morning. We have a federal government again – for now.

Meanwhile, private funds and their allies are watching New York governor Kathy Hochul carefully as she decides whether to sign a bill that would relieve them of new requirements to register as beneficial owners with Empire State regulators.

New York Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul

New York passed the LLC Transparency Act a couple of years ago. It followed closely the federal Corporate Transparency Act, which requires anyone who owns or controls a substantial portion of an LLC to file their names, addresses and identification with federal authorities. After a queasy-making, whipsaw ride through the courts, the Trump administration all but scrapped the new rules.

In June, the New York assembly passed a bill that does its own scrapping. Hochul has yet to sign it, though, and the unchanged LLC Transparency Act is scheduled to take effect in the New Year.

‘Tied to the old law’

New York law says a governor has 10 working legislative days to sign or veto a bill. A legislative day is any day the Senate is in session, not counting Sundays. To date, Hochul has not said what she plans to do with the measure.

Hochul’s media team did not respond to Your Correspondent’s request for comment.

Brett Cotler, Seward & Kissel

“Without her signature, we’re still tied to the old law,” says Brett Cotler, a partner at Seward & Kissel.

Under the LLC Transparency Act, all LLCs formed after Jan 1 will have 30 days to register their beneficial owners with New York regulators. Companies formed before Jan 1 will have until the end of the year to comply. Unlike the federal version, New York’s current law also requires LLCs to file fresh reports every year.

Companies that fail to obey the pending rules face an initial fine of $250 and then $500 per day for every day they fail to register properly.

Assuming the act becomes law one way or another, you should probably consider it a reprieve, not a pardon. The popular anger about “dirty money” in our economy is real. The release of a fresh tranche of horrifying Epstein emails is like a shot of adrenaline for people who think rich people have hidden enough from them.

Comings

Just in time for the government’s grand reopening (for now), the fine folks at the American Investment Council get themselves a new flak. Caitlin Carroll is officially the new senior vice president for public affairs.

She joins AIC from Weber Shandwick, where she’s been working with big corporations, foundations and nonprofit groups since 2022. Before that, she worked on the Hill, mostly recently as a top flak for former senator Richard Burr, the North Carolina Republican.

It’s an impressive resume, but please spare some thought for Miss Carroll as she moves into her new role: One of her duties is to handle my calls. The poor lady.

Goings

Meanwhile, over PERE, poet-warrior Harrison Connery has some questions about Kathleen McCarthy’s stunning adios to Blackstone.

Harrison Connery, PEI

“After McCarthy announced she will be stepping down from her role as co-global head of real estate at the mega-manager at year-end,” Connery writes, “Blackstone said its other co-global head, Nadeem Meghji, will become the sole leader of the real estate business.”

Connery adds: “In doing so, the firm is backtracking from statements president and COO Jon Gray made in 2018, when he told affiliate title PERE that the platform had grown too large and complex for a single global chief. Seven years ago, Blackstone had $115 billion in real estate assets under management; by the end of the most recent quarter, that figure had grown to $320 billion, making the portfolio far larger and presumably even more complex than it was in 2018.”

There’s more in Connery’s piece. Read it here (subscription required).

Emergency broadcasts

Speaking of flaks, and sorry to speak kindly of an editor, but you ought to check out Rob Kotecki’s piece from last week on why private equity firms should spend more time thinking about how they talk with John Q Public.

“For an industry eager to expand into private wealth and retail markets,” Kotecki writes, “it’s important to appreciate that those fresh sources of capital come with an even harsher spotlight. And while regulators might be eager to expand access, public sentiment can prove a potent counterforce. This means the stakes for properly managing a crisis are only rising.”

Kotecki quotes a bunch of people who are smarter about everything than I am. His whole piece is worth your time. For me, the headshot comes of Alex Yankus, a partner at strategic communications firm Brunswick Group. “The days of managing reputational risk by maintaining a low profile are gone,” Yankus tells Kotecki.

Read Kotecki’s piece here.

Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln…?

While I’m throwing bouquets at editors (good God, is it year-end review season already?), shout out to affiliate title Private Debt Investor’s divine Robin Blumenthal, who is also feeling a bit anxious about things.

“Consumer confidence in the US fell in November to its lowest level since June 2022, when the country was officially in a recession. US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent himself recently observed that ‘parts’ of the US economy are in recession,” Blumenthal says.

“In early November,” Blumenthal adds, “the Challenger, Gray & Christmas indicator showed there were 1.1 million layoffs in the year through October – the highest number of layoffs for that month in 22 years. S&P Global Market Intelligence showed confidence among US companies softened slightly in October, to the lowest level in a year, with tariffs and trade impacts continuing to be a notable concern.

“Meanwhile, inflation has remained stubbornly high, leaving the US Federal Reserve little wiggle room to pursue its dual mandate of price stability and maximum employment. And the US has just experienced the longest government shutdown on record.

“‘Consumers are paying more and getting less,’ says Daniel Sandberg, head of quantitative research and solutions, S&P Global Market Intelligence, and an author of an October report, Margin Math. The report estimates that the delayed effects of tariffs and other factors contributing to a repricing of costs have created a $1.2 trillion compression in corporate margin expectations from the start of the year and that the fourth quarter will give investors the first full read on how those pressures accumulated over the year.”

Blumenthal is the real deal, and I wouldn’t argue with her on a dare from the gods. But when she senses a tsuris coming? Woof. Read her piece here (subscription required).

Week ahead (again! for now!)

The House Committee on Financial Services is scheduled to host a hearing on the “future of deposit insurance” on Tuesday, beginning at 10 am Eastern. Read the staff memo here. Watch the hearing here.

That’s all from me. Stay warm. Talk to you next week.

In the Loop is a weekly column written by Washington, DC, correspondent Bill Myers. Want to reach out with an anonymous tip or comment? Email him at william.m@pei.group.