Sacramento Chapter
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Archive for the ‘President’s Message’ Category
January 4th, 2010
By Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
I wish each of you a wonderful 2010 as we begin the new year.
The profession made great strides in 2009 with our successes in Sacramento, including legislation that makes California CPAs substantially equivalent and able to compete on equal footing with the rest of the country.
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November 24th, 2009
By Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
’Tis the season to be happy! I hope you and your loved ones have a wonderful holiday season.
Last month I presented the most recent legislative gains CalCPA garnered. What I did not know at the time I wrote the article was that the victory had been achieved along very difficult roads. This illustrates that the dedication and hard work of CalCPA’s government relations staff, friends of the profession and many CalCPA members made this long and difficult process a successful endeavor.
One item of note I did not pass on last month was that continuing education requirements are changing effective Jan. 1, 2010. These changes include:
- Four hours of continuing education on ethics for every renewal period;
- A two-hour regulatory review course every six years covering the California Accountancy Act, plus California Board of Accountancy regulations and enforcement actions; and
- A minimum of 20 hours of continuing education (with a minimum of 12 hours in technical subject matter) each year of the two-year license renewal period as part of the 80-hour CE requirement.
More information on the new CPE requirements is available on CalCPA’s website.
As I write this message, the chapter’s annual student event at Sacramento State is sold out. What a tremendous response we’ve had from students, educators and professionals. This type of showing reflects how CPAs truly are interested in the future of our profession. Next month I will report on the success of the event.
The second annual ABC Night is fast approaching. Save the evening of Tuesday, Feb. 2, when attorneys, bankers and CPAs will gather at the Sutter Club to network and share stories. Last year’s event sold out and more than 250 people attended. This year we anticipate hosting more than 300 attendees. Don’t be left out in the cold—register early for this important networking function. Sponsorship opportunities are still available. Contact Rob Wallace or David Motes if you are or someone you know is interested in sponsoring this event.
The Estate and Financial Planning Committee will meet Tuesday, Dec. 15, at the Hard Rock Café to discuss the investment environment in 2010. See our chapter events calendar for more details.
CalCPA’s Technology Committee plans to host a free webcast Friday, Jan. 8, to discuss ways to protect your data. We will provide more details next month.
I welcome your comments and suggestions and would like to hear from you. Contact me via e-mail. I read each comment and respond.
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October 23rd, 2009
By Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
High school and college students appreciate CPAs’ efforts to educate them on accounting careers and financial literacy. Most students pay close attention to what CPAs have to say, which is similar to the response we get from our clients. CPAs have earned the reputation of giving good advice and are businesses’ most trusted advisers.
My colleagues at Cosumnes River College invite CPAs into the classrooms of financial and managerial accounting classes each semester. I want to acknowledge the following CalCPA members who have volunteered in this capacity: Alex Brown, Crystal A. Ekanayake, Steve McCormick, Michael Navin, Raksha Sharma, Annette Stalker and Jr. Velazquez.
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October 1st, 2009
By Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
Our chapter is beginning its annual scholarship drive. So that we can award scholarships this academic term, the chapter decided to begin the application process during the fall semester, which means the application deadline is Dec. 10. The Scholarship Committee will meet by the end of January and recommendations will be made to the board of directors at the February meeting.
Following are the 13 community colleges and two universities that are located in our chapter’s sphere of influence: Cosumnes River College, Sacramento City College and American River College in Sacramento; Folsom Lake College in Folsom; Sierra College in Rocklin; Lake Tahoe Community College in South Lake Tahoe; Butte Community College in Orville; Feather River College in Quincy; Lassen Community College in Susanville; College of the Siskiyous in Weed; Shasta College in Redding; Yuba College in Yuba and Woodland College in Woodland. The two universities are California State University at Chico and California State University at Sacramento.
What Do I Need From our Members?
So that we can spread the word about the scholarships available to deserving college students, I need a few campus champions for each campus. The time commitment is minimal. You will visit the colleges and remind them about this wonderful opportunity for their students. If you are interested in being a campus champion or would like to work with any of these colleges and universities, be sure to update your member profile on the website by selecting “Join a Chapter Interest Group Today” and then check the Student Outreach Committee. If you live or work near any of these schools, contact me if you are interested, so I can add you as a campus champion. This volunteer opportunity is rewarding to you and helps promote CalCPA to these schools and the future members of our profession.
On a related note, we recently reviewed scholarship applications from a number of students attending colleges and universities in the chapter region. Congratulations to the following deserving students who were awarded scholarships: Fatoomata Dembele and Suzanne Carstensen from American River College; Steven Shields from Consumes River College (transferring to Sacramento State University); Jabulile Rankins from California State University; and Gurpreet Bains from Yuba City College. See more details in a separate article in this month’s Bulletin.
Upcoming Events
The chapter’s annual Student Outreach Luncheon is Wednesday, Nov. 18. Event chairs Amy Lehmkuhl and Robina Bennion have created a tremendous program, which will also serve to celebrate CalCPA’s centennial. Our special guest speaker is CalCPA Chair Andrea Cope. It would be wonderful if as many members as possible came to this event to meet the many students who plan to become CPAs. The luncheon will give CPAs an opportunity to network with both students and their peers. Sponsorships opportunities are available, as well. If you’re interested, contact Serena Trovoto. This is an event not to miss!
The Roseville Discussion Group had its inaugural meeting in September and will meet again Thursday, Nov. 12.
The Government Accounting and Auditing Committee will hold its first meeting Thursday, Nov. 12. See this month’s Bulletin for more details and check the chapter’s calendar of events for more details and other events.
I welcome your comments and suggestions and would like to hear from you. Contact me via e-mail. I read each comment and respond.
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August 28th, 2009
By Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
Each day we are bombarded with news about the economic crisis, continuing foreclosures and high levels of unemployment. Three times in the past 12 months, the California budget crisis has been top news for days and weeks. It is feared that the budget that was recently approved by the legislature will be out of balance again in a few months. These are sobering times, but here are some other facts that are also quite alarming.
- Of students who took the Jump$tart personal finance survey, 65.4 percent received failing scores.
- 40 percent of Americans say they live beyond their means.
- 45% percent of college students are in credit card debt and carry an average of three credit cards, each with an average balance of $2,748, or a total of over $8,000. At an annual interest rate of 16 percent, a card that is paid monthly at the minimum payment would take more than 27 years to pay off. University administrators state that they lose more students to credit card debt than to academic failure.
- The number of 18- to 24-year-olds declaring bankruptcy has increased 96 percent in 10 years.
- The average American family spends $1.22 for every dollar it earns.
And there are more alarming issues that are too numerous to mention.
In 2003 CalCPA launched a financial literacy initiative and created the CalCPA Financial Literacy Committee. Bruce Kajiwara and I have been members of that committee since its inception and are dedicated to improving Californians’ financial literacy. Bruce has written an excellent article in this month’s Bulletin that explains more about CalCPA’s efforts on financial literacy.
CPAs are the trusted advisers to small and medium-size businesses. Our financial literacy initiative helps the image of CPAs and reminds the general public about how important CPAs can be in their everyday lives. If you are interested in making a financial literacy presentation to a school, nonprofit organization or other group, be sure to update:
- Your CalCPA profile by checking the box that states Financial Literacy Volunteer.
- Your chapter profile. Select “Join a Chapter Interest Group Today” and check the Financial Literacy Committee.
You can also contact Bruce Kajiwara or me directly if you are interested.
Maybe you are not interested in making presentations, but how about making contact with the various organizations that are ideal for hosting a financial literacy presentation? Many of us participate in these types of groups in our everyday lives. They include youth groups, schools, PTAs, libraries, churches or other organizations.
Historically, CalCPA’s Redwood City office has generated the opportunities for chapter volunteers to speak at schools and other organizations based on user requests. Very few opportunities were created directly by chapter members. The next time you are at one of these groups, ask them if they would be interested in a presentation. You would be surprised at the positive response we would have if each member asked one organization if they wanted CalCPA to present on financial literacy matters.
Once you make contact, let Bruce or me know, and we will have the appropriate people contact the group for follow-up and scheduling.
Be sure to attend our chapter’s September events:
- MAP Committee: Wednesday, Sept. 2
- Estate Planning Committee: Tuesday, Sept. 15
- Litigation Consulting Committee:Thursday, Sept. 17
- Accounting Principles & Auditing Standards Committee: Tuesday, Sept. 22
- Taxation Committee: Thursday, Sept. 24
- The launch of the Roseville discussion group: Wednesday, Sept. 9
Check the chapter calendar of events for more details and other CPE and networking opportunities.
I welcome your comments and suggestions and would like to hear from you. Contact me via e-mail. I read each comment and respond.
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July 22nd, 2009
By Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
As summer heats up, now is the time of year to be with family and friends and enjoy the outdoors. Whether you are on vacation or having a backyard barbeque, it is always a time to enjoy.
It is also that time of the year for the chapter’s annual golf tournament, scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 27, at Morgan Creek Golf Course in Roseville. The event begins at 11 a.m. with a shotgun start. This event has sold out in prior years, so don’t be left out—sign up early! Come out and enjoy a day of golf with other CPAs. In fact, why don’t you invite clients and friends to join you to round out a foursome?
The tournament is the chapter’s largest fund-raiser for the scholarship fund. Do you know a business that might want to increase its exposure to CPAs and contribute to an excellent cause? The golf tournament still has room for additional sponsors. Contact Serena Trovato for more details.
Congratulations and welcome to the new members of our chapter. I hope that you will take the time to get involved with our local group by attending an event that interests you. Check out our activities and events on the chapter website. These events provide the opportunity to meet other professionals and learn about technical updates and other interesting issues.
The Technology Committee will meet Wednesday, Aug. 26, to discuss the implications of social networking. If you are interested in learning why you should use one of these networks, come to the meeting and find out why they are so popular.
For those of you who live or work in the Roseville area, look for an upcoming announcement about the first meeting of the Roseville Discussion Group. As traffic becomes worse in the Sacramento area, I want to establish local interest groups so our members do not have to travel far to participate in a chapter event. If you are interested in helping form a local discussion or interest group, please contact me.
Check out the other events in August. The MAP Committee meets Monday, Aug. 3 to discuss the sale and purchase of accounting businesses. The Estate & Financial Planning Committee meets Tuesday, Aug. 18, to consider the implications of long-term care. The Taxation Committee meets Thursday morning, Aug. 27, to talk about health savings accounts.
While you are at the website, don’t forget to update your CalCPA profile. You can also sign up for reminders about chapter interest and discussion groups so we can contact you when relevant events are on the calendar.
I welcome your comments and suggestions and would like to hear from you. Contact me via e-mail. I read each comment and respond.
— Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
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June 25th, 2009
By Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
I just attended CalCPA’s wonderful gala in San Francisco that marked our association’s 100-year anniversary. During its humble beginning in 1909, a group of insightful and forward-thinking individuals started an organization that today has surpassed 35,000 members and is the largest state CPA professional association in the country. Throughout its history, CalCPA has been a strong advocate for the profession and dedicated to providing professional education for CPAs.
CalCPA has come a long way since its inception, and from the beginning has worked to improve the lives of CPAs and their families. At this time of our organization’s big birthday, a little history is in order.
In 1959 CalCPA’s Group Insurance Trust was formed to provide affordable health care plans to CalCPA members. In 1966 the Education Foundation was formed to provide members with low-cost, high-quality continuing education. The CalCPA Education Foundation is the largest of its kind in the country. In 1979 CPA–PAC was launched, and Cal Accountants Mutual Insurance Company (CAMICO) was formed in 1986 to meet CPAs’ needs for malpractice insurance. CAMICO was organized during a time when it was difficult to find liability insurance, and it now holds a 25 percent market share and is sponsored by 16 other state societies. CalCPA Institute was formed in 2004 as a 501(c)(3) organization to promote financial literacy, scholarship efforts, education initiatives and other worthwhile causes.
During the past 100 years, CalCPA has evolved into the nation’s leading CPA professional organization with many events and happenings that are too numerous to mention in this article. Go online for more information on CalCPA’s first 100 years, including photos from the gala.
One particular area in which CalCPA excels is in being an advocate and protector of the profession by representing CPAs with the California Board of Accountancy and the California Legislature. We can point to many successes in this area over the past 100 years. Today, numerous pressing issues will affect our future as CPAs, including:
SB 691: Requires all candidates entering the profession in 2014 to meet the 150-hour education requirement. This affects all California CPAs and is needed to allow us to represent clients who live in other states without having to register to practice in those states.
AB 117: Requires a CPA using the CPA designation to disclose if their license is inactive.
AB 138: Sponsored by the CBA, this bill requires mandatory peer review for California firms that provide audit, review or compilation services.
AB 129: This CalCPA-sponsored bill will reinstate the taxpayer privilege.
Bruce Allen, CalCPA’s government relations director, and Jeannie Tindel, director of legislation, keep tabs on our government officials and are ready to act if needed to protect California CPAs. Each year CalCPA sponsors a CPA Day at the Capitol. Mark your calendar now for the next opportunity to visit your legislators at the Capitol: Wednesday, Jan. 20.
CalCPA has offices in Redwood City, Glendale and Sacramento, and the CalCPA staff includes plenty of hardworking individuals who strive to make CalCPA better for us, the CPAs of California. I have been a proud member since January 1978.
Our annual golf tournament is coming up Thursday, Aug. 27, at Morgan Creek Golf Club. This is our biggest fund-raiser for the year, and all proceeds go toward the chapter scholarship fund. Don’t miss this event, as it’s been a sell-out the past few years.
The Young & Emerging Professionals Committee is planning an evening at the Cal Expo Harness Races. All members are welcome. For more details and to check out our event calendar for other upcoming chapter activities, go online. You may find an event that interests you and offers the chance to network with your colleagues and gather new information.
I welcome your comments and suggestions and would like to hear from you. Contact me via e-mail. I will read each comment and respond.
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May 26th, 2009
By Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
When you need assistance on a particular tax or accounting problem, or want to network with other CPAs, where do you look? If you look to CalCPA, then the Sacramento Chapter has the resources to help.
Our chapter has a multitude of committees, discussion forums and special interest groups that you may find interesting. These groups, which you can review online, are comprised of CPAs who meet to talk about common interests. Discussions range from the latest income tax proposal or auditing procedure changes to trends affecting company financial officers. These groups meet monthly, and sometimes quarterly. The forum gives you a chance to interact with your peers and learn and discuss new ideas and topics. In essence, meeting with a group gives us the opportunity to expand both our knowledge and our interaction with others.
The following chapter technical groups would love to have you participate and be added to the committee interest list: Accounting Principles and Auditing Standards; Estate and Financial Planning; Government Accounting and Auditing; Litigation Consulting Services; Management of an Accounting Practice; Members in Industry; New Members and Emerging Professionals; Nonprofit; Real Estate; Taxation; and Technology.
A number of our discussion groups meet in specific geographic areas. We have such geographic discussion groups in Redding and Chico, and a new group is forming in the Roseville area. We also have enough members to create discussion groups in the Davis, Rancho Cordova and Folsom-Cameron Park–El Dorado Hills areas. Other areas not listed might also have enough members to support a discussion group. If you are interested in participating in or helping to form a group, please contact me.
The chapter also has standing or operating committees that offer services to the public, schools or students on an as-needed basis. These committees do not adhere to a regular meeting schedule, but when opportunities become available, the chapter calls on individuals to fulfill the requested needs. Our standing committees are Scholarship, Financial Literacy and Student Outreach.
The chapter offers accounting students scholarships through our Scholarship Committee, which generally meets once a year to decide on scholarship recipients from the 13 community and two four-year colleges in the chapter’s geographic sphere of influence.
The Financial Literacy Committee is a group of interested members who makes presentations to improve the financial literacy of Californians. These presentations may be to schools, nonprofit groups or any other group that wants to educate the public or its members on financial matters, such as managing debt, handling retirement accounts, using credit cards and more
The Student Outreach Committee presents accounting information to college students to inform them of the benefits and rewards of a CPA career and the doors it has opened for us. This committee also is responsible for coordinating our annual student event in November.
Do any of these topics interest you? I hope they do, but we need to hear from you to know your interest. You can sign up online. The chapter will then automatically notify you when an event of your interest is on the calendar.
If you are already on the CalCPA website reading this “President’s Message,” simply visit Join a Chapter Interest Group today!
I look forward to your participation in these groups and seeing you at some of our many chapter meetings. Be sure to check out our event calendar for upcoming chapter activities. You’re likely to find one that interests you, and I encourage you to attend, meet your colleagues and gather new information.
I welcome your comments and suggestions and would like to hear from you. Please contact me and I will read each comment and respond.
— Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
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April 23rd, 2009
By Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
It is my honor and pleasure to be your chapter president for the upcoming year. These are challenging times for the state economy, as well as the profession.
I would like to thank David Motes, our past president, and the officers, directors and committee chairs for their dedicated and outstanding service. Their hard efforts created a very successful year.
The chapter is CalCPA’s fifth-largest in terms of membership and covers one of the largest geographic regions of the state. This creates and poses challenges for both the chapter leadership and members.
My vision for the upcoming year is “Get Involved!” The profession needs you! I want to emphasize a number of priorities this year, including member outreach, financial literacy and student outreach.
Member Outreach—I want to reach out to all members, especially those located in the outlying regions of the chapter, and get more members involved in the activities of their choice and interest.
Student Outreach—The CPA profession is facing critical shortages because there is increased demand for our services and the average age of members is rising. We need to encourage students to become CPAs. Those same students want to hear from CPAs to understand what we do and why they should became a CPA.
Financial Literacy—Our economy demonstrates that Californians need to be better educated in financial matters and become financially literate. Remember, CPAs are the most trusted adviser to business. What better way to participate than to use our expertise to help the community improve its financial knowledge and better prepare for its future.
CPAs have much to offer. Our expertise gives us a unique position with the public to help others. In the coming months I will lay out ideas and plans for theses priorities.
Some exciting events are happening in May and June. The chapter installation dinner and dance is scheduled for Friday, May 8 at Scotts on the River in the Le Rivage Hotel. Come out and meet the chapter leadership and have some fun.
In June CalCPA celebrates its centennial with a gala planned for Friday, June 19 at the San Francisco Fairmont Hotel. It is expected to sell out, so make your reservation early for this don’t-miss event.
Also check out our event calendar for other chapter activities. You may find one that interests you, and if you attend, you can meet your colleagues and gather new knowledge.
I welcome your comments and suggestions and would like to hear from you. Contact me and I will read each comment and respond.
— Patrick D. Rogan, CPA
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March 27th, 2009
By David R. Motes, CPA
It’s April 1, which means the first half of tax season is almost behind us. I hope that this tax season has been very productive and rewarding for you and your clients. April 1 also means that my year as your president is over at the end of this month.
Serving as president has been an interesting and rewarding experience. Your chapter leadership team has been supportive of my initiatives and our mainstream programs. I sincerely thank the entire team for its support, commitment and enthusiasm demonstrated during this term. The success of our chapter programs is attributable to the efforts of this leadership team, which places service to the profession and to our membership first. Please take a moment and acknowledge this group’s efforts whenever you have the opportunity.
Without taking anything away from your outstanding leadership team, I would like to offer my personal thanks to Serena Trovato and Vince Chin, our chapter’s program associate and program director, respectively. I appreciate their support, wisdom, guidance and encouragement. They have helped me immensely to guide and mentor your leadership team through a very successful term.
If you have a desire or interest to participate in a leadership position with a committee or on the chapter board, I strongly encourage you to contact Serena. The chapter is always looking for new members to participate, as well as new ideas on events and programs that you, our members, are seeking. Your chapter is not static, and your feedback is important. The future of our chapter and profession lies with our members, both old and new. I encourage each of you to take a moment and identify possible leadership candidates to mentor and support in stepping outside their comfort zone and becoming an active leader of our profession and CalCPA.
My vision as president was to reach out to our chapter’s members, and to provide you with additional value for your membership. Over the past year, we were able to establish a QuickBooks special interest group, an additional three-hour CPE program that was sponsored by the Tax and the Estate and Financial Planning committees, as well as an ABC mixer with other professionals in the community. Your board also approved adding a nonvoting student member to the board and has established selection criteria for the student member. It is anticipated that our first student member will be selected during next term. I have actively participated in all of these new events, and I have noted a common theme: Each has attracted different segments of our membership. I acknowledge our membership for supporting these new initiatives. I hope you have received additional value from your participation and will continue to support both these and new programs that are being planned.
I would like to assure you that I am turning over the chapter reins to a quality leadership team that is ready to serve you. This group is highly motivated and has a lot of enthusiasm for the chapter. Please support them and consider being a part of the leadership team.
It has been an honor and privilege for me to serve our chapter as your president. Thank you for your trust and providing me with this opportunity.
— David R. Motes, CPA
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