51 Boards Represented at Regionals

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Representatives from 51 State Boards of Accountancy convened in Colorado Springs, CO, June 7-9, and White Sulphur Springs, WV, June 27-29, for NASBA’s 2022 Regional Meetings. Held annually, the meetings offer a forum for state board representatives to build rapport and to address key topics of mutual concern impacting Boards of Accountancy, NASBA, and the regulation of the accounting profession.

The meetings marked the first in-person Regional Meetings since 2019, and were attended by 311 state board and NASBA representatives. Daily plenary sessions were streamed for persons unable to attend in-person.

Welcoming the Regional Meeting attendees were, Paula Mann, Chair of the Colorado State Board of Accountancy (Western) and Theodore Lopez, President of the West Virginia Board of Accountancy (Eastern).

NASBA Chair W. Michael Fritz, President and CEO Ken Bishop and Executive Vice President and COO Colleen Conrad thanked members and staff for their service, feedback and flexibility throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. They also shared that over the past two years, ample financial reserves have been maintained to carry out the mission and responsibilities of NASBA. According to Chair Fritz, “NASBA is projected to invest over $10 Million dollars towards the rebuild of the Gateway system and the infrastructure necessary for the successful launch of CPA Evolution, signifying the biggest investment and most complex undertaking of NASBA since the transition to the computerized CPA Exam from the paper and pencil.” Chair Fritz further confirmed the NASBA Board’s commitment to doing its part to ensure the CPA profession keeps pace with technology and consumer expectations.

The Regional Meeting agenda featured presentations on the CPA Evolution Initiative, Principal Place of Business, Strategic IT Projects & Trends in Cybersecurity, Challenges of DOL, Single Audits & IRS Struggles; a Discussion of the Profession’s Pipeline, and the latest updates on Key Diversity Initiatives and the Uniform CPA Exam.

Regional Directors Lynn Hutchinson (LA), Nancy Corrigan (CA), Jason Peery (ID), Michael Schmitz (ND), Kenya Watts (OH), Stephen Langowski (NY), Larry Elmore (TN) and Director-at-Large Stephanie Saunders (VA), moderated the Regional Meetings and the highly anticipated Regional Breakout Sessions. During the breakouts, members discussed their respective board statutes and/or rules regarding Principal Place of Business, whether the new CPA Exam will affect the score release process and possibility of increased candidate extension requests, the impact of the CPA Pipeline on state boards and candidates, and the need for increased outreach initiatives and promotion of the profession targeting college and high school demographics.

In conjunction with the Western Regional Meeting, the NASBA Center for the Public Trust (CPT) held its StudentCPT Leadership Conference, allowing students time to learn and network with NASBA members. Thirty-six students representing 21 schools were in attendance.