Members in the News

James Grimaldi (Northeast)

6 Strategies for Challenging an IRS Deficiency Notice

Law360

IRS deficiency notices have the potential to carry factual, legal and administrative errors, leaving taxpayers unfairly on the hook for significant back taxes and penalties, experts say. But the decision to challenge the IRS on its proposed tax assessment is fraught with factors such as whether the legal costs outweigh the allegedly owed tax and whether a business wants the tax fight on the public record, according to Sam Kaywood of Alston & Bird LLP.

Tammy Straus (Nassau)

Hain Celestial shares plunge after financial reporting news

amNewYork

Shares of Lake Success-based Hain Celestial Group Inc. plunged more than 20 percent Monday after the close of regular trading, following the company’s disclosure that it was evaluating its internal control over financial reporting and that it doesn’t expect to reach its previously announced revenue forecast for fiscal 2016. The organic and natural products company, with brands including Celestial Seasonings, Earth’s Best, Terra and Spectrum, also announced in a statement it was delaying the release of its financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal 2016, ended June 30.

Joanne S. Barry – Executive Director and CEO

People News – Aug. 12, 2016

Accounting Today

NEW YORK - Joanne S. Barry, executive director and CEO of the New York State Society of CPAs, received the City and State’s 2016 Corporate Social Responsibility Award.

John Lieberman, Rumbi Bwerinofa-Petrozzello, and Robert Tobey (Manhattan/Bronx)

"Unusual" accounting: Inside a Trump business audit

CBS News

In a three-sentence letter on April 22, 1987, Donald Trump signed off on a series of accounting changes that allowed his first hotel to shortchange New York City nearly $3 million in rent, city auditors later concluded. A decade before, Trump struck a unique deal freeing the hotel of $160 million in property taxes over the course of 40 years, while guaranteeing the city a small financial stake in its success: New York City received annual rent payments tied to the Grand Hyatt's profits.

Jamie Block (Rochester)

Digital Estate Planning

WROC Rochester First

CPA Jamie Block of Wealth Design Services discussed the rising need for digital estate planning Monday on News 8 at Sunrise. "Digital estate planning is the process of organizing your electronic data, which would be online accounts, your social media, and making sure you have a plan for what happens to them when you pass," said Block.  She said you need to take the proper steps to protect your personal life story and loss of data.  "In Facebook, under your Account Settings and Security, there's an option to create a Legacy Contact," said Block.

Matt Bryant (Rochester)

As summer winds down, students should prepare financially for college

WROC Rochester First

CPA Matt Bryant sits down with Allison Warren to discuss getting ready for college.  His biggest recommendation for students is to prepare as early as possible. Parents starting to save early is great, as is teaching kids to do the same. Bryant also recommends researching the colleges the student is considering. A lot of state colleges have lower tuition costs, as do community colleges.

 

Paul Dailey (Nassau)

Retiring abroad: 3 things to know before you pack your bags

Yahoo Finance

Want to join the growing ranks of retirees living abroad ? Before packing your bags and setting off for an exotic location far, far, away, you'll have to make some important decisions and plan very carefully. "You have to be brutally honest with yourself," said Dan Prescher, senior editor for retirement lifestyle magazine International Living.

NYSSCPA Mention – COAP Program

CPA Firms Urged to Increase Diversity

IMDiversity

New Jersey Society of CPAs CEO and executive director Ralph Albert Thomas is encouraging CPA firms and other businesses to expand their diversity and inclusion efforts. During a speech Wednesday in New York at a meeting of the Accountants Club of America, Thomas stressed that CPA firms need to reflect the changing demographics in the U.S. population and within their own clients’ businesses.

Next Gen Conference – Tracey Niemotko (Mid-Hudson)

Long Distance Learning: Mount Brings NYC Conference to Campus for Local CPAs

Mount Saint Mary College

For a group of about 20 Mount Saint Mary College students, alumni, and area professionals who couldn’t make it to New York City on July 25, the NextGen Conference for Young CPAs came to them instead. The Mount’s School of Business sponsored a satellite viewing of the presentation, held on campus in Aquinas Hall. The conference, hosted by the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants (NYSSCPA), was designed to help young CPAs to forge their own unique career path, learn important time management techniques, interact professionally with clients and other business partners, and more.

Tom Walpole (Rochester)

WROC Rochester News 8

CPA Tom Walpole discussed changes in your tax status to look for as part of a mid-year tax review Monday on News 8 at Sunrise. Walpole said the first step in a mid-year tax review is to make sure your 2015 return is complete.  If you received an extension, it's time to get it done and turn the page toward your 2016 return.  October 17 is the deadline for those who received an extension.

Ted Sarenski (Syracuse)

Need a Social Security do-over? There is a way

MSN Money

If you're like most people, you'll opt to start receiving Social Security benefits as soon as you can, usually at age 62. If you're like some people, shortly after that you'll wish you hadn't. Is there anything you can do? There is. You can file to withdraw your application for Social Security benefits as long as you do it within 12 months of when you get your first check.

Sidney Kess (Manhattan/Bronx)

Immediate and Long-Term Tax Strategies for Windfalls

Law.com

Individuals may have financial windfalls because of a variety of occurrences. Some windfalls result from good fortune, such as winning the lottery or selling a business, while others result from bad fortune, such as medical malpractice or an inheritance. Either way, there are tax consequences to consider. Some consequences are immediate, while others have a long-term impact.

Matt Bryant (Rochester)

Budget your summer vacation

WROC Rochester News 8

CPA Matt Bryant of the New York State Society of CPAs discussed ways to budget your summer vacation Monday on News 8 at Sunrise. Bryant said before you set out consider all costs including air fare, rental cars, hotels, gas, meals, entertainment and souvenirs.  If that total is higher than your allotted budget, make changes to your plan.

Michael Zovistoski (Northeast)

Howard Foote and Michael Zovistoski rise to top of unboring field

Your Niskayuna

Finance can be a numbing subject to the average person, lending the accounting field a rather stuffy reputation. However, if the average person met Michael Zovistoski or Howard Foote, two Niskayuna Certified Public Accountants, ‘stuffy’ would hardly be their first impression. “I like to have fun,” Zovistoski said, shortly after arriving at the interview with this reporter in his convertible Mini Cooper with the top down. Beyond being a CPA, Zovistoski is also a certified financial planner, partner at UHY, LLC and recently inaugurated president of the New York State Society of CPAs.

 

Greg Altman (Buffalo)

On the Record / July 9, 2016

The Buffalo News

Hires/Honors/Promotions - The New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants  elected Greg J. Altman, CPA, and the director of finance and operations at Health Sciences Charter School, vice president of its board of directors for a one-year term. Altman was previously a member of the membership and awards committee and served as a past Buffalo chapter president, president-elect, treasurer and executive board member.

Tracey Niemotko (Mid-Hudson)

The Mount’s Niemotko Joins NYS Society of Certified Public Accountants Board

Mount Saint Mary College

Tracey Niemotko, professor of accounting and chair of Mount Saint Mary College’s School of Business, was recently elected to The New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants Board of Directors as a Chapter Representative. Niemotko, who earned accounting and Juris Doctor degrees from Fordham University, is a certified public accountant and a certified fraud examiner.

Michael Todres (Nassau)

Michael Todres ’72 Elected to New York CPA Society Board of Directors

Bucknell University

Michael Todres ’72, a Bucknell University graduate, was recently elected to the New York State Society of CPAs (NYSSCPA) Board of Directors. A professional accounting association, the NYSSCPA has more than 26,000 members. Todres is the managing partner of Todres & Company, LLP in Westbury, N.Y. and has been a member of the NYSSCPA since 1974. Todres has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration/Accounting from Bucknell, as well as a MBA from the University of Pennsylvania.

Harold Dieters (Suffolk)

A More Integrated Society

Long Island Business News

The New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants announced last month it is broadening its membership beyond the accounting profession to welcome attorneys, bankers and others as associate members. Non-accounting professionals with a bachelor’s degree, working full-time for the government, a nonprofit or in the financial, legal or banking industries, can now join the organization, but without the right to vote in society elections or to serve a leadership role.

David Evangelista (Rockland), Harold L. Deiters III (Suffolk), Greg J. Altman (Buffalo), and Anthony S. Chan (Manhattan/Bronx)

State CPA Societies Tap New Leaders

Accounting Today

In New York, employee benefit plans advisor and auditor David Evangelista was recently elected president of the New York State Society of CPAs’ Foundation for Accounting Education by the FAE’s board of trustees. Evangelista, of Stony Point, N.Y., is a principal at MSPC Certified Public Accountants and Advisors. His one-year term as FAE president began June 1.

John Lauchert and Brian Reese (Utica)

New York CPA group elects two new board members from Mohawk Valley region

Central New York Business Journal

The New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants (NYSSCPA) has elected a total of 16 new members to its board of directors leadership team, including two from the Mohawk Valley region.  NYSSCPA is a New York City–based accounting association with more than 26,000 members.