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Sponsored by the Council of Community Services of New York State, Inc.
and the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, Inc.

Contact:
Lois Whitehead, Public Relations Manager
212-719-8405
lwhithead@nysscpa.org

The 2007 Michael H. Urbach, C.P.A., Community Builder’s Award honors a Certified Public Accountant in New York State who has exhibited exemplary board leadership in  501(c)(3) charities.  This award is named in honor of Michael H. Urbach, C.P.A., former partner of Urbach, Kahn and Werlin, PC former NYS Commissioner of Taxation and Finance and Chair of the State Employees Federated Appeal, and board leader of a number of charities. Previous Awardees are Sherwood Levitan, CPA, (Middletown),  Paul Battaglia, CPA (Batavia), and Craig Sickler (Kingston).

Award Criteria

The 2007 Michael H. Urbach, C.P.A. Community Builder’s Award will be presented to a C.P.A. whose accomplishments exceeds the minimum criteria below.  Please note that the award criteria have been revised this year.

Submission of Nominations

Nominations addressing the candidate’s qualifications must be submitted in writing and received by June 25, 2007.  Nominators are strongly encouraged to include letters of support from the charities who have benefited from candidate’s volunteer leadership.

Seven (7) packets of nomination materials are to be sent to:

Questions?  Doug Sauer, CCSNYS, Executive Director: 1-800-515-5012, ext 103; dsauer@ccsnys.org

Announcement and Presentation

The successful nominee will be announced on or before August 1, 2007. The award will be presented at a luncheon event on October 11, 2007 at the Annual Meeting of the Council of Community Services of New York State, Inc. to be held at the Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, NY.   The Annual Meeting will be held during the two-day Camp Finance 2007, the premier financial management conference for nonprofits in the state.  The Awardee and a guest will be provided overnight accommodations and meals at Mohonk.

About Michael H. Urbach, CPA

Michael H. Urbach, CPA, was a professional accountant who passed away in 2004 and demonstrated the true meaning of volunteer leadership, compassion and dedication through extraordinary nonprofit board service.   Unlike many, who hesitate to remain or get involved with boards that are not functioning well, have executive leadership problems or are facing dire financial difficulties, Michael saw these conditions as opportunities for his involvement. He was a man who promoted and embraced organizational change, no matter how tough the going may be, for the broader interest of those in need and the community at large. 

 Michael was a past president of the Council of Community Services of Northeastern New York, Inc., Equinox, Inc., Albany Jewish Community Center, and St. Peter’s Hospital Associates.  He also served as an officer and board member of the United Way of Northeastern, NY, Albany Boys and Girls Club, Hospitality House, Senior Services of Albany and Junior Achievement of the Capital District.  In addition to his commitment to the community, Michael was a board member of Russell Sage College, his alma mater, and served as the chair of the 1996-1997 State Employees Federated Appeal.     

Michael was a member of the board of Capital Bank and prior to his retirement in December 2003, Michael was senior vice president-chief financial officer for the New York Power Authority.  From 1995 to 1999, Michael was the Commissioner of the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.  As commissioner he undertook many new initiatives allowing the department to vastly improve customer service while also seeking methods to improve productivity, establishing new and innovative methods to fulfill the agency’s mission.  Before entering public service, Michael worked for thirty years as a partner and executive vice president of Urbach, Kahn and Werlin, P.C., an international firm of Certified Public Accountants.  At UKW, Michael specialized in working with mid-sized business operations and provided consulting services to government entities and officials.

In 1997, Michael received the NYS Society of Certified Public Accountants Outstanding CPA in Government award.  He was recognized for his championing of initiatives that eliminate unnecessary regulation and red tape.  He also served as a delegate to the National White House conference for Small Business.

About The Council of Community Services of New York State, Inc. (CCSNYS)