April 2001

Chairs Say Upcoming Industry Conferences Will Cover the ‘Hot Topics’

By Jay Dismukes

With the long winter months now passed, the New York State Society of CPAs is gearing up for another promising year of committee conferences. Each conference is sure to provide participants with valuable and interesting information, but members of the Society’s Industry Division should be especially pleased with the conferences that will take place in May: entertainment and sports, apparel and textile, and stock brokerage.

The entertainment and sports conference, to be held jointly with the New Jersey Society of CPAs, will take place May 15 at the New York Marriott Marquis in Manhattan. Whereas last year’s conference was technologically oriented, this year’s conference will be tax oriented, with IRS representatives among the guest speakers. Don Fehr, executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, will deliver the keynote address and Robert Thompson, director of the New Jersey division of taxation, and Arthur Roth, New York state commissioner of taxation and finance, will discuss state taxation issues relating to the entertainment and sports industries. Additional topics will include international tax issues pertinent to sports and entertainment, estate-planning techniques for athletes and entertainers, and production, union, and tax considerations of the motion picture industry.

“Participants will get reinforcement and review of current state, federal, and international tax laws as relate to the industry,” said committee Chair Joseph A. Maffia. “The goal of the speakers is to review existing law and pending legislation, and to educate the more intermediate accountant.”

Like the entertainment and sports conference, the apparel and textile conference, which will take place May 16 at the New York Helmsley Hotel in Manhattan, will be packed with informative events. An update on recent custom law changes, a discussion on leveraging Internet technologies, and a look at alternative financing sources available to the industry are a sampling of the topics to be covered.

Several days later, NYSSCPA President-Elect Nancy Newman-Limata will deliver the luncheon address and Mary Jo White, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, will serve as keynote speaker at the stock brokerage conference on May 24 at the Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan. Panel discussions will cover topics ranging from risk monitoring to regulatory initiatives, with guest speakers from the New York Stock Exchange, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the National Association of Securities Dealers. Among the other conference speakers, an economist will discuss the reasons behind the economic slowdown and its impact on the broker/dealer profession and several experts will discuss legal and compliance developments relevant to the industry, with a specific focus on the alternative trading system.

“We are trying to hit the hot topics,” said Stock Brokerage Committee Chair Charles Pagano. “Participants will get a feel for where regulation, accounting, auditing, and tax in the broker/dealer area currently are, and where they are headed. The conference looks at the recent changes and the potential changes.”

Though not part of the Industry Division, the estate administration conference will also take place in May. The conference, which will take place May 22 at the New York Marriott Marquis in Manhattan, will cover marital deductions, gift tax returns, charitable lead trusts and multistate estates, among other items.