Society’s Political Action Committee Contributes Record Amount in 2002

By Dennis O’Leary, Director of Governmental Relations

The CPA PAC Board of Trustees has authorized $110,000 to be given to New York state political candidates for 2002 elections. This contribution is the largest to date and marks the board’s first foray into statewide elections for governor, attorney general and comptroller. Approximately $100,000 remains for future contributions.

Since its inception in 1999, the New York State Society CPA PAC, Inc., has contributed more than $115,000, primarily to election campaign committees for candidates running for state Senate and Assembly. CPA PAC is not authorized to contribute to candidates running for U.S. Congress or other national offices.

Before determining this year’s recipients of the contributions, as well as the amount of the individual donations, the trustees waited for the primaries to be held. They then analyzed the political landscape, bearing in mind the Society’s agenda—set by the NYSSCPA Board of Directors—and the potential for the contributions to help realize items on the agenda.

To maximize the effectiveness of the political contributions, the trustees primarily based their fund-allocation decisions on the current status of New York state politics, hoping to give the Society exposure to major policy makers in Albany. The trustees split the money between both parties, backing incumbent Republican governor George Pataki over Democratic challenger Carl McCall; funding only incumbent Democrat Eliott Spitzer for attorney general; and supporting Republican candidate John Faso for comptroller over Democratic candidate Alan Hevesi. In the state Senate, CPA PAC gave mostly to the Senate Republican Campaign Committee, while in the Assembly, it gave mainly to the Democratic Assembly Campaign Committee.

The CPA PAC trustees will meet again in Albany in early February, by which time the Senate and Assembly will have gone into session and the governor will have laid out his agenda in the State of the State address. The trustees will then make a decision as to whether further funding will help the Society’s political agenda move forward to possible enactment.

The 22 trustees, representing the New York State Society of CPAs’ 17 chapters, two at-large and three ex-officio Society officers (president, president-elect and immediate past president), are a diverse group from across the state. The board members are comprised of solo practitioners, small- and medium-sized firm practitioners, Big Four partners, industry members, academics and retirees.

Please consider making a donation to CPA PAC. Less than 20 percent of NYSSCPA members contribute annually to CPA PAC, but the membership’s financial support is critical to the fulfillment of the Society’s agenda and the profession’s continued well-being. At a time when the accounting profession is under intense scrutiny, the Society’s voice needs to be heard in the political arena. A contribution to CPA PAC is an investment to protect the CPA license.

If you did not contribute to CPA PAC when you paid your dues fee this year, you can send a check, made payable to New York State Society CPA PAC, Inc., to NYSSCPA, 530 Fifth Ave., Fifth Floor, New York, NY 10036.