Pub. 3 2021 Issue 6

7 nebraska society of cpas W W W . N E S C P A . O R G Thank you for your membership and loyal support of the Nebraska Society of CPAs. We wish you a safe and joyous holiday season and look forward to serving you throughout 2022 and the years to come! The Society’s Fall CPE Conference was held October 28-29 via webcast, with 171 registrants and 20 local and national speakers — including Sue Coffey, CEO of Public Accounting for the AICPA in New York, among others. We know you have many choices for CPE and are grateful for your participation in Society courses. Thank you for supporting your profession and the Nebraska Society of CPAs! If you have questions regarding CPE, please do not hesitate to contact Society Vice President Kelly Ebert at kelly@nescpa.org . Nebraska Legislature Convenes Jan. 5 The Nebraska Legislature is scheduled to convene onWednesday, Jan. 5, 2022. The most effective way for legislators to understand issues facing the accounting profession is to receive input from the CPAs they represent. As experts in your field and key advisors to businesses of all sizes, your input is critical to both our state and our nation. One of the best ways to connect with state legislators is to attend the Society’s annual State Senators’ Reception and Dinner, which will be held beginning at 6:00 p.m. on Jan. 4, 2022, in the Renaissance Room at The Cornhusker Marriott in downtown Lincoln. Although it was cancelled last year due to the COVID pandemic, this event carries a long-standing tradition of being the first official event prior to the start of the Legislative Session. Register to attend today at nescpa.org/advocacy. CPA FirmOwnership Bill. State Sen. John Stinner of Gering, a retired CPA, has agreed to introduce the Society’s bill that would make changes to CPA firm ownership. In a nutshell, the legislation would remove the physical “head count” ownership requirement for CPA firms while maintaining that CPAs must hold at least 51% equity ownership of a CPA firm. We are hopeful for passage of this bill during the upcoming session. Universal Licensing. On Oct. 27, State Board Executive Director Dan Sweetwood, Society Lobbyist Walt Radcliffe, and I, along with representatives from the Nebraska Board of Engineers and Architects, met with State Sen. John McCollister of Omaha to request exclusion of our professions from LB263, the proposed universal licensing bill introduced by Sen. Tom Briese in the 2021 Legislative Session. After examining the “Amendments to LB263,” which Sen. McCollister shared with us that day, we were pleased to learn that the document did exclude “a credential issued for a certified public accountant pursuant to the PublicAccountancyAct.” Sen. McCollister was the sponsor of an interim study resolution, LR191, to explore the effect of universal licensing on groups that have traditionally faced barriers to occupational licensing; the hearing on LR191 was held Oct. 29 by the Nebraska Legislature’s Government, Military, and Veterans Affairs Committee, where Sen. McCollister presented the “Amendments to LB263.” Exclusion of the CPA profession is the result of conversations among former State Sen. Laura Ebke, Society Past Chairman Jim Greisch, Sweetwood, and I this past spring. Ebke is presently a senior fellow with the Platte Institute and is focused on the state’s job licensing laws. Greisch is a retired partner with RSM and formerly served on the Platte Institute Board of Directors. Under universal recognition, workers with job licenses, career experience, and military specialties would be able to come to Nebraska and receive licenses for jobs they were trained for in other states. While this bill may have its place for certain occupations, we believe there is a critical difference between occupations and highly complex, technical professions whose work impacts the health, safety, and welfare of the public. High-impact professions such as the CPA profession require rigorous licensing, including high standards for education, examination, and experience. While exclusion of the CPA profession from this legislation is positive news, the Society will continue to monitor this bill as it is anticipated to move through the Legislature in 2022. Taxation of Accounting Services. If you attended the Society’s Fall CPE Conference, you heard a presentation on Blueprint Nebraska’s “Framework for Tax Modernization” by Nebraska Chamber President Bryan Slone, Platte Institute Chief Strategy Officer and former State Sen. Jim Smith, and retired CPA Jim Griesch. The Blueprint Nebraska plan includes policy changes to individual income tax, corporate income tax, sales tax (including the addition of a sales tax on accounting services), incentive programs, elimination of the inheritance tax, and funds for property tax relief. Although we have not taken a formal position on this framework, the Society has consistently been opposed to sales tax on accounting services. We will continue monitoring the progress of this framework (and other proposals) should legislative proposals come to fruition in the coming session. On the Federal Level Society Chairman Erica Parks, Past Chairman Pat Meyer, and I attended the virtual AICPA Council Meetings held with the