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Inside AICPA

AICPA honors Castellano…IRS lauds AICPA’s support of
small business taxpayers…Institute’s financial literacy campaign
continues its prize-winning ways…Antifraud group seeks help funding academic grants…Institute praises Jenkins
for his positive influence on the profession…Rivet’s XBRL
software wins Institute’s endorsement…Certain AICPA staff
to relocate…AICPA accepting applications from volunteers.

Castellano Wins Institute’s Top Citation
James G. Castellano, CPA, received the AICPA’s Gold Medal for Distinguished Service at the fall council meeting. Doyle Z. Williams, CPA, chair of the AICPA Awards Committee, presented the medal, which recognizes those who have had an extraordinary positive influence on the profession. Castellano, a former AICPA chairman, is chair of the AICPA Private Company Financial Reporting Task Force and chaired the Managing of an Accounting Practice, Future Issues and Private Companies Practice Section (PCPS) Technical Issues committees. He also served on the PCPS Executive, Strategic Planning and Continuing Professional Education Executive committees.

IRS Commends AICPA for Service to Small Businesses
The Institute received an IRS citation of excellence for helping small business taxpayers. At the National CPA/IRS Tax Issues Meeting in November, AICPA Tax Division technical manager Benson Goldstein accepted the award from Kevin Brown, commissioner of the IRS’s Small Business/Self-Employed Operating Division. The IRS applauded the Institute’s “outstanding team effort in delivering products, services and education” to small business taxpayers and said the AICPA has been instrumental in facilitating communication between its members and the service. The citation praised the AICPA for its significant contribution to the launch of the IRS’s disaster relief pilot program, noting that the Institute was the first national practitioner organization pledging to assist taxpayers at local disaster recovery centers. AICPA President and CEO Barry C. Melancon said, “This is a great tribute to our volunteer members, who have dedicated many hours of their time to participating in these programs and working with the small business community, as well as to the hard work of committed AICPA staff.”

AICPA Financial Literacy Campaign Adds to Its Laurels
The Institute’s 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy program garnered a 2005 Platinum Award from the League of American Communications Professionals and was on the organization’s list of Top 50 Communications Materials for 2005. The campaign also won a Financial Planning Award of Excellence from CPA Wealth Provider magazine and a 2005 Clarion Award from the Association of Women in Communications. To date, the program has won 10 awards.

Antifraud Sponsors Sought
The Institute for Fraud Prevention (IFP), a consortium of organizations and companies that was cofounded by the AICPA, is offering academic grants for the study of various aspects of fraud. The IFP aims to improve the ability of businesses and governments to fight fraud and to educate the public on recognizing and preventing it. Organizations that are interested in sponsoring the IFP’s work should contact John Morrow, AICPA vice-president of new finance, at jmorrow@aicpa.org or visit the AICPA Antifraud and Corporate Responsibility Resource Center online at http://antifraud.aicpa.org/.

Jenkins Hailed for His Effect on the Profession
Edmund L. Jenkins, CPA, FASB chairman from 1997 through 2004, received the Institute’s 2005 Special Recognition Award from AICPA Chair Leslie Murphy at the AICPA National Conference on Current SEC and PCAOB Developments in December. The award honors those who have significantly influenced the profession. Jenkins chaired the AICPA Special Committee on Financial Reporting, which released the seminal 1994 report Improving Business Reporting—A Customer Focus, served on the FASB Advisory Council (1991–1995) and was a charter member of FASB’s Emerging Issues Task Force (1984–1991).

AICPA Enters Marketing Agreement on Rivet XBRL Software
The Institute agreed to promote Rivet Software’s Dragon Tag and Dragon View XBRL products. AICPA members can order them by e-mail (aicpa@rivetsoftware.com) or from Rivet’s Web site (www.rivetsoftware.com). The Institute is using Rivet’s products because they enable CPAs to easily create, send, receive and view XBRL documents within Microsoft Office applications. Free trial versions of the XBRL software products are available at the Web site.

Institute to Relocate Certain Operations
The AICPA Council approved the Institute’s recommendation to transfer selected operations from Jersey City, N.J., and New York City to Durham, N.C. The decision to relocate was based on the continuing rise of labor costs in the New York metropolitan area and unused space in the Jersey City office. The Institute expects the move to produce a savings of approximately $10–$11 million for each of the next 15 years.