The American Institute of CPAs has named two recipients of its Outstanding CPA in Government Award and said it has leased more than half its office space in New Jersey.
Kurt K. Kawafuchi, director of the Hawaii Department of Taxation, received the state government award. He has significantly streamlined the operations of the department, providing one-stop taxpayer support, faster refunds, “plain English” correspondence, automated 24/7 telephone support, improved implementation of legislative changes and audit selection tools. Implementation of these and other programs have generated a record $308 million in collections over a previous record high of $113 million.
Robert B. Scott of Carrolton, Texas, received the local government award. He serves as CFO and assistant city manager, and is credited by many city officials across Texas as a champion of change for the Texas Municipal Retirement System, the state-wide retirement system covering employees in over 800 cities. He currently serves as chair of the Accounting, Auditing and Financial Reporting Committee of the Government Financial Officers Association and for more than 10 years served as chair of its Texas Financial Reporting and Regulatory Response Committee.
In other AICPA news, the institute announced that earlier this week, it signed a deal to lease approximately 52 percent of its office space in Jersey City to another tenant. “Leasing such a significant portion of the available space will have a positive impact on the results of operations projected for fiscal 2008 and will also positively impact budget projections for fiscal 2009,” said AICPA president and CEO Barry Melancon. The AICPA is actively marketing the remaining office space in New Jersey.
