NJCPA CEO Calls for Federal Relief for State and Local Governments

ROSELAND, N.J. – The New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants (NJCPA) today announced that its CEO and executive director Ralph Albert Thomas, CPA (DC), CGMA, along with 27 other state society CEOs, sent a letter to congressional leadership urging them to pass legislation that would close a projected collective budget gap of $555 billion that states and local governments face in this fiscal year and the following two years.

This response stems from the impact the coronavirus pandemic has left on legislators and local officials in states and municipalities across the United States who are dealing with crippling budget shortfalls to close this fiscal year and limited resources to craft 2021 budgets. State CPA society leaders came together to support this effort and work to find a solution so legislators won’t have to resort to tax increases and cuts to important state programs. Together, the group represents nearly 280,000 CPAs from across the country.

“The NJCPA is proud to work with our partners to make an impact with elected officials in New Jersey and in Congress,” said Thomas. “We are hopeful that funding for state and local governments will be included in the next round of federal relief assistance.”

Thomas and his colleagues stated that without the promise of federal relief, tax increases on already burdened taxpayers and cuts to critical state and local programs are all but inevitable. Citing their tax and financial expertise and the millions of individuals, small businesses and thousands of local and county governments and others whom they represent, the state CPA society leaders affirmed that CPAs stand ready to assist in rebuilding our economies and stabilize our country.

Read the letter here.

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The New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants, with more than 14,000 members, represents the interests of the accounting profession and advances the financial well-being of the people of New Jersey. The NJCPA plays a leadership role in supporting the profession by providing members with educational resources, access to shared knowledge and a continuing effort to create and expand professional opportunities.