Advocacy: CPAs Connect with Leaders in Washington.

• Author: Fox, Jason

May CalCPA members joined other CAPs from across the country at Capitol Hill to meet with members of Congress. The Hill visits coincide with the AICPA's Spring council meeting and are part of an ongoing effort to address issues of critical importance to the CPA profession and advocate for legislative changes that benefit both CPAs and the American public.

One of the primary issues on the agenda is the Fiscal State of the Nation Resolution, which has received bipartisan support in previous sessions of Congress. The resolution calls for an annual joint hearing of the House and Senate Budget Committees to examine the federal government's consolidated financial statements.

The hearing will feature testimony from the U.S. Comptroller General and provide insights into the nation's fiscal health. CPAs are urging their representatives to co-sponsor this resolution, as it will offer vital clarity for Congress when making fiscal decisions.

To help strengthen the CPA pipeline, the profession is advocating for accounting to be recognized as a Science, Technology. Engineering, and Math (STEM) curriculum. The designation would recognize the ongoing evolution of the CPA profession as a technology-based profession that is working to analyze, develop and implement various technologies. STEM designation would enhance student engagement with the accounting profession and attract more students seeking accounting opportunities in the United States.

The Accounting STEM Pursuit Act in the House and the STEM Education in Accounting Act in the Senate would help bolster the argument that accounting is a STEM field by using STEM K-12 grant funding to be used for accounting awareness and education.

CPAs are also pushing for the introduction of legislation aimed at simplifying and streamlining the process of filing federal tax extensions.

The current rules necessitate time-consuming calculations during tax season, leading to additional work for tax advisers and individuals preparing their own returns. The proposed bill, the Simplify Automatic Filing Extensions (SAFE) Act, would allow taxpayers to calculate and rely on a safe harbor of 125 percent of the prior year tax to be paid in by the original due date to avoid penalties. This would reduce burdens on practitioners and individuals preparing their own returns, minimize the processing of penalties by the IRS and simplify the work surrounding the filing of federal tax extensions.

Furthermore, CPAs are supporting H.R...