Fiscal year 2010: what the numbers tell us ... not the full story.

• Author: McCormally, Timothy J.
• Position: Less Taxing Matters

The financial statements for Tax Executives Institute for fiscal year 2010 are reprinted in this issue of The Tax Executive. They represent both a snapshot of the Institute's financial condition as of June 30 and, more generally, a summary of what the economic recession has wrought in the association community as a whole. For TEI, it was the first time in more than a quarter century that it incurred a loss. This is not a surprise because TEI experienced a decline in all categories of revenue: Fewer tax professionals joined TEI, fewer people attended Institute-level educational programs, and the Institute's investment, sponsorship, royalty, and advertising income were all lower than they were the previous year.

Henry David Thoreau wrote that "If misery loves company, misery has company enough," and that has certainly been the case with respect to the current recession. Hardly a single sector of the economy, a single industry or line of business, a single association has been spared the effects of the economic downturn. ASAE--the association of associations (yes, there IS an association for everything)--has confirmed what common sense could tell you:

* Because travel and training budgets have been slashed, attendance at professional meetings and business conventions has fallen dramatically. (The average across the association community has been around 30 percent, and our benchmarking with other tax associations, especially those whose focus is the in-house tax community, confirms the number.)

* Because most nonprofit associations (including TEI) have relatively conservative investment policies (the Institute, for example, invests primarily in government or government-guaranteed securities), their investment yields have declined.

* Because the consulting sector has suffered a business decline, their expenditures for such things as advertising and sponsorships have taken a hit.

That's what the numbers tell you. And the numbers are sobering. But the numbers don't tell you the whole story: They don't tell you that TEI remains a vital, vigorous organization, whose members and volunteers still embrace its mission, and whose leaders and staff remain both dedicated and equipped to advance that mission. And they don't tell you that, lingering anxiety about the economy notwithstanding, the promised "green shoots" of recovery are present in the tax world and, in particular, in TEI. Indeed, the green shoots are appearing at a reassuring rate.

Before...