For Immediate Release
Contact: Gigi Thompson Jarvis
202.822.6232, x119
gjarvis@naea.org
National Association of Enrolled Agents Installs 2014 - 2015 Board
W ASHINGTON, D.C., May 12, 2014—The National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA), the organization
that represents over 49,000 federally-licensed tax practitioners, has announced the installation of its
2014-2015 board of directors. The board members are: President Lonnie Gary, EA, USTCP of Mountain
View, CA; President-Elect Terry Durkin, EA of Burlington, MA; Secretary/Treasurer Laurie Ziegler, EA of
Saukville, WI; Director James Adelman, EA of Tulsa, OK; Director Jerry Gaddis, EA, of Key Largo, FL;
Director Michael Fioritto, EA, CPA, of Oregon, OH; Director Jean Nelsen, EA, of San Francisco, CA;
Director Jeffrey Schneider, EA, of Port St. Lucie, FL; and Director Craig Smith, EA, USTCP, of Newport
Beach, CA. Betsey Buckingham, EA of Troy, OH moved from the presidency into the immediate past
president position.
“The incoming board is committed to working with IRS to improve its proposal to create a voluntary return
preparer program in time for the 2015 filing season,” said NAEA Executive Vice President Michael S.
Nelson, CAE. “Our long-held position on return preparer oversight has been that a meaningful program
must provide taxpayers with assurance that a preparer has demonstrated competency through testing
and is required to keep up with the changing tax environment through continuing education. This
formidable board of America’s tax experts is up to the task of working with policymakers to safeguard
taxpayers from ignorant or incompetent return preparers.”
The board members met in the Washington, DC, area May 7-10, where they attended the NAEA Board of
Directors and state affiliate leadership meetings and the “Fly-In” day, where members met with their
elected officials to advocate for sound tax policy. Some highlights of these May meetings were addresses
from IRS Commissioner John Koskinen and IRS Office of Professional Responsibility Director Karen
Hawkins, and the board’s swearing in by NAEA Past President Kirby Robinson, EA. During the Saturday
board meeting, Victoria McGinn, EA, CPA, of Holtville, NY was elected by the board to fill a vacant
director position.
NAEA is the membership society of tax professionals who provide tax preparation, representation, tax
planning and other financial services to millions of individual and business taxpayers. Enrolled agents
(EAs) are the only federally-licensed tax practitioners who specialize in taxation and also have unlimited
rights to represent taxpayers before the IRS – they’re America’s tax experts®. Members of NAEA must
fulfill continuing professional education requirements that exceed the IRS’ requirements and adhere to a
code of ethics and professional conduct. For more information on enrolled agents, or to find one in your
community, go to the “Find an EA” directory at www.naea.org.