The Spring 2026 AICPA Council meeting was held Tuesday through Thursday, May 19-21, in New Orleans, LA. I was joined by Anita Goodrum, Kimberly Williams, Donna Bruce, Jan Lewis, and Karen Moody. Chair Lexi Kessler from Maryland opened the meeting and presided until Wednesday afternoon, when our very own Jan Lewis began her term as Chair!

Mark Koziel, AICPA President & CEO, made the opening presentation stressing the continuing theme of “Rise to the Future Together.” He continued to remind us that trust is our defining objective in the CPA profession. The AICPA will stress telling a positive story of the CPA with the key audience being business decision makers, with students and prospective CPAs as secondary. The AICPA will also continue to advocate for the CPA, especially in the changing environment around us in the areas of geopolitics, workforce readiness, value creation, regulation and compliance, and innovative technology. There is a new ad campaign launching to highlight and tell this positive story.

Mark also reminded Council to continue to utilize the tools that the AICPA offers on its website. One he specifically mentioned was the Business Resilience Toolkit that provides members help in prioritizing economic disruption planning to navigate uncertainty. There is also still emphasis being placed on Dynamic Audit Solution (DAS) to aid in audits, which can be found on the website.

There were several items that the Council voted on during this session. The first item pertained to start dates of volunteer members of Council so that CIMA and AICPA dates would coincide. The resolution passed that created a start date for both of July 1 of each year. The second item added the new pathway to the bylaws for membership in the AICPA. Effectively, the 150-hour requirement was removed for voting members of the AICPA. This also passed. Lastly, there was a passage of a Council resolution for certain allegations of deficient work performed by members practicing in a CPA firm subject to practice monitoring to be addressed by the AICPA Peer Review Program rather than through the Professional Ethics Division. This would only apply to allegations under the scope of peer review, which they estimate to be around 60 per year. The adoption of this resolution was to increase effectiveness, efficiency, and timeliness of addressing these issues.

Tom Hood, AICPA EVP of Business Growth and Engagement, began an early-stage discussion on the RISE 2040 initiative, which is a push to adopt a vision to make the profession viable for 15 more years (started in 2025). This program is the AICPA’s recognition that the profession doesn’t just need to drift into its future but deliberately shape it. There have been 8 foundational themes identified in this plan through different Council sessions and geographies. Briefly, these are the 8 themes:

1. Trust, ethics, and integrity are non-negotiable anchors.
2. Technology and data are strategic imperatives.
3. There will be an evolution from compliance-only to strategic advisor.
4. The talent pipeline and workforce sustainability are key.
5. Human skills will be seen as the future differentiator.
6. There will be a strong sense of intergenerational stewardship.
7. We will have an optimistic outlook.
8. Resistance to change is a primary internal threat.
   
   State societies were challenged to develop one strategy their state could take to help bring RISE 2040 to action through CPE, member communications, events, and other avenues. He indicated there would be standard presentation decks coming from the AICPA soon.
   There was continuing discussion around artificial intelligence and its usage in core areas of our profession. There is a learning solution development that will be a program using virtual stimulation and AI role play. This will be in the areas of audit and tax, professional success skills (communication and critical thinking), and technical fluency. There will be more on this in future sessions.
   
   One item to note and be aware of that will affect us all is the formation of a CPE task force through joint AICPA and NASBA involvement. We should look to have a recommendation of any changes to be made to our current CPE structure by year end. This could have a huge impact on our society, as CPE is one of our financial drivers.
   
   JAN’S INAUGURATION
   Jan was introduced and honored at a luncheon on Wednesday planned and hosted by the MSCPA with our President/CEO Karen Moody as emcee. Many of Jan’s family members were in attendance, as well as BMSS Advisors & CPAs partners, former partners at Haddox Reid, and friends. There were many nice remarks made regarding Jan’s career and her volunteer efforts with the profession by Karen, Mike Gladney, Deb Rood (AICPA volunteer), and Jan’s brother, Bill Farlow, along with a video which portrayed both her personal and profession sides. We should all be proud of Mississippi being represented in such a positive way! I know that we will have plenty of opportunities to utilize her volunteer role and let Mississippi shine! Thank you again, Jan, for being such a great representative of our profession and the state of Mississippi. Jan was inaugurated at the end of the session on Wednesday. A private reception and dinner hosted by BMSS and the MSCPA followed. I am sure that Karen has plenty of pictures to share!
   
   FAREWELL
   Thank you all for allowing me to serve in this position for the last 6 years. It has been an honor and a way to be retired but stay connected to the profession and the many friends I have made over the years through volunteering with the MSCPA. I hope you all continue to be involved and to encourage your peers to find a spot and plug in with the Society! Congratulations to Donna Bruce on her election by the Board of Governors to assume the Council Representative position.