There are lots of reasons why companies big and small
need the expertise of certified public accountants, from
deciphering tax codes to estate-planning decisions and
the ever-changing regulations that affect businesses
of every stripe.
Yet apparently, what trips up
most of us isn’t
that complicated. “Unfortunately, it’s very
basic things,” says John L. Vincie III, chairman
of the 8,000-member Virginia Society of CPAs and a partner
with the Warrenton firm of PBGH. “What it means
to borrow money. What it means to have a credit card.
How to plan for the purchase of a home.”
According to a May 2004 survey
done for the American Institute for Certified Public
Accountants, a lot of
us aren’t prepared to handle our own finances.
Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed say they not sure
they’re ready to handle their retirement planning.
A quarter said they’d have to file for bankruptcy
if faced with a financial emergency. “There was
a significant percentage of people that were two paychecks
away from bankruptcy,” Vincie says. “It just
amazed me.”
This fall the VSCPA launched a financial literacy campaign
to reduce those numbers. The VSCPA Financial Fitness
Initiative includes a Web site, www.FinancialFitness.org,
offering a downloadable template for a personal spending
plan, access to a free e-newsletter and a financial check-up
quiz. For nonprofits the site offers pro bono help and
online guides.
Such efforts give Virginia’s CPAs a chance to
put their skills before a broader audience. Those skills
are evident among the CPAs profiled in 10 categories
in this issue, as part of the Super CPA contest sponsored
by the VSCPA and Virginia Business. The magazine sent
ballots to 6,101 CPAs and tallied their votes. If you’ve
got questions on how to handle money, there are plenty
of people willing to answer.
