Four CPAs Honored for Work in Government Accounting

• Stephanie Palmertree, CPA, CGMA, Clinton, Miss. with the 2020 Outstanding CPA in Government Award at the state level;

• Ebonie Jackson, CPA/CITP, MBA, CGMA, Holland, Ohio with the 2020 Outstanding CPA in Government Award at the local level.

“Bob, Lorin, Stephanie and Ebonie are among the brightest and most prominent leaders in government accounting and auditing today,” said Tracey Golden, CPA, CGMA AICPA Chair. “We are delighted to recognize and celebrate these outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions while working in government and shown themselves to be exceptional leaders.”

The Outstanding CPA in Government Career Contribution Award recognizes a member’s significant contributions to the CPA profession through government service at the local, state or federal level over a candidate’s career. Award winners must have demonstrated exceptional leadership, high ethical standards and a track record of professional excellence. Storch served in the federal government for his entire 46-year career, joining the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in 1973. He retired in February 2020 as the Chief Accountant in the FDIC’s Division of Risk Management Supervision, the highest-ranking position for a CPA in the FDIC. He performed in that role since 1988 and is often referred to as the “Dean of the Chief Accountants.”

The Outstanding CPA in Government Impact Award recognizes the impact of recent significant contributions of CPAs to the efficiency, effectiveness or innovative service delivery of their respective local, state or federal employer organizations. Venable was appointed to the Senior Executive Service in May 2013 as the Assistant Inspector General for the Financial Management and Reporting (FMR) Directorate, which includes supervising all financial statement audits performed by DoD Office of Inspector General (OIG). She has more than 28 years of auditing and accounting experience and has spent her career in various audit directorates within the DoD OIG. 

Palmertree oversees the financial statements and governmental compliance work for the State of Mississippi. In 2019, her work uncovered significant waste, fraud and abuse at the state level, and as a result several people were arrested and indicted in one of the largest embezzlement schemes in Mississippi’s history.

Jackson has made significant contributions to the efficiency, effectiveness and innovative service delivery in her role as Director of Administrative Services for Lucas County Children Services (LCCS). In the past two years, she has led a significant and complex digital transformation initiative at LCCS. As a result of her leadership, LCCS caseworkers and staff now spend significantly less time on manual, paper-based processes. 

A list of previous winners can be found on the AICPA’s Outstanding CPA in Government Awards’ page.