{"id":26,"date":"2018-02-21T15:44:34","date_gmt":"2018-02-21T15:44:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/jmaze\/?page_id=26"},"modified":"2026-06-04T15:18:58","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T15:18:58","slug":"speakers","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/?page_id=26","title":{"rendered":"2026 Speakers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n

Ben Barudin<\/h2>\n

Deloitte<\/h4>\n

Clark Calhoun<\/h2>\n

Alston & Bird<\/h4>\n

Daniel DeJong<\/h2>\n

KPMG<\/h4>\n

Daniel B. De Jong is a Managing Director in the State & Local Tax Group of KPMG\u2019s Washington National Tax practice. In that role, he works with various practice groups developing thought leadership and training on state and local tax issues.\u00a0 He also provides technical support for KPMG\u2019s state and local tax practice on new and developing tax changes and in controversy matters. He previously served as Tax Counsel for Tax Executives Institute (TEI) where he focused on state and local tax issues and global indirect tax issues.<\/p>\n

Nikki Dobay<\/h2>\n

GreenbergTrauig<\/h4>\n

Nikki Dobay is nationally known for her deep experience and understanding of state tax policy and the legislative process. She also advises her clients on sophisticated multistate tax issues as well as the consequences and planning opportunities related to corporate M&A transactions and oversees state and local tax controversy matters, ranging from audits to appellate litigation, and involving sales and use taxes, income and franchise taxes, property taxes, and constitutional issues.<\/p>\n

Diane Dorr<\/h2>\n

Clifton Larson Allen<\/h4>\n

Michael Fatale<\/h2>\n

Massachusetts Department of Revenue<\/h4>\n

Michael T. Fatale is the General Counsel at the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. He is the primary author of numerous Massachusetts state tax regulations and administrative pronouncements and has litigated or co-litigated several high-profile DOR cases. Michael is the author of ten law review articles on constitutional and federal law that have been cited in various state tax cases, including cases decided by the Ohio, Iowa and West Virginia Supreme Courts and the California and New Mexico Courts of Appeal. He is also an adjunct professor at Boston College Law School and at Boston University School of Law, and has served for many years as an instructor in the corporate income tax training program offered by the Multistate Tax Commission.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Olga Goldberg<\/h2>\n

Pierce Atwood<\/h4>\n

Olga J. Goldberg is a SALT Partner at Pierce Atwood LLP based in Portland, Maine. Olga advises clients in complex state and local tax matters. She represents clients on tax controversies from the administrative level through litigation and appeal or settlement. She also counsels businesses of all sizes on multistate transaction planning and tax compliance. Olga\u2019s practice covers all types of state and local taxes, including corporate income, business profits, franchise, sales and use, gross receipts, and property tax, with a focus on New England taxes. Olga regularly speaks and writes on a wide range of state and local tax matters, and is actively involved in IPT, ABA, NASBTS, ISA, and COST.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/div>\n

Jonathan Hale<\/h2>\n

CT Department of Revenue Services<\/h4>\n

Jonathan Hale is the Tax Unit Manager for the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services where he oversees audit operations involving multistate and complex corporate tax matters. With nearly 20 years of state service, Jonathan has extensive experience in corporate taxation, audit administration, and tax compliance initiatives. Prior to his current leadership role, he specialized in transfer pricing and intercompany transaction audits as a Revenue Examiner, focusing on issues involving multijurisdictional businesses, income sourcing methodologies, and complex corporate tax structures. In his current position, he manages audit programs, staff development, and the review of significant corporate tax issues affecting a broad range of industries.<\/p>\n

Leonore Heavey<\/h2>\n

Council On State Taxation (COST)<\/h4>\n

Leonore Heavey is Senior Tax Counsel for the Council On State Taxation (COST) and is COST\u2019s lead advocate for the Northeastern states. Before joining COST, Leonore was the Louisiana Senate\u2019s Chief Revenue Counsel where she served as the Senate\u2019s tax advisor and lead drafter of Senate tax legislation. She began her SALT career at the Louisiana Department of Revenue and served in numerous roles during her tenure in the Policy Services, Tax Administration, and Audit Review divisions. Her undergraduate degree in Agriculture and masters in Agricultural Economics are from Washington State University. She earned her LLM in Taxation from the University of Denver and her JD from the University of Idaho College of Law.<\/p>\n

Brendan Hughes<\/h2>\n

Akamai<\/h4>\n

Brendan Hughes is a tax senior manager at Akamai Technologies.\u00a0 Brendan currently leads state and local direct tax activities at Akamai \u2013 including income tax compliance, provision, and controversy matters.\u00a0 Additionally, he oversees state and local tax M&A and due diligence activities.\u00a0 Brendan has managed several state tax projects at Akamai, including income and non-income tax refund reviews, sales taxability studies, income tax sourcing studies, and letter ruling requests.\u00a0 He also led the integration of Alteryx workflows for a variety of state tax processes.\u00a0 Brendan is a member of the New England SALT Forum\u2019s Board of Advisors and is a licensed CPA in Massachusetts.\u00a0 He obtained a B.S. in Accounting from St. John Fisher University and a M.S. in Taxation from the University of Denver.<\/span><\/p>\n

Nicole Johnson<\/h2>\n

BlankRome<\/h4>\n

Nicole Johnson is a partner at Blank Rome in New York.\u00a0 She works with clients to resolve state and local tax controversies at the audit, administrative, and judicial levels and advises clients on state and local tax law in transactional matters. Nicole frequently presents on state and local tax matters. Prior to joining Blank Rome, Nicole was a partner at a leading Am Law 100 firm and served as a local state and local tax manager at one of the big four accounting firms.<\/span><\/p>\n

Carolyn Kupiec<\/h2>\n

Sullivan & Worcester<\/h4>\n

Steve LaRosa<\/h2>\n

AstraZeneca<\/h4>\n

Stephen LaRosa is the <\/span>executive <\/span>d<\/span>irector who <\/span>oversees <\/span>U.S. state <\/span>& <\/span>local <\/span>taxes <\/span>a<\/span>t AstraZeneca<\/span>.\u00a0 <\/span>Steve is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants (\u201cCTCPA\u201d)<\/span>.\u00a0 <\/span>He served as the chairperson of the CTCPA State Tax Committee and previously received the CTCPA <\/span>Jack Brooks Leadership Award and the <\/span>Committee Member of the Year Award<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Steve is also a member of the National Multistate Tax Symposium<\/span>, Council on State Taxation,<\/span> and New England SALT Forum a<\/span>dvisory <\/span>b<\/span>oard<\/span>s<\/span>. <\/span>Steve <\/span>also <\/span>serves on the tax committees of various business organizations<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Jill Libby<\/h2>\n

PricewaterhouseCoopers<\/h4>\n

Jill is a Partner in PwC\u2019s State and Local Tax Practice specializing in corporate income tax and taxation of flow through entities. During her tenure with PwC, Jill has consulted with many multi-state and multi-national organizations on state and local tax matters, including reorganizations, due diligence on mergers and acquisitions, state tax controversy, voluntary disclosure agreements and state tax provision preparation and review. She assists clients in a variety of industries in meeting their quarterly and annual state and local tax compliance obligations. Jill currently maintains a portfolio of clients in the pharmaceutical, manufacturing, technology, professional services, and retail sectors.<\/p>\n

Doug Lindholm<\/h2>\n

Council On State Taxation (COST)<\/h4>\n

COST, with a membership of over 500 multistate corporations, is dedicated to preserving and promoting equitable and nondiscriminatory state taxation of multi-jurisdictional entities. Prior to taking the helm at COST, Mr. Lindholm served as Counsel, State Tax Policy for the General Electric Company in Washington, DC, and as Senior Manager in the Washington National Tax Office of Price Waterhouse LLP. He has written numerous articles on federal, state, and local tax issues in a wide variety of publications; testifies frequently before state legislatures and Congress on state tax issues; offers commentary on radio and television; and is a frequent keynote speaker at national tax conferences and seminars.<\/p>\n

Jessica Morgan<\/h2>\n

Ernst & Young<\/h4>\n

Jessica Morgan is a Senior Manager specializing in US state and local taxation. Part of EY National Tax, Jess supports the firm\u2019s state income tax and transactions practice, providing thought leadership and technical expertise to EY service teams and clients. Jess helps businesses plan for state tax and accounting impacts of transactions, from acquisitions and divestitures to corporate reorganizations. She has assisted companies in aligning their tax profile to their strategic objectives through nexus and apportionment studies, federal conformity analyses, and entity structuring. Jess supports inbound investment, consulting on US site selection and the state tax implications of US legal entity formation and establishment of commercial domicile. She advises multinationals with respect to taxability, application of US-international tax treaties, and audit defense. Jess also partners with the firm\u2019s US State Policy Services team, advising businesses and government as to the effects of new global economic developments on current state tax law and administration. She is a frequent speaker and writer on the state tax implications of international tax reforms, including the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and the OECD BEPS 2.0 proposals.<\/p>\n

Alexis Morrison-Howe<\/h2>\n

Deloitte<\/h4>\n

Brian Oliner<\/h2>\n

Federation of Tax Administrators<\/h4>\n

Brian currently serves as General Counsel to the Federation of Tax Administrators, a position he has held since September 2023. Prior to that he served in the Maryland Office of the Attorney General, the last 14 years as Principal Counsel to the Office of the Comptroller of Maryland. In addition to his service as an assistant attorney general, he represented business clients in private practice and started his career as a prosecutor in Baltimore City. He is a Fellow of the American College of Tax Professionals and recipient of the 2024 Tax Excellence Award from the Maryland State Bar Association, Taxation Law Section. He graduated from the University of Maryland School of Law in 1985. He is admitted to practice in Maryland, the District of Columbia, the federal district courts of Maryland, the U.S. 4th<\/sup> Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court.<\/p>\n

Robert Ozmun<\/h2>\n

PricewaterhouseCoopers<\/h4>\n

Robert (Rob) is a Boston based PwC National State and Local Tax partner. In his 32 years of public accounting experience, he has specialized in working with large multinational organizations to identify opportunities and\/or solve state and local tax issues. Rob has significant experience serving clients in the consumer products, manufacturing, pharmaceutical\/life-science and retail\/e-commerce industries Rob leads PwC\u2019s efforts around federal\/state conformity and the state tax implications which were magnified due to the 2017 TCJA, 2020 CARES Act and 2022 IRA and which continue to impact corporate taxpayers today. Rob is a national resource for PwC\u2019s Tax Accounting Services Network, dealing with the state and local implications of ASC 740 including the impact of legislative changes. Rob also leads PwC SALT L&D and continuing education program for the firm. Rob regularly presents at nationally recognized tax associations, including the Council on State Taxation (COST), Tax Executives Institute (TEI), and New England Tax Forum on State\/Federal conformity and\/or ASC 740 topics. Rob holds a bachelor\u2019s degree in Accounting from Michigan State University. He is a CPA and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.<\/p>\n

Richard Pomp<\/h2>\n

University of Connecticut School of Law<\/h4>\n

Richard D. Pomp is the Alva P. Loiselle Professor and Board of Trustee Distinguished Professor of Law at UConn Law School. He is also an adjunct professor at NYU Law School in the LL.M. Program in Taxation. He is a magna cum laude<\/em> graduate of Harvard Law School. He has taught at Harvard, New York University, Columbia, University of Texas, and Boston College. Professor Pomp has been qualified as an expert witness in more than 35 states and the federal district courts and has appeared in more than 120 cases. He serves as counsel and a litigation consultant to law firms, corporations, accounting firms, and state tax administrations. He has participated in various capacities in U.S. Supreme Court litigation.<\/p>\n

Neena Savage<\/h2>\n

Rhode Island Department of Revenue Division of Taxation<\/h4>\n

Appointed in December 2015, Neena S. Savage, Esq., oversees the Division of Taxation. Savage previously served as the Assistant Tax Administrator, a position she held since February 2015. Prior to joining the Division of Taxation, Neena was deputy director and executive counsel for the R.I. Department of Business Regulation and held various other positions during her 18-year career at DBR. Savage was an associate with Edwards & Angell and a staff attorney for Rhode Island Legal Services before beginning work at DBR. In all, she has more than 30 years of experience in the legal field. Savage holds a bachelor\u2019s degree in political science from Texas A&M University and a juris doctorate degree from American University.<\/p>\n

Lou Schatz<\/h2>\n

Shipman & Goodwin<\/h4>\n

Matthew Schnall<\/h2>\n

Morgan Lewis<\/h4>\n

Marc Simonetti<\/h2>\n

State Tax Law<\/h4>\n

Marc Simonetti advises and represents business clients nationwide on state and local tax matters including income, franchise, sales and use, and gross receipts taxes. He handles controversies from audit through litigation and appeal, developing practical strategies and defending client positions. He leads all phases of litigation including discovery, depositions, motions, trial, and appellate advocacy in state courts across the country. He advises Fortune 100, mid-size, and startup companies on planning, compliance, and digital economy issues. He also counsels on mergers, acquisitions, restructurings, and tax-efficient structuring, and supports clients on tax policy initiatives across legislative and regulatory arenas nationwide matters effectively.<\/p>\n

Lindsey M. Stepp, Commissioner\u00a0<\/h2>\n

New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration<\/h4>\n

Lindsey M. Stepp is currently Commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration and a member of the Board of Directors for the Federation of Tax Administrators.\u00a0 Lindsey received her Master of Business Administration degree from Plymouth State University, after receiving her B.S. in Economics from Trinity College in Hartford, CT. Lindsey served as Director of Business Services for the Information Technology Services Department at Plymouth State University, and previously worked at the Department of Revenue Administration as a Financial Analyst. Lindsey began her career at Ernst & Young LLP as an International Tax and Transfer Pricing Consultant.<\/p>\n

Marilyn Wethekam<\/h2>\n

COST<\/h4>\n

Marilyn A. Wethekam, Esq.\u00a0is Of Counsel to the Council On State Taxation.\u00a0 COST, with a membership of approximately 500 multistate corporations, is dedicated to preserving and promoting equitable and nondiscriminatory state taxation of multi-jurisdictional entities.\u00a0 Ms. Wethekam, Prior to joining COST, was a partner at HMB Legal Counsel in Chicago where she had a national SALT practice representing multistate and multinational corporations in all areas of state tax advising clients on multistate tax issues involving income, franchise, and transaction taxes.\u00a0 \u00a0Prior to going into private practice, Ms. Wethekam was tax counsel for both Mobil Oil Corporation and Montgomery Ward & Co. where she developed an understanding of the complex issues encountered by multistate and multinational corporations.<\/p>\n

Jamie Yesnowitz<\/h2>\n

Grant Thornton<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ben Barudin Deloitte Clark Calhoun Alston & Bird Daniel DeJong […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":14,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-26","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/26","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=26"}],"version-history":[{"count":339,"href":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/26\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3019,"href":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/26\/revisions\/3019"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nesaltforum.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=26"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}