PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

President’s Remarks: Charlie Rossi, STA President, will discuss recent and ongoing STA initiatives, with emphasis on the very significant progress the STA, in conjunction with the Shareholder Communications Coalition, has made in focusing the attention of regulators and Congressional staff on the need for a complete analysis and overhaul of the current annual meeting and proxy distribution system. He will also address STA discussions with DTC and the SEC concerning FAST policies and procedures and the progress toward dematerialization, as well as dialogue with the Treasury department and the IRS on that looming concern: basis reporting! The STA continues to be an active advocate for its members with regulators and government officials. This session will bring you up to date.

Keynote Address: The STA is very excited to present our Keynote Speaker, Randy Snow.
What do you do when, without warning, everything in your world changes? Randy Snow knows firsthand how important an individual’s unique experience is to success, even in the face of unexpected circumstances.

At the peak of a blossoming tennis career while just a junior in high school, Randy Snow was injured in a farming accident, which left him without the use of his legs. Since then he has become a business owner and nationally recognized sales associate, a Fortune 500 speaker, featured on CNN, ESPN and USA Today and one of the most successful gold medal wheelchair athletes in history. Because of his achievements, he received the Paralympic torch from President Clinton in Washington, and was the Paralympian inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame.

Drawing from his personal business successes, medal winning Olympic competitions and the lessons learned while accepting a spinal cord injury, Randy inspires audiences to embrace change, work together and achieve extraordinary results. We have searched long and hard to find a speaker of this caliber and are sure that you will not want to miss this upbeat and enlivening presentation!

Proxy and Annual Meeting Issues: The STA continues to aggressively work to bring about change to the status quo in regard to the distribution of annual meeting materials and other processes around annual meetings. These efforts are beginning to focus needed attention from regulators in this area. Hear from regulators, and from forward thinking corporate executives about the changes that are under consideration.

NYSE/Euronext Update: Judith McLevey, Vice President, Corporate Actions & Market Watch for the Global Corporate Client Group will give an update on current initiatives at the Exchange, as well as progress toward dematerialization.

SEC Update: Susan Petersen, Special Counsel for the Division of Trading and Markets at the SEC, will tell us what is on the Commission’s agenda for this year and next. We also expect an update on the latest status of the revised transfer agency rules. We have allotted more time to this session than in the past, based on attendee feedback. You will not want to miss this popular session.

Legal Developments Panel: Back by popular request, this panel will feature three talented attorneys from our membership who will address legal issues of concern. The STA is proud to present Mark Harmon, (Hodgson Russ LLP), Merrill Stone, (Kelley Drye & Warren LLP), and Ed Pittman, (Dechert LLP), who will discuss the most concerning legal issues of the day. This session has also been expanded in time, based on attendee feedback from last year.

DTC Update: The STA is proud to present Daniel Thieke, Vice President of Product Management, who will provide this year’s DTC presentation. It is important to keep up to date on initiatives at DTC, as they take steps toward further elimination of certificates. This session is a must to keep you informed and in the know.

Cost Basis Reporting: For those who have been hiding their heads in the sand on this issue, it is most certainly time to become informed and begin planning! Stevie Conlon, a noted CPA and Tax Director from Gainskeeper, Wolters Kluwer Financial Services, will tell us what we need to know about the most recent developments with this troublesome legislation. Ms. Conlon is an expert on this subject. Don’t be unprepared and consequently subject to fines and penalties! This is your opportunity to become informed.

Unclaimed Property Issues: This year, we offer a panel discussion of issues of concern regarding the escheatment of unclaimed assets, such as data security concerns, the movement toward shorter escheatment periods on the part of states, increasing audit frequency, and changes to the very definition of the term “unclaimed property”. Our panel will include industry experts such as Bob Irvine, President of Unclaimed Property Recovery & Reporting and Debbie Zumoff, EVP and Chief Compliance Officer from the Keane Organization. The panel will be moderated by Paul Griffith, who heads the STA Unclaimed Property Committee. Don’t miss this session!

Open Forums: The STA will continue our tradition of holding Open Forums (one general and one for smaller agents), where attendees can discuss the issues of the day with one another. Why reinvent the wheel? Share your concerns and hear what others are doing to solve similar problems. The agenda is created by you, the attendees, and covers a wide range of topics. These sessions have been consistently popular and have engendered some provocative discussion in the past. Cynthia Jones, Executive Director of the STA, and Kevin Irwin, STA Training Coordinator will host.

Committee Updates: This year, we will feature updates from the very active STA Operations Committee, and the newly formed STA Risk and Compliance Committee. This is your chance to hear first hand from the Committee Co-Chairs about their successes and ongoing initiatives, in a way that makes it more concrete than just reading the Committee notes.

Special Event!!! Small Agents Training Session: Back by popular demand, the STA will offer a Training Session for Small Agents on the Friday afternoon following the Conference. This event will be free to all Conference attendees, and will be led by Salli Marinov, President and CEO of First American Stock Transfer. She will be assisted by two attorneys, Mark Harmon from Hodgson Russ LLP and Rick Sherley from Dechert LLP. We are still formulating the course work but have determined it will include certain legally vulnerable situations and activities that the SEC has advised us that agents should be aware of, as well as some instructive examples from recent case law.

Other Special Events: Of course, the Annual Golf Tournament is a continuing favorite at this Conference, as are the Gala Banquet on Thursday night, the Luncheon with the vendors who support us, and the First Time Attendee and New Member Breakfast. Mark your calendars now and make plans to join us at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, Florida, October 20-23, 2009!