Todd Koch, Distinguished Service Award
Corey Butler, MNCPA communications manager | October 2021 Footnote
Editor's note: Updated September 30, 2021
In 1992, Todd Koch joined what was then known as the MNCPA Taxation Federal and State Committee.
Thirty years later, he sits on the MNCPA Tax Committee. In between, Koch served on more than a dozen committees and task forces, spent decades answering questions for the media and for the public during the annual Taxline phone bank at KARE 11, and testified at the Minnesota Legislature dozens of times.
This culmination of efforts has earned Todd Koch the MNCPA’s highest honor given to a member, the Distinguished Service Award. This recognition is given to those who exhibit an exceptional amount of service to the MNCPA over time and extraordinary contributions that far exceed normal expectations.
Upon reflection, Koch said it’s hard to believe how quickly the time has passed because he, like those who surround him, are always focused on moving forward — helping clients, each other and the profession.
“This recognition is a way to look back and understand the journey I’ve been on,” he said. “While you’re on the journey, you don’t realize the distance you’ve traveled.”
Serving the public
This isn’t the first time Koch has received MNCPA honors, earning the MNCPA Special Service Award in 2004. Koch was a key member of the government relations team that successfully fought to introduce and secure the Alternative Minimum Tax reform in the minds of legislators.
For Koch, it remains one of his proudest professional moments.
“Legislators had no idea what they were doing to taxpayers,” he said. “It took several meetings and passionate pleas to explain.”
Koch’s ability to connect is a foundation of his commitment to serve clients, the public and the profession. He said it often crosses his mind, when testifying at the state Capitol, that he’s one of the few people not being paid to be there — not a lawmaker, not a journalist, not a lobbyist. Yet, when it comes to the topics on which he’s testifying, he’s often the only one in the room who understands the legislation in whole.
Though he can speak logically and with common sense, Koch said his messages don’t always resonate with representatives — either because of a lack of understanding or because of other influences. That’s when he tries to connect with lawmakers beyond the stage of testimony to drive his point deeper while also making a personal link and helping them understand the legislation apart from politics.
Geno Fragnito, the MNCPA director of government relations, has had a front row seat for the past 16 years when Koch has been called on to advocate on behalf of the profession.
“Todd has been instrumental in explaining complex ideas to legislators for many years,” Fragnito said. “The MNCPA, its members and the public are fortunate to have Todd share his time and wisdom in this capacity.”
‘It’s about the people’
It’s that caring, thoughtful approach that led Koch and his firm of 40 years, John A. Knutson & Company PLLP, to be involved with Taxline. For more than 20 years, they have been answering calls from the public about their tax quandaries. It’s also where Koch, many years ago, had an epiphany about his ability as a CPA.
“All I concentrated on was what I didn’t know because we are always learning new things,” he said. “It was answering those questions that taught me how much I knew.”
And, in one particular year, Koch was using that informative, gentle touch to explain to a Taxline caller that they were not going to have their $600 car seized by the IRS. MNCPA staff overhead the tone and compassion Koch used with the distressed caller, recruiting him to the MNCPA media spokespeople program to talk about the intricate world of tax to Minnesota taxpayers. Countless interviews followed throughout the years, hitting all the major Twin Cities TV, newspaper and radio media outlets.
Perhaps not unlike many MNCPA members who get involved, Koch’s involvement started as a suggestion from a firm partner who was rolling off of an MNCPA committee. Koch, now 30 years into his volunteerism, has returned the favor many times over for his staff, rotating participants for Taxline, using the MNCPA’s Small Business Advisory Day as a development opportunity for newer staff, and recommending associates to various MNCPA committees.
“Our firm culture has always been to give back to others,” Koch said. “It’s important for some of us who aren’t as young to advocate for younger people in the profession to be involved, and then to support them. Then and now, it’s always been about the people.”
