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Sandra C. Degler, BNA Vice-Chairman, Dies at 68

NEWS RELEASE

Contacts:
Karen James Cody
(703) 341-3476

Arlington, Va. (October 17, 2008) –Sandra C. Degler, the first woman to chair the Board of Directors at legal and business publisher BNA, and the first woman to serve as president of BNA’s tax publishing subsidiary Tax Management Inc., passed away October 16, 2008, of cancer.

Over the course of her 33-year career at BNA, Sandy Degler exhibited a unique combination of editorial, marketing, product management, and sales skills that were invaluable to both BNA and Tax Management.  She was first elected to the BNA Board of Directors in 1990, chaired the Board from 2004 until 2007, and remained its vice-chair until her death. She retired from day-to-day service in February, 2000, but continued to serve as a consultant to the company.

“Sandy Degler’s death represents a huge loss to BNA, to the Board, and to the entire community,” said Chairman and CEO Paul N. Wojcik. “Her years of service at various levels of the company contributed tremendously to our ongoing success, and her election as BNA’s first female Chairman of the Board in 2004 capped a career of unparalleled service and dedication. She will be sorely missed.”

Degler first came to BNA in 1963, as a publication clerk on the Report on the Business Outlook. She was soon promoted to an editorial position on Collective Bargaining Negotiations & Contracts, and subsequently held increasingly responsible positions on several labor services and Daily Report for Executives. She left BNA in 1964 for four years, moving to Richmond, Virginia, where she worked in public relations and advertising for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Virginia. She returned to BNA in 1968 to work on the development of the Environment Reporter, and on Occupational Safety & Health Reporter, which launched under her leadership in March 1971. She was named BNA’s first female product manager in 1976.

Degler moved to Tax Management as managing director in 1982. A year later, she became president of TM. Under her leadership, TM became a well-respected source of information for tax and accounting professionals, as well as one of BNA’s most financially successful business units. While president of TM, she oversaw the development of the first personal computer software product for BNA, as well as the first CD-ROM product.

Degler was born in Los Angeles, Calif., and raised in Bisbee and Miami, Ariz. She was a graduate of Miami High School, where she was class president, year book editor, and a state oratorical champion.

Educated at Goucher College, Towson, Md., Degler also studied marketing and management at the University of Wisconsin. She was a member of the International Fiscal Association and served on the Advisory Board for the New American Workforce.  She was the author of several publications on OSHA and environmental issues.

Degler is survived by her husband, Stanley E. Degler, whom she married in 1973; two children from a previous marriage: Jeffery Bloom of Harpers Ferry, W.Va., and Margaret Bloom of Germantown, Md.; three stepchildren: Gail Regina of Chevy Chase, Md., Vicki Arthur of Arlington, Va., and Andrew Degler of Middletown, Del.; four grandchildren: Jesse Arthur and Lilly Regina of Mountain View, Hawaii and Jacob and Emily Degler of Middletown, Del.; and two sisters: Patricia Jacobson of Prescott, Ariz. and Alice Reynolds of Sedona, Ariz.

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BNA (www.bna.com) is the leading independent publisher of print and electronic news, analysis, and reference products for professionals. Delivering specialized information to business, legal, and government professionals at every level of expertise, BNA produces more than 300 news and information services, including the highly respected Daily Labor Report, U.S. Law Week,and Daily Report for Executives.

BNA Tax & Accounting (www.bnatax.com) is a leading provider of tax planning and financial accounting information, with products that hold a unique position among tax and accounting resources due to the extensive analysis provided by more than 1,000 authors and Advisory Board members. The collective contribution of this vast network of tax and financial accounting practitioners - all experts working across the entire spectrum of U.S., State, and International Taxation - forms the basis for the professional community's recognition of BNA Tax & Accounting as the most trusted authority for reference and research.