In August 2018, Miss America 2018 Cara Mund gave an interview to The Press of Atlantic City in which she stated that it has "been a tough year." She then wrote an open letter to former Miss Americas a few weeks later, in order to explain her comments. In the letter she states that the current leadership had "silenced me, reduced me, marginalized me, and essentially erased me in my role as Miss America." She also stated that her "voice is not heard nor wanted by our current leadership …nor do they have any interest in knowing who I am and how my experiences relate to positioning the organization for the future." Carlson has denied Mund's claims. However, at the time the Miss America 2019 competition began, 46 of 51 state organizations (as well as 23 former Miss America winners) had signed a petition calling for the resignation of Carlson and CEO, Regina Hopper, from the Miss America Organization. The states who had not signed were Arkansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Nevada, and Vermont. Court fillings from October 26, 2018 ordered MAO to pay Fox Rothschild LLP $98,206.90 with interest for their unpaid legal bills. The Miss America Organization reported in December 2018 that a settlement had been made with Fox Rothschild LLP. From 2011 to 2016 (with the exception of 2014), MAO's tax fillings reveal that the organization was operating with a negative net income.