BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 773|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 773
Author: Negrete McLeod (D)
Amended: 4/14/11
Vote: 21
SENATE BUS., PROF. & ECON. DEV. COMMITTEE : 9-0, 4/25/11
AYES: Price, Emmerson, Corbett, Correa, Hernandez, Negrete
McLeod, Vargas, Walters, Wyland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Accountants
SOURCE : California Society of Certified Public
Accountants
DIGEST : This bill revises the requirement for the Board
of Accountancy to broadcast Board meetings over the
Internet to require video broadcasts; makes a correcting
and conforming change.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Licenses and regulates some 40,000 certified public
accountants (CPAs) under the Accountancy Act by the
California Board of Accountancy (CBA) within the
Department of Consumer Affairs.
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SB 773
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2. Establishes an Advisory Committee on Accounting Ethics
Curriculum within the CBA to recommend to the CBA ethics
study guidelines, as specified, and authorizes the
committee to determine that a course or a portion of a
course of accounting education satisfies the ethics
study requirement.
3. Requires all CBA meetings to be open to the public, and
provides that the CBA may hold executive sessions to
deliberate on a decision upon the evidence in a case
under the Administrative Procedure Act, and to take
action on examinations or administrative matters as
specified in the Government Code.
4. Requires the CBA to provide a live audio or video
broadcast of CBA meetings on its Internet Web site, as
specified, and requires the audio or video recordings of
broadcasts or a link to the recordings to remain on the
Web site for at least three years.
This bill:
1. Makes a conforming change by correcting a reference the
Advisory Committee on Accounting Ethics Curriculum.
2. Revises the existing requirement to instead require the
CBA to provide a live video broadcast of CBA meetings,
and to maintain the video recording on the CBA's
Internet Web site for at least three years.
Background
Legislation enacted in 2009, established the Advisory
Committee on Accounting Ethics Curriculum to make
recommendations on ethics study guidelines to the CBA by
June 1, 2012. That legislation, SB 819 (Yee), Chapter 308,
Statutes of 2009, revised the CPA license standards to
increase the amount of education from 120 hours to 150
hours effective January 1, 2014. In increasing the
required hours, the legislation required that the education
include a minimum of 10 units of ethics study and 20 units
of accounting study, as specified. The 10 units of ethics
study must meet the guidelines established by the CBA upon
the advice of the Advisory Committee.
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SB 773
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The Accountancy Act was further amended by AB 1005 (Block),
Chapter 379, Statutes of 2009, to increase public access
and transparency as it relates to the regulation of the
accounting profession by requiring the Internet
broadcasting of public CBA meetings, the posting of CBA
minutes and notices of formal accusations on the CBA's Web
site. In adding these requirements, the legislation
authorized the CBA to provide either an audio or a video
broadcast of the CBA meeting over the Internet. In meeting
these requirements the CBA has chosen to video broadcast
its meetings. This bill amends the law to reflect the
practice of the CBA.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/10/11)
California Society of Certified Public Accountants (source)
JJA:kc 5/10/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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