BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  SB 691
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   July 15, 2009

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Kevin De Leon, Chair

                      SB 691 (Yee) - As Amended:  June 2, 2009 

          Policy Committee:                              Business and  
          Professions  Vote:                            11 - 0 

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:              

           SUMMARY  

          This bill requires that as of January 1, 2014, an applicant for  
          a certified public accountant (CPA) license acknowledge at the  
          time he or she takes the licensing examination that certain  
          pathways to licensure may not be considered substantially  
          equivalent to licensing requirements in other states.  
          Specifically, this bill: 

          1)As of January 1, 2014, requires an applicant for a CPA license  
            who is qualified by the pathway requiring 48 semester units of  
            education and two years of qualifying experience, to  
            acknowledge that a license achieved via this pathway may not  
            be reciprocal with other states that require 150 semester  
            units for licensure.

          2)Establishes that California is substantially equivalent to  
            every state that has adopted 150 semester units or hours as  
            the educational pathway available for licensure in that state.  
             

          3)States that if the California Board of Accountancy (CBA)  
            concludes that any state does not consider the educational  
            provisions sufficient to establish California as substantially  
            equivalent, then CBA shall immediately report that fact to the  
            Legislature, identify the states, summarize their reasons, and  
            provide options for California to establish substantial  
            equivalency.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Costs associated with this legislation would be minor and  








                                                                  SB 691
                                                                  Page  2

          absorbable within existing resources. 

           COMMENTS  

           1)Purpose  .  The purpose of this bill is twofold.  It  
            acknowledges that the second pathway to CPA licensure [150  
            units and one year of experience], is substantially similar to  
            that of 48 other states, thus making it easier for CPAs to  
            transfer their licenses to other states, should they choose to  
            do so.  In addition, this bill requires that as of January 1,  
            2014, pathway one applicants for licensure as CPAs be  
            cautioned that their license may not be considered to be  
            substantially equivalent for purposes of practice privileges  
            in the 48 other states that require 150 semester units for  
            licensure.

           2)Background  . Currently, California law differs from other  
            states in that it allows two pathways to licensure: 

             a)   Pathway 1 - requires of Bachelor of Arts degree in  
               accounting or a related subject, two years of experience  
               and passage of the Uniform CPA Exam.

             b)   Pathway 2 - 1 requires of Bachelor of Arts degree in  
               accounting or related subject, 150 semester units total,  
               one year of experience, and passage of the Uniform CPA Exam  
               prior to licensure.

            Only the Pathway 2 meets the national standard.

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081