BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 773
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 17, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
SB 773 (Negrete McLeod) - As Amended: August 15, 2011
Policy Committee: Business and
Professions Vote: 7 - 0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill establishes requirements for ethics courses that
certified public accountants (CPAs) must complete to gain
licensure. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires, after December 31, 2013, the total educational
program required for licensure as a CPA license to include a
minimum of 10 units of ethics study.
2)Requires CPA license applicants to provide documentation of
completion of 10 semester units or 15 quarter units of ethics
study to the satisfaction of the California Board of
Accountancy (CBA).
3)Requires, between January 1, 2014, and December 31, 2016, the
10 semester units or 15 quarter units of ethics study to be
completed from the following course areas:
a) Business, government, and society; business law;
corporate governance; corporate social responsibility;
ethics; fraud; human resources management; leadership;
legal environment of business; management of organizations;
morals; organizational behavior; or, professional
responsibilities.
b) A maximum of three semester units or four quarter units
in: philosophy; religion; sociology; theology; psychology;
political science; economics; cultural studies; or, ethnic
studies.
c) A maximum of one semester unit of ethics study for
SB 773
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completion of a course title specific to financial
statement audits.
4)Requires that in addition to the requirements listed above, on
and after January 1, 2017, the ethics study to be completed as
follows:
a) A minimum of three semester units or four quarter units
in courses at an upper division level or higher devoted to
accounting ethics or accountants' professional
responsibilities.
b) A maximum of seven semester units or 11 quarter units in
courses listed in a), above.
FISCAL EFFECT
Costs associated with this legislation are minor and absorbable
within existing CBA resources.
COMMENTS
Purpose . SB 819 (Yee), Chapter 308, Statutes of 2009, revised
CPA license standards to increase the hours of education
required for licensure from 120 hours to 150 hours, beginning
January 1, 2014. It also required that the education include at
least 10 units of ethics study and 20 units of accounting study.
The 10 units of ethics study must meet guidelines established
by the Board upon the advice of the Advisory Committee, which
was also created by the bill and charged with making
recommendations to the Board by June 1, 2012. The Advisory
Committee has finished that task and this bill implements its
recommendations.
Analysis Prepared by : Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)
319-2081