CBA's query: reviewing the need for two CPA license types.

• Author: Allen, Bruce C.
• Position: Capitol Beat

California Board of Accountancy President Leslie LaManna, CPA announced at the March meeting liras board member Manuel Ramirez, CPA will be chair of a task force that will examine whether California should continue with the two types of CPA licenses that the CBA is currently issuing or mow to a single license type.

Since 2002, CPA candidates base had the option of obtaining either a "general" (G) license or an "attest" (A) license. Both licenses allow CPAs to perform the Same type of work with the exception of signing audits and reviews, which requires an attest license.

For candidates to earn an attest license, they must have a minimum of 500 hours of supervised attest work experience and documentation that they can plan and complete an audit with minimal supervision.

The attest experience is not required for a general CPA license.

Prior to 2002, every candidate for CPA licensure in California had to have attest experience, regardless of whether they were planning to ever perform any attest services. The change to allow for the option in license type stemmed from legislation that partially conformed California's Accountancy Act to the Uniform /Accountancy Act (UAA).

The UAA, developed in partnership with the A1CPA and the National Association or Suite Bounds of Accountancy; serves as a national model for states to adopt and regulate the practice of accounting in their state.

Under the UAA there is only one CPA license, which docs not require attest experience. The UAA relics on mandatory peer review to ensure that CPAs performing audits and reviews have the necessary experience to perform a specific engagement.

Since most states have adopted laws consistent with the UAAs model of one license type without the attest experience requirement, the task force will also be examining how California's two license types will be affected by the recent passage of CPA mobility legislation. The new CPA mobility law, which takes effect in July; allows a CPA to practice across state lines without the burden of obtaining a notification or a license from each slate where incidental services may be provided. This raises concerns about how Other slates with only One license type may treat California licensee*, for example, a state may treat a California licensee different depending on which license type they have.

Additionally, the task force plans to discuss how license types are posted on the "license look-Up" page of the CBA's website. Specifically the...