Last-minute buzz: end of legislative session promises a flurry of activity.

• Author: Allen, Bruce C.
• Position: CapitolBeat

The end of the legislative session will bring a flurry of activity as the California Legislature works to complete its business before the two-year legislation session ends at midnight Aug. 31. Any bill that is not passed by the Legislature and sent to the governor will be dead for this session. Ca1CPA will be watching for toxic legislation that could emerge at the last minute.

Interstate Practice

One of the biggest issues CalCPA will be working on is interstate practice legislation. After many months of negotiations, CalCPA and other stakeholders were able to come to terms on legislative language that will, if passed, bring interstate practice to California. The negotiated interstate practice language has been amended into SB 1405, the Ca1CPAsponsored bill by Sen. Kevin De Leon, and is designed to allow a CPA to practice across state lines with less regulatory burdens. Furthermore, it will improve California's business climate while maintaining a strong commitment to consumer protection.

As SB 1405 moves through the legislature, here's what you need to know about interstate practice in California:

What is interstate practice? Interstate practice is a CPAs ability to practice across state lines without obtaining a notification or a license from each state where incidental services may be provided. Using a uniform system removes some of the burdens of licensed CPAs to provide timely services across state lines and, in turn, helps CPAs more effectively represent their clients.

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Interstate practice removes confusing regulations and red tape. Businesses, taxpayers and other clients of CPA firms are financially and geographically diverse. Accordingly, the practice of CPAs often extends across state lines where license certification, reciprocity, temporary practice and other accountancy issues may differ depending on the state or licensing jurisdiction. This patchwork of regulations makes compliance confusing for a CPA needing to go into another state on behalf of a client. One misstep can mean a violation of the accounting laws in another state without even knowing it--jeopardizing the CPA and the client. Enacting interstate practice legislation solves this issue.

Standing alone. The AICPA and the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy worked with the state boards of accountancy and state CPA societies to develop uniform interstate practice language to address this problem. California and Hawaii arc the only...