The Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry proposed the following amendment (812R001.KMM.TD):

Amend the , as and if amended, on page 3, by striking lines 22- 33 and inserting:

/ (F)(1) The director , with the advice and consent of the board, shall designate for the use of the board one full-time administrator who is a certified public accountant licensed in this State. The administrator's primary responsibility is to administer the board; provided, however, that the director may assign to the administrator additional duties and responsibilities within the department so long as the additional duties and responsibilities do not unreasonably occupy the administrator's time so that he does not thoroughly fulfill his duties and responsibilities to the board.

(2) A person employed by the board under this section may be terminated by the director. /

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, on page 16, by striking lines 14- 16 and inserting:

/ States;

(3) submitting Substantial Equivalency Evaluation report from the NASBA National Qualification Appraisal Service verification that his CPA qualifications are substantially equivalent to the CPA licensure requirements of the AICPA and NASBA Uniform Accountancy Act; or

(4) any combination of experience determined by the board to be substantially equivalent to the foregoing./

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, on page 17 by striking lines 15- 20 and inserting:

/ (f)(iii) Teaching experience semester hours must not be granted for teaching subjects outside the scope of the Uniform CPA Examination field of accounting. Subjects considered to be outside the field of accounting include, but are not limited to, business law, finance, computer applications, personnel management, economics, and statistics./

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, on page 20, by striking lines 6- 12 and inserting:

/ (E) An Any firm applicant for initial issuance or renewal of a registration to practice pursuant to this chapter shall register each firm within this State with the board and shall demonstrate that all attest and compilation services rendered in this State are under the charge of a person holding a valid license issued pursuant to this section or the corresponding provision of prior law or of some other state. /

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, on page 22, by striking lines 1- 5 and inserting:

/ (14) issue non-binding interpretations of statutes and regulations based on a written set of facts and a request from any member of the public, including licensees and the board.

(B) All public board orders, interpretations and policies of this chapter must be made available to the public in an electronic format organized by applicable law or regulation. /

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, on page 30, by striking lines 10-20 and inserting:

/ (2) accounting or other records belonging to, or obtained from or on behalf of, the client that the licensee removed from the client's premises or received for the client's account; the licensee may make and retain copies of these documents of the client when based on work completed by the licensee a copy of the licensee's CPA-prepared records or CPA work product, except that such information may be withheld if fees are due to the licensee for the CPA work product, if the work is incomplete, if providing the CPA work product violates professional standards, or if threatened litigation or outstanding litigation exists concerning the engagement or the work performed. /

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, starting on page 31, by striking lines 21- 43, and on page 32, by striking lines 1- 35 and inserting:

/ Section 40-2-240.(A) The board may shall issue a license to an applicant who holds a holder of a certificate, license, or permit issued under the laws of any state or territory of the United States or the District of Columbia or any authority outside the United States upon a showing that the applicant of substantially equivalent education, examination, and experience upon the condition that the applicant:

(1) (a) received the designation, based on educational and examination standards substantially equivalent to those in effect in this State, at the time the designation was granted holds a valid certified public accountant license from a substantially equivalent jurisdiction and may lawfully practice in the jurisdiction in which he is licensed; and

(b) completed an experience requirement, substantially equivalent to the requirement provided for in Section 40-2-35(F), in the jurisdiction which granted the designation or has engaged in four years of professional practice, outside of this State, as a certified public accountant within the ten years immediately preceding the application; and

(c) passed a uniform qualifying examination in national standards and an examination on the laws, regulations, and code of ethical conduct in effect in this State acceptable to the board; and

(d) listed all jurisdictions, foreign and domestic, in which the applicant has applied for or holds a designation to practice public accountancy or in which any applications have been denied; and

(e) demonstrated completion of eighty hours of qualified CPE within the last two years; and

(f) filed an application and pays an annual fee sufficient to cover the cost of administering this section.

(2)(a) satisfies the requirements of item (1)(c), (d), (e), and (f);

(b) holds a valid license issued by any other state before January 1, 2012; and

(c) has engaged in four years of professional practice, outside of this State, as a certified public accountant within the ten years immediately preceding the application. submits to the board a substantial equivalency evaluation report from the NASBA National Qualification Appraisal Service verification that his CPA qualifications are substantially equivalent to the CPA licensure requirements of the AICPA and NASBA Uniform Accountancy Act; or

(3) submits to the board evidence that he has passed the CPA Examination and, within the ten years prior to applying, has acquired four years of experience of the type described in Section 40-2-35(G) after passing the examination upon which the applicant's certificate, license, or permit was issued.

(B) Each holder of a certificate issued under this section shall notify the board in writing within thirty days after its occurrence of any issuance, denial, revocation, or suspension of a designation or commencement of a disciplinary or enforcement action by any jurisdiction. To apply for a license pursuant to this section an applicant must:

(1) identify all jurisdictions, foreign and domestic, in which the applicant has applied for or holds a designation to practice public accountancy or in which any applications have been denied;

(2) demonstrate the completion of eighty hours of qualified continuing professional education within the last two years; and

(3) file an application with the board together with the application fee prescribed by the board.

(C) Each person issued a license pursuant to this section shall notify the board in writing within thirty days after any issuance, denial, revocation, or suspension of a designation or commencement of a disciplinary or enforcement action against the licensee by any jurisdiction. /

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, on page 35, by striking lines 8- 15 and inserting:

/ (6) An annual ethics requirement must be met and included in the documented hours of continuing professional education. No less than two hours of the annual forty hours of continuing professional education must relate to ethics. /

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, on page 37, by striking lines 16- 19 and inserting:

/ (B) A license in 'emeritus' status must be renewed annually with no fee required. A license in 'emeritus' status may not be reinstated as an active license, subject to fulfilling the requirements for the reinstatement of a lapsed license under Section 40-2-250. /

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, on page 40, by striking line 19 and inserting:

/ unless he or it plainly indicates on all signs, cards, letterheads, /

Amend the bill further, as and if amended, on page 42 by striking line 18 and inserting:

/ to be substantially equivalent to the foregoing standards. /