§ 7409 — Mandatory continuing education

New York § 7409

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law EDN: Education
• Title 8: The Professions
• Art. 149: Public Accountancy

Text

§ 7409. Mandatory continuing education. 1. a. Each certified public\naccountant and public accountant required under article one hundred\nthirty of this title to register triennially with the department to\npractice in the state shall comply with the provisions of the mandatory\ncontinuing education requirements except as set forth in paragraphs (b)\nand (c) of this subdivision. Such certified public accountants and\npublic accountants who do not satisfy the mandatory continuing education\nrequirements shall not practice until they have met such requirements,\nthey have paid all applicable fees, and they have been issued a\nregistration or conditional registration certificate.\n b. In accordance with the intent of this section, adjustments to the\nmandatory continuing education requirement may be granted by the\ndepartment for reasons of health certified by a physician, for extended\nactive duty with armed forces of the United States, or for other good\ncause acceptable to the department which may prevent compliance.\n c. Certified public accountants or public accountants not engaged in\npractice as defined in section seventy-four hundred one of this article,\nshall be exempt from the mandatory continuing education requirement upon\nthe filing of a written statement with the department declaring such\nstatus pursuant to subdivision four of section sixty-five hundred two of\nthis title. Any certified public accountant or public accountant who\nresumes practice during the triennial registration period shall notify\nthe department prior to resuming practice and shall pay the current\nmandatory continuing education fee and shall meet such mandatory\ncontinuing education requirements as shall be prescribed by regulations\nof the commissioner.\n 2. a. During each year of the triennial registration period beginning\nSeptember first, nineteen hundred ninety and ending September first,\nnineteen hundred ninety-three and each registration period thereafter\nbut ending on the period that ends on December thirty-first, two\nthousand ten, an applicant for registration shall have the option of:\n(1) completing a minimum of forty contact hours of acceptable formal\ncontinuing education in recognized areas of study, or (2) completing a\nminimum of twenty-four contact hours of acceptable formal continuing\neducation concentrated in any one of the following three subject areas:\nauditing, accounting, or taxation.\n b. For applicants whose triennial registration date occurs on or after\nJanuary first, two thousand nine, for each calendar year beginning with\nthe two thousand nine calendar year, an applicant for registration shall\nhave the option of (1) completing a minimum of forty contact hours of\nacceptable formal continuing education in recognized areas of study\npursuant to subdivision four of this section, or (2) completing a\nminimum of twenty-four contact hours of acceptable formal continuing\neducation concentrated in any one of the recognized areas of study\npursuant to subdivision four of this section; provided, however, that\nany continuing education contact hours earned between September first,\ntwo thousand eight and December thirty-first, two thousand eight may be\ncredited toward the minimum contact hours required for the calendar year\nbeginning January first, two thousand nine.\n c. A certified public accountant or public accountant who has not\nsatisfied the mandatory continuing education requirements shall not be\nissued a triennial registration certificate by the department and shall\nnot practice unless and until a registration or conditional registration\ncertificate is issued as provided in subdivision three of this section.\nNo hourly credits may be transferred from one year to a subsequent year\nexcept as provided in paragraph b of this subdivision. The individual\ncertified public accountant or public accountant shall determine the\nselection of courses or programs of study pursuant to subdivision four\nof this section.\n 3. The department, in its discretion, may issue a conditional\nregistration to a certified public accountant or public accountant who\nfails to meet the continuing education requirements established in\nsubdivision two of this section but who agrees to make up any\ndeficiencies and take any additional education which the department may\nrequire. The fee for such a conditional registration shall be the same\nas, and in addition to, the fee for the triennial registration. The\nduration of such conditional registration shall be determined by the\ndepartment. Any certified public accountant or public accountant who is\nnotified of the denial of registration for failure to submit evidence,\nsatisfactory to the department, of required continuing education and who\npractices public accountancy without such registration, may be subject\nto disciplinary proceedings pursuant to section sixty-five hundred ten\nof this title.\n 4. As used in subdivision two of this section, "acceptable formal\ncontinuing education" shall mean formal programs of learning which\ncontribute to the growth in the professional knowledge and professional\ncompetence of the licensee which meet the standards prescribed by\nregulations of the commissioner. Recognized areas of study shall include\nbut not be limited to: accounting, attest, auditing, taxation, advisory\nservices, specialized knowledge and applications related to specialized\nindustries, and such other areas appropriately related to the practice\nof accounting as may be acceptable to the department. To fulfill the\nmandatory continuing education requirement, programs must be taken from\nsponsors approved by the department, pursuant to the regulations of the\ncommissioner.\n 5. The mandatory continuing education fee shall be determined by the\nregents, shall be payable on or before the first day of each triennial\nregistration period, and shall be paid in addition to the triennial\nregistration fee required by section seventy-four hundred four of this\narticle.\n