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Required CPE: Choosing a ‘Course’ of Action

By Suvro C.K. Banerjee, Quality Assurance Manager, Ethics, and Monte Kaplan, Associate Director, Educational Services

As part of the continuing professional education (CPE) requirement, CPAs in New York state must complete at least four contact hours in professional ethics during the triennial registration period beginning after Sept. 1, 2001. Licensees working in industry currently are exempt from this and all CPE requirements, as are all registrants during the triennial period that begins during their year of licensure.

The ethics course can be taken in a classroom setting and is offered by the Society’s Foundation for Accounting Education. Or the course requirement can be satisfied through self-study via CD-ROM or other media that can be purchased from several CPE providers. Many of these providers claim that their courses meet the requirements of New York state; however, licensees are cautioned to remember that they bear the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that the courses they undertake fulfill the appropriate requirements. Therefore, it is important to note that there are two distinct types of ethics courses, which are not interchangeable.

The New York State Board of Regents classifies ethics courses as being either foundation or concentrated. As the names indicate, the former deals with general concepts and the latter offers guidance on ethical concepts for specific areas of specialty that a licensee may pursue. The course sponsor must identify whether the course is concentrated in accounting, auditing or taxation or is composed of general studies.

A foundation course introduces the licensee to ethical concepts, including the public’s expectations of CPAs. It also focuses on New York state education law, rules of the Board of Regents and regulations from the commissioner of education. Also covered in the course is the role the New York State Office of the Professions plays and the ethics rules for the American Institute of CPAs and the NYSSCPA. Each New York state CPA must take a foundation ethics course upon entering his second triennial registration period, unless otherwise exempted.

In subsequent periods, licensees have the option of retaking a foundation course or enrolling in a concentrated course. The areas of concentration provide ethical guidance in assurance, tax, consulting, industry or government. These courses provide updates on New York state and AICPA ethics rules, and case studies relevant to the concentration area under study. Also discussed is recent litigation dealing with ethical concerns and issues. Members who are registered under the 24-hour annual concentration in auditing, accounting or taxation may take an ethics course in that concentration to fulfill the requirement.

Members seeking more information on these courses should access the Society Web page
www.nysscpa.org/faeorg/courseguidelines.htm.

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