Florida Senate - 2021                                     SB 616
       
       
        
       By Senator Gruters
       
       
       
       
       
       23-00559-21                                            2021616__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to public accountancy; amending s.
    3         473.308, F.S.; requiring that certain applicants not
    4         be licensed in any state or territory in order to be
    5         licensed by endorsement; amending s. 473.311, F.S.;
    6         providing license renewal requirements for nonresident
    7         licensees; amending s. 473.312, F.S.; requiring that a
    8         majority of the hours required for continuing
    9         education include specific content; amending s.
   10         473.313, F.S.; authorizing certain Florida certified
   11         public accountants to apply to the Department of
   12         Business and Professional Regulation to have their
   13         license placed in a retired status; providing
   14         requirements for such conversion; imposing
   15         requirements and prohibitions on retired licensees;
   16         authorizing retired licensees to use a specified title
   17         under certain circumstances; providing that retired
   18         licensees are not required to maintain continuing
   19         education requirements; authorizing retired licensees
   20         to reactivate their licenses if certain conditions are
   21         met; defining the term “retired licensee”; providing
   22         an effective date.
   23          
   24  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   25  
   26         Section 1. Subsection (7) of section 473.308, Florida
   27  Statutes, is amended to read:
   28         473.308 Licensure.—
   29         (7) The board shall certify as qualified for a license by
   30  endorsement an applicant who:
   31         (a) Is not licensed and has not been licensed in any
   32  another state or territory and who has met the requirements of
   33  this section for education, work experience, and good moral
   34  character and has passed a national, regional, state, or
   35  territorial licensing examination that is substantially
   36  equivalent to the examination required by s. 473.306; or
   37         (b)1. Holds a valid license to practice public accounting
   38  issued by another state or territory of the United States, if
   39  the criteria for issuance of such license were substantially
   40  equivalent to the licensure criteria that existed in this state
   41  at the time the license was issued;
   42         2. Holds a valid license to practice public accounting
   43  issued by another state or territory of the United States but
   44  the criteria for issuance of such license did not meet the
   45  requirements of subparagraph 1.; has met the requirements of
   46  this section for education, work experience, and good moral
   47  character; and has passed a national, regional, state, or
   48  territorial licensing examination that is substantially
   49  equivalent to the examination required by s. 473.306; or
   50         3. Holds a valid license to practice public accounting
   51  issued by another state or territory of the United States for at
   52  least 10 years before the date of application; has passed a
   53  national, regional, state, or territorial licensing examination
   54  that is substantially equivalent to the examination required by
   55  s. 473.306; and has met the requirements of this section for
   56  good moral character.
   57         Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 473.311, Florida
   58  Statutes, is amended to read:
   59         473.311 Renewal of license.—
   60         (1)(a) The department shall renew a license issued under s.
   61  473.308 upon receipt of the renewal application and fee and upon
   62  certification by the board that the Florida certified public
   63  accountant has satisfactorily completed the continuing education
   64  requirements of s. 473.312.
   65         (b)A nonresident licensee seeking renewal of a license in
   66  this state shall be determined to have met the continuing
   67  education requirements in s. 473.312, except for the
   68  requirements in s. 473.312(1)(c), if the licensee has complied
   69  with the continuing education requirements applicable in the
   70  state in which his or her office is located. If the state in
   71  which the nonresident licensee’s office is located has no
   72  continuing education requirements for license renewals, the
   73  nonresident licensee must comply with the continuing education
   74  requirements in s. 473.312.
   75         Section 3. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section
   76  473.312, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   77         473.312 Continuing education.—
   78         (1)
   79         (c) Not less than 5 percent of the total hours required by
   80  the board shall be in ethics applicable to the practice of
   81  public accounting. This requirement shall be administered by
   82  providers approved by the board and a majority of the hours
   83  shall include a review of the provisions of chapter 455 and this
   84  chapter and the related administrative rules.
   85         Section 4. Section 473.313, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   86  read:
   87         473.313 Inactive status and retired status.—
   88         (1) A Florida certified public accountant may request that
   89  her or his license be placed in an inactive status by making
   90  application to the department. The board may prescribe by rule
   91  fees for placing a license on inactive status, renewal of
   92  inactive status, and reactivation of an inactive license.
   93         (a)(2) A license that has become inactive under this
   94  subsection (1) or for failure to complete the requirements in s.
   95  473.312 may be reactivated under s. 473.311 upon application to
   96  the department. The board may prescribe by rule continuing
   97  education requirements as a condition of reactivating a license.
   98  The maximum continuing education requirements for reactivating a
   99  license are 120 hours, including at least 30 hours in
  100  accounting-related and auditing-related subjects, not more than
  101  30 hours in behavioral subjects, and a minimum of 8 hours in
  102  ethics subjects approved by the board, for the reactivation of a
  103  license that is inactive or delinquent.
  104         (b)(3) A license that is delinquent for failure to report
  105  completion of the requirements in s. 473.312 may be reactivated
  106  under s. 473.311 upon application to the department.
  107  Reactivation requires the payment of an application fee as
  108  determined by the board and certification by the Florida
  109  certified public accountant that the applicant satisfactorily
  110  completed the continuing education requirements set forth under
  111  s. 473.311. If the license is delinquent on January 1 because of
  112  failure to report completed continuing education requirements,
  113  the applicant must submit a complete application to the board by
  114  March 15 immediately after the delinquent period.
  115         (c)(4) Any Florida certified public accountant holding an
  116  inactive license may be permitted to reactivate such license in
  117  a conditional manner. The conditions of reactivation shall
  118  require the payment of fees and the completion of required
  119  continuing education.
  120         (d)(5) Notwithstanding the provisions of s. 455.271, the
  121  board may, at its discretion, reinstate the license of an
  122  individual whose license has become null and void if the
  123  individual has made a good faith effort to comply with this
  124  section but has failed to comply because of illness or unusual
  125  hardship. The individual shall apply to the board for
  126  reinstatement in a manner prescribed by rules of the board and
  127  shall pay an application fee in an amount determined by rule of
  128  the board. The board shall require that the individual meet all
  129  continuing education requirements as provided in subsection (2),
  130  pay appropriate licensing fees, and otherwise be eligible for
  131  renewal of licensure under this chapter.
  132         (2)A Florida certified public accountant who is at least
  133  55 years of age and currently holds an active or inactive
  134  license under this chapter may apply to the department for her
  135  or his license to be placed in a retired status. The application
  136  must be prescribed by the board and must state that the
  137  applicant has no association with accounting or any of the
  138  services described in s. 473.302(8)(a), (c), or (d). If a
  139  licensee who has been granted retired status reenters the
  140  workforce in a position that has an association with accounting
  141  or any of the services described in s. 473.302(8)(a), (c), or
  142  (d), the licensee automatically loses her or his retired status,
  143  except as provided in paragraph (a).
  144         (a)A retired licensee who serves without compensation on a
  145  board of directors or board of trustees, provides volunteer tax
  146  preparation services, participates in a government-sponsored
  147  business mentoring program such as the Internal Revenue
  148  Service’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program or the Small
  149  Business Administration’s SCORE program, or participates in an
  150  advisory role for a similar charitable, civic, or other
  151  nonprofit organization shall continue to be eligible for retired
  152  status.
  153         (b)The board shall require a retired licensee to affirm in
  154  writing her or his understanding of the limited types of
  155  activities in which she or he may engage while in retired status
  156  and that she or he has a professional duty to ensure that she or
  157  he holds the professional competencies necessary to participate
  158  in such activities.
  159         (c)Licensees may convert their license to retired status
  160  only if they hold a license in good standing and are not the
  161  subject of any sanction or disciplinary action.
  162         (d)A retired licensee may accept routine reimbursement for
  163  actual costs of travel and meals associated with volunteer
  164  services or de minimis per diem amounts paid to the licensee to
  165  cover such expenses, as allowed by law.
  166         (e)A retired licensee may use the title of “retired CPA”
  167  on any business card or letterhead or any other printed or
  168  electronic document. However, such title may not be applied in
  169  such a manner that could confuse the public as to the current
  170  status of the licensee. The licensee is not required to have a
  171  certificate issued with the word “retired” on the certificate.
  172         (f)A retired licensee is not required to maintain the
  173  continuing education requirements under s. 473.312.
  174         (g)A retired licensee may not offer or render professional
  175  services that require her or his signature and use of the CPA
  176  title, regardless of whether the word “retired” is attached to
  177  such title.
  178         (h)A retired licensee may reactivate her or his license in
  179  a conditional manner determined by board rules. The conditions
  180  of reactivation must require the payment of fees and the
  181  completion of any required continuing education.
  182  
  183  For the purposes of this subsection, the term “retired licensee”
  184  means a licensee whose license has been placed in retired status
  185  by the department.
  186         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.