§ 87.7. Continuing Education in the Accountancy Act, Board Regulations, and Other Rules of Professional Conduct.

(a) In order to renew a license in an active status a licensee shall, within the six years preceding the license expiration date, complete a continuing education course on the provisions of the Accountancy Act and the Board of Accountancy Regulations, application to current practice, and other rules of professional conduct. Such course shall be approved by the Board prior to the licensee receiving continuing education credit for the course and shall be a minimum of 8 hours. The eight hours shall be counted towards the 80 hours required pursuant to Section 87.
(b) The operative date for this regulation is based on the last two digits of the license number according to the following schedule: for license numbers ending with 01-33 the operative date is January 1, 1998, for license numbers ending with 34-66 the operative date is January 1, 2000, for license numbers ending with 67-00 the operative date is January 1, 2002.
(c) Course providers shall apply to the Board for approval of the course specified in Subsection (a), on Form CE-PCE-1 (9/96), Professional Conduct and Ethics Application for Course Approval. The term of approval shall be for a two (2) year period. The Board may cancel its approval during this two year period if the Board determines that the course fails to meet the criteria specified in this Subsection. Approval shall be based on the following criteria:
(1) The course shall be a formal educational program that meets the requirements set forth in Sections 88, 88.1, and 88.2.
(2) The course shall have written educational goals and specific learning objectives, as well as a syllabus which provides a general outline, instructional objectives and a summary of topics for the course. A copy of the educational goals, learning objectives and course syllabus shall be submitted by the provider with the approval application.
(3) The course shall provide participants with the current California Accountancy Act and California Board of Accountancy Regulations (or summary thereof).
(4) Any self-study course shall require a 90 percent passing score on a test given at the conclusion of the course. The test shall be submitted along with the course materials for approval.
(5) A certificate of completion which includes the provider approval number shall be issued to each licensee who has satisfactorily completed the course.
(6) The course content shall include the following:
(A) A review and update of the current California Accountancy Act and the Board of Accountancy Regulations.
(B) Information which will provide an understanding of how the Statutes, Regulations and cases relate to current practice situations.
(C) A review of nationally recognized Codes of Professional Conduct as they relate to professional responsibility.
(D) A discussion of recent relevant cases on ethics and professional responsibilities for the accounting profession.
(E) A bibliography of recent publications and cases on professional conduct and ethics for the accounting profession.
(d) Upon receiving approval from the Board, the provider of the Professional Conduct and Ethics course required in Subsection (a) may represent the course in promotional materials as being approved by the Board during the term of approval.
(e) On a random basis established by the Board or at the Board's request or in response to complaints about a particular course, the Board may review the records of a provider to ensure compliance with the criteria specified in this Section. Within 15 days of receipt of written notification, the provider shall submit or make available to the Board all material deemed necessary by the Board to determine whether the course complies. The Board may cancel its approval for a course found not to be in compliance.
(f) Approved course providers may allow a secondary provider to present their course through a site license, contractual arrangement, or other type of agreement.
(g) For every course presentation, including any made by a secondary provider, organization or party, the original approved provider (primary provider) who entered into the approval agreement with the California Board of Accountancy shall:
(1) Retain a written outline of the course and completion records to reflect the actual participant attendance, or in the case of self-study courses, passing test scores of 90 percent or higher. The retention period shall be eight years.
(2) Ensure that all participants who complete the course receive a certificate of completion, including all information specified in Section 89(b). If a secondary provider presented the course, the certificate shall identify both the primary and secondary providers.
(3) Be responsible for the quality and content of the course by requiring and ensuring that the course be presented only by qualified instructors and/or discussion leaders, and that presentations always include all components and content areas represented in the approval application.
(4) Periodically update course content to reflect current laws, regulations, case law decisions and standards of practice.
(h) Licensees may claim continuing education credit earned from completing a Board-approved course designed in fulfillment of this section for the Ethics Continuing Education Requirement described in Section 87(b) and/or for the Regulatory Review Requirement described in Section 87.8 provided the course is completed prior to January 1, 2011 and reported to the Board prior to January 1, 2012.
(i) Board-approved course providers may continue to offer the course, described in section 87.7(a) until December 31, 2010 for licensees to receive continuing education credit in fulfillment of the Ethics Continuing Education Requirement described in Section 87(b) and/or for the Regulatory Review Requirement described in Section 87.8.
(j) After January 1, 2010, the Board will no longer approve courses specific to this requirement.

NOTE: Authority cited: Sections 5010 and 5027, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Section 5027, Business and Professions Code.

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