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NASHVILLE, TN and NEW YORK, NY-- The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) today issued proposed revisions to the Statement on Standards for Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Programs (Standards), the framework for the development, presentation, measurement and reporting of CPE programs.
"Professional education content and delivery must keep pace
with the driving forces of technology and market place demands. No less
is true for the Standards to be followed by CPE providers. This
latest revision incorporates our outstanding CPE providers' input and
counsel -- as well as that of our state board and profession
representatives. The public is the ultimate beneficiary of services
performed by CPAs who enhance their professional competence by taking
CPE from providers governed by high educational standards," said NASBA
President & CEO, David A. Costello, CPA.
"The AICPA is pleased to be a partner to NASBA in offering these new revised Standards
for comment. Innovation and lifelong learning are two hallmarks of the
CPA profession and those are reflected here. I was fortunate to
participate as a member of the task force that recommended the new
standards. I believe I speak for all members when I say that these
standards are a significant improvement. They provide protection to the
public, clear guidance to CPE sponsors, and anticipate and allow for
changes in CPE as technology and learning theory evolve. We are looking
forward to getting the profession's feedback," said AICPA Vice President
for Examinations and Continuing Professional Education Craig Mills.
Last revised in 2002, the newly updated Standards would
provide flexibility for innovation in learning techniques and allow for
future considerations around outcome based learning. Significant
revisions are in the areas of group internet based learning and
self-study programs; issuance requirements for half credits under self
study programs; promotional/course announcement information for in-house
training programs and alternate methods for calculating CPE credits for
self-study programs.
In May 2010, NASBA's CPE Advisory Committee provided a forum for an open and candid discussion of the Standards.
As a result of the input and discussions, a 13-member task force
comprised of CPE program sponsors, NASBA's CPE Advisory Committee
members, representatives of the AICPA, state board of accountancy
members, state society members and educators was created to review,
analyze and implement suggestions and changes to the Standards. The Joint AICPA/NASBA CPE Standards Committee reviewed the work of the task force and finalized its recommendations to the Standards.
Comment Period
The exposure draft is available for download at www.nasba.org/files/2011/08/AICPA-NASBA_StandardsExposureDraft.pdf or www.aicpa.org/Advocacy/State/Pages/State.aspx. Interested parties are encouraged to review and provide comment on the exposure draft by October 13, 2011. More information about the Standards is available at www.learningmarket.org/page.cfm/Link=114/nocache=12082011.
About NASBA
Celebrating 103 years as the trusted resource for
regulation and professional services, the National Association of State
Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) serves as a forum for the nation's state
boards of accountancy, which administer the Uniform CPA Examination,
license more than 600,000 certified public accountants and regulate the
practice of public accountancy in the United States. NASBA's mission is
to enhance the effectiveness of state boards of accountancy in meeting
their regulatory responsibilities. As part of its mission, NASBA
maintains the National Registry of CPE Sponsors, which recognizes CPE
program sponsors who provide CPE programs in accordance with the Standards.
The Association promotes the exchange of information among the
accountancy boards, serving the needs of the 55 U.S. jurisdictions.
NASBA is headquartered in Nashville, TN, with a satellite
office in New York City and an International Computer Testing and Call
Center in Guam. To learn more about NASBA, visit www.nasba.org.
About AICPA
The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (www.aicpa.org)
is the world's largest association representing the accounting
profession, with nearly 377,000 members in 128 countries. AICPA members
represent many areas of practice, including business and industry,
public practice, government, education, and consulting; membership is
also available to accounting students and CPA candidates. The AICPA sets
ethical standards for the profession and U.S. auditing standards for
audits of private companies, non-profit organizations, federal, state
and local governments. It develops and grades the Uniform CPA
Examination.
The AICPA maintains offices in New York, Washington, DC,
Durham, N.C., Ewing, N.J. and Lewisville, Texas. Media representatives
are invited to visit the AICPA Press Center at www.aicpa.org.