Georgia Administrative Code

The Board shall consist of seven members to be appointed by the Governor with the approval of the Senate. Any such appointment made when the Senate is not in session shall be effective until the appointment is acted upon by the Senate. Each member of the Board shall be a resident…

The officers of this Board shall be a Chairperson and Vice Chairperson, who shall be elected from the members at each annual meeting and shall serve for the term of one year or until their successors have been elected and qualified. The Board's Executive Director shall be the sec…

The Chairperson shall preside at all meetings and shall perform such other duties as this Board may direct. The Vice Chairperson shall preside in the absence of the Chairperson.

(1) Meetings of the Board shall be conducted in accordance with Robert's Rules of Order insofar as they are not incompatible with the laws of this state or its own resolutions as to its conduct. (2) All meetings of the Board shall be open to the public; provided, however, that th…

This Board shall designate the forms necessary for a full and complete record to be kept by its officers.

The Office of the Board ("Office") shall be that of the State Accounting Office.

Section 43-3-8 of the Act provides that the Board may prescribe rules and regulations for the conduct of its affairs and for the administration of the Act. Further regulations or amendments will be adopted or amended in accordance with the provisions of the Georgia Administrative…

A license to engage in the practice of public accountancy in this state will be issued to each individual who has been approved for licensure as a CPA.

(1) All licenses to practice public accountancy in this state issued to individuals will expire on December 31 of each odd numbered year and shall be biennially renewable. (2) Without a current license, it is unlawful to practice public accountancy in this state. (3) Applications…

(1) Renewal applications submitted during the four months penalty period following license expiration will be considered penalty period applications. (2) Penalty period applications must be accompanied by a penalty fee of $100.00, an affirmation that the continuing professional e…

(1) An application for reinstatement of an expired license shall be accompanied by: (a) A reinstatement fee of $300.00; and (b) Evidence, satisfactory to the Board, of the completion of continuing professional education as specified below: 1. Forty hours of continuing professiona…

(1) CPAs by virtue of their training have been certificated or licensed by the Board and, therefore, are eligible to provide the public with needed professional services not otherwise available. In furnishing these services, the CPA occupies a unique position of public trust. It …

(1) An applicant for renewal of his or her individual license to practice as a CPA must have completed 80 hours of acceptable continuing professional education, of which 16 hours shall be in accounting and auditing subjects, during the two-year period immediately preceding each b…

(1) The overriding consideration in determining whether a specific program qualifies as acceptable continuing education is that it be a formal program of learning which contributes directly to the professional competence of an individual licensed to practice as a CPA or a foreign…

(1) An applicant for renewal of a license to practice public accountancy must provide a signed statement, under penalty of perjury, that all applicable continuing education requirements have been met. (2) All licensees shall maintain their records confirming attendance at and com…

The following standards will be used to measure the hours of credit to be given for acceptable continuing education programs completed by individual applicants: (a) Programs requiring class or meeting attendance: 1. All programs will be measured in terms of twenty-five minute seg…

(1) This Code of Professional Conduct is promulgated under the authority granted by Code Section 43-3-8(a)(2), which delegates to the Board the power and duty to prescribe rules of professional conduct for establishing and maintaining high standards of competence and integrity in…

A licensee shall not express an opinion on financial statements of an enterprise in such a manner as to imply that he or she is acting as an independent public accountant with respect thereto unless he or she is independent with respect to such enterprise. Independence will be co…

A licensee shall not in the performance of professional services knowingly misrepresent facts, nor subordinate his or her judgment to others. In tax practice, however, a licensee may resolve doubt in favor of his or her client as long as there is reasonable support for his or her…

(1) "Commission" means any item of value given or received by a licensee to or from any third party in return for suggesting the purchase of any product or service. (2) A licensee shall not recommend or refer to a client any product or service in exchange for a commission, recomm…

(1) "Contingent fee" means a fee established for the performance of any public accountancy service pursuant to a written or oral agreement in which no fee will be charged unless a specified finding or result is attained, or in which the amount of the fee is otherwise dependent up…

A licensee shall not concurrently engage in the practice of public accountancy and in any other business or occupation which impairs his or her independence or objectivity in rendering professional services.

A licensee shall not undertake any engagement for the performance of professional services which he or she cannot reasonably expect to complete with due professional competence, including compliance, where applicable, with Rules 20-12-.08 and 20-12-.09.

A licensee shall not permit his or her name to be associated with financial statements in such a manner as to imply that he or she is acting as an independent public accountant with respect to such financial statements unless he or she has complied with applicable generally accep…

A licensee shall not express an opinion that financial statements are presented in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles if such financial statements contain any departure from such accounting principles which has a material effect on the financial statements t…

A licensee shall not in the performance of professional services permit his or her name to be used in conjunction with any forecast of future transactions in a manner which may reasonably lead to the belief that the licensee vouches for the achievability of the forecast.

A licensee shall not without the consent of his or her client disclose any confidential information pertaining to his or her client obtained in the course of performing professional services. (a) This Rule does not: 1. Relieve a licensee of any obligations under Rules 20-12-.08 a…

A licensee shall furnish to his or her client or former client, upon request made within a reasonable time: (a) Any accounting or other records belonging to, or obtained from or on behalf of, the client which the licensee removed from the client's premises or received for the cli…

A licensee shall not commit any act that reflects adversely on his or her fitness to engage in the practice of public accountancy.

A licensee shall not permit others to carry out on his or her behalf, either with or without compensation, acts which, if carried out by the licensee would place him or her in violation of the Rules of Conduct.

(1) A licensee shall not use or participate in the use of any form of public communication having reference to his or her professional services which contains a false, fraudulent, misleading, deceptive or unfair statement or claim. A false, fraudulent, misleading, deceptive or un…

(1) A licensee may practice public accountancy only in a partnership, an association, a corporation, or any legal entity which practices public accountancy. (2) A CPA or foreign accountant may only practice public accountancy in any legal entity in which a simple majority of the …

A licensee shall not practice public accountancy under a firm name which is misleading in any way as to the legal form of the firm or as to the individuals who are partners, members, officers or shareholders of the firm, or as to any matter with respect to which public communicat…

A licensee shall, when requested, respond to communications from the Board within thirty days of the mailing of such communications by registered or certified mail.

In the performance of services in the practice of public accountancy for which standards have been established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants or by other entities having similar generally recognized authority, a licensee shall conform to such standards.…

The purpose of these Rules is to prescribe the requirements for the peer review; monitor compliance with applicable accounting and auditing standards adopted by generally recognized standard-setting bodies; emphasize education, including appropriate education programs or remedial…

(1) Each firm that has issued an attest or compilation report within the twenty-four (24) months preceding the date of expiration of the firm's license must submit, with the application for renewal, evidence of satisfactory completion of a Board approved peer review. The Board ap…

(1) The Board adopts "Standards for Performing and Reporting on Peer Review" promulgated by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, as its minimum standards for an approved peer review. This shall not require a membership in any specific organization conducting or…

(1) The Board shall as it deems necessary, appoint a Peer Review Oversight Committee ("Committee") which shall be chaired by a member of the Board. Members of the Committee shall serve at the pleasure of the Board and may include persons who are not members of the Board, but a ma…

(1) A firm that has been licensed for two years or less at the time of the firm's renewals shall be exempted from the requirement of submitting evidence of satisfactory completion of a Board approved peer review. (2) The Board may waive or modify the requirement of submitting evi…

Rules 20-14-.01 through 20-14-.42 govern procedure in "contested cases" as that term is defined in the Georgia Administrative Procedure Act (O.C.G.A. 50-13-2(2)) and which are conducted before the Board.

(1) The Board shall keep a book known as a docket, which shall be arranged by a sequential numbering system for each case or other matter and shall show for each case or matter, as permitted by law, all proceedings, actions and filings. (2) The Board shall keep a docket index by …

The Office of the Board shall be open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. each weekday except Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays.

All communications, including correspondence, motions, and pleadings, shall be filed with the Board. Copies shall be furnished to all parties of record, including the attorney representing the State. An original and one duplicate of all correspondence, motions, and pleadings shal…