California

BOARD INFORMATION FOR REFERRALS:

California State Board of Accountancy
2000 Evergreen Street, Suite 250
Sacramento, CA 95815-3832
Phone: (916) 263-3680
Fax: (916) 263-3675
Website: www.dca.ca.gov/cba/

DO PES COURSES QUALIFY FOR CPE IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA? YES

California does not pre-approve continuing education programs or sponsors (except for the CA ethics course) and they do not have sponsorship agreements. They will accept courses from NASBA sponsors. We are a registered sponsor with NASBA and have issued credits in the state of California without any problems.

LICENSE RENEWAL INFORMATION:

• The board requires 80 hours of CPE every 2 years.
• For new licensees the board requires 20 hours for each full 6 month period following license.
• A minimum of 40 hours must be claimed in the following areas: accounting, auditing, taxation, consulting, financial planning, professional conduct, computer and information technology (not word processing) and/or specialized industry or government practices focusing on maintenance and/or enhancement of public accounting skills and knowledge for competently practicing public accounting.
• A maximum of 40 hours may be claimed in the following areas: Communication skills, word processing, sales, marketing, motivational techniques, negotiating skills, office management, practice management and personal management (course related to such subject matter are listed in the Personal Development area of the PES catalog).
• 8 hours of Professional Conduct and Ethics (PC&E) continuing education is required every 6 years (three renewal periods). PES course #4100: Ethics and Professional Conduct for California CPAs has been specifically reviewed and approved by the Board and will fulfill this requirement.

LICENSE EXPIRATION INFORMATION:

• Registrants born in even numbered years shall register during the month of their birth date in each even numbered year.
• Registrants born in odd numbered years shall register during the month of their birth date in each odd numbered year.

SPECIAL CPE REQUIREMENTS:

• Governmental A&A requirement: A licensee who engages in planning, directing, conducting substantial portions of field work, or reporting on financial or compliance audits of a governmental agency shall complete 24 hours of the 80 hours in the areas of governmental accounting, auditing or related subjects. This ce shall be completed in the same 2 year license renewal period as the report is issued. A governmental agency is defined as any department, office, commission, authority, board, government-owned corporation, or other independent establishment of any branch of federal, state or local government. Related subjects are those which maintain or enhance the licensee's knowledge of governmental operations, laws, regulations or reports; any special requirements of governmental agencies; subjects related to the specific or unique environment in which the audited entity operates; and other auditing subjects which may be appropriate to government auditing engagements. PES courses available to meet this requirement are: #5145 and #5405. **Special note: meeting this governmental CE requirement is deemed to have met the following A&A CE requirement but not vice versa.
• General A&A requirement: A licensee who engages in planning, directing, performing substantial portions of the work, or reporting on an audit, review, compilation or attestation service, shall complete 24 hours of the 80 hours in qualifying continuing education in the course subject matter pertaining to financial statement preparation and/or reporting (whether such statements are prepared on the basis of generally accepted accounting principles or other comprehensive bases of accounting), auditing, reviews, compilations, industry accounting, attestation services, or assurance services. PES courses available to meet this requirement are: #5065, #5085 (6 of 16 hours), #5120, #5140, #5145, #5150, #5245, #5270, #5385 (4 of 24 hours), #5405, #5410, #5415, #5425, #5430, #5495, #5660, #5685, #5690, #5695 ,#5700, #5740, #5745, #5750 (8 of the 16 hours), #5770 and #5790.
• FYI: The following A&A courses currently offered by PES do not meet either special cpe requirement noted above: 5170, 5235, 5365, 5380, 5390, and 5555.
• Fraud CE Requirement: Effective for all licensees whom qualify that are renewing on or after July 1, 2005: For licensees who are subject to the A&A or Government CE requirements listed above - the licensee must also complete an additional eight hours of fraud CE specifically related to the detection and/or reporting of fraud in financial statements. The eight-hours is part of the 80 hours of total CE required for license renewal, however, it is not part of the 24-hour A&A or Government CE requirement defined above. Fraud CE is not required for licensees who are not subject to the A&A and/or Government A&A CE requirement. The following PES courses meet this new requirement: #5065, #5140, #5150, #5695, #5700 and #5770.

CPE COMPLETION DUE BY:

• CPE must be completed by the license expiration date (the last day of the birth month for the year of renewal).

SELF STUDY CREDIT HOURS:

Credits granted for PES courses meet the Board requirement as being "interactive" based on the AICPA and NASBA (National Association of State Boards of Accountancy) statement of standards and grant 1 CPE credit for every 50-minutes of study time.

MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE SELF STUDY CREDITS: 100%

ACCEPTABLE AREAS OF STUDY:

Regulations state: "the overriding consideration is that it be a formal program of learning which contributes directly to the professional competence of a licensee. It is the obligation of each licensee to select a course of study, consistent with the requirements of this section and section 88.1 and 8.2, which will contribute directly to his or her professional competence."

Accounting/Auditing, Taxation, Management Services, Computer Information Systems, Statistics, Probability and quantitative applications in business, administrative practice, economics, business law, functional fields of business (finance, production, marketing, etc), specific areas of industry, environment of business (i.e. film industry, real estate). Personal Development courses are acceptable if they fall in the areas of: communication skills, word processing, sales, marketing, motivational techniques, negotiating skills, office management, practice manage and personnel management.

UNACCEPTABLE AREAS OF STUDY:

Personal growth, self-realization, spirituality, personal health and/or fitness, sports and recreation, foreign languages and cultures, and other subjects that do not contribute directly to the professional competence of the licensees are no longer acceptable for CE.

If you have any questions regarding your CPE requirements, please call PES at 1-800-990-2731 or your State board. Updated 4/17/2008.

(PLEASE NOTE: Since state board regulations are constantly changing, the information contained here is deemed reliable however it is not guaranteed. We encourage you to contact your state board to answer any questions and confirm or clarify any requirements listed here.)

Back to top