DATE

The Honorable (Insert Senator’s Name Here)

Georgia State Senate

Capital Address

Dear (Insert Senator’s Name):

I am writing to express my support for House Bill 246 (HB 246) which is currently on the Senate Rules Calendar for a vote in the Senate tomorrow on Thursday, March 19, 2015. As one of your constituents in Senate District XX (insert district here) of the state of Georgia and an advocate on behalf of the over 20,000 CPAs in Georgia, I ask that you support this piece of legislation. It is essential for the Georgia State Board of Accountancy (GSBA) to have the operational and regulatory oversight necessary to ensure that the GSBA can successfully fulfill its mission of protecting the public trust and the CPA profession.

CPAs are charged with protecting and promoting the public interest, most notably with regard to financial reporting, tax, audit, etc. The services that CPAs provide are most critical to the financial markets and have a tremendous impact on Georgia’s commerce, economic health, and citizens in terms of Georgia’s GDP and tax collections.

As introduced, this Bill would make certain the accountancy statute is as up to date as possible to ensure a properly functioning Georgia State Board of Accountancy (GSBA). The following changes to statute (through HB 246) are being pursued in 2015:

  • To establish the GSBA as an independent agency within the State Accounting Office. This is currently being achieved through executive order.
  • To move some administrative and enforcement related authorities (ability to create committees, ability to issue cease and desist letters, etc.) over to GSBA that were not carried over in last year’s bill (HB 291). These authorities are not new, they are simply moving over previously established authorities that will ensure a properly functioningGSBA. Additionally, these authorities are currently in place for all other professions operating as Professional Licensing Boards.
  • To update the Accountancy Statute’s definition of attest to reflect the most recently adopted version of the Uniform Accountancy Act. Through this process, and by adding the definition of “report” to Statute, unlicensed individuals would not legally be allowed to imply assurancesto organizations on their financial statements or financial reports while using the language of the CPA profession. This loophole needs to be closed in order to protect the general public from the default of allowing unlicensed individuals to imply these assurances using the CPA profession’s language.

HB 246 is an important and positive step for the CPA profession in Georgia, ensuring that the Georgia State Board of Accountancy is able uphold and fulfill its mission – to protect the public welfare by providing for the regulation of the practice of public accountancy and the certification of those who are entitled to engage in CPA practice.

Can we count on you to support this bill? Thank you for your service to our state!

Sincerely,

Your Signature