Members Approve New Category of Membership, Code of Conduct Changes

A proposed NYSSCPA Bylaws change and revisions to the Society’s Code of Professional Conduct were approved by the NYSSCPA’s CPA membership during a members meeting at 10 a.m. this morning at the NYSSCPA offices in Manhattan.

The meeting was officially announced in a special Sept. 1 issue of The Trusted Professional, which included information on the proposals and provided the text of the proposed changes to the bylaws and to the Code of Professional Conduct. Balloting materials were mailed with that special issue, and a final vote on the two proposals was taken during this morning’s members meeting. To become effective, proposed bylaw amendments must be approved by a 2/3 majority of the votes cast.

The first change is the addition of a new category of associate membership for non-CPAs working under the supervision of a CPA in industry, government or academia. A total of 2,645 valid proxy votes were cast; the proposal was approved by a vote of 2,263 to 382.

The NYSSCPA Membership Committee, chaired by Sherry DelleBovi, proposed amendments to the bylaws to create a new associate member category for non-CPA employees who are not employed in a CPA firm, but whose employment may include industry, government, not-for-profit or educational institutions, and are supervised by a CPA. This change was recommended based on the expanded scope of practice brought about under the Accountancy Reform Law of 2009. Such a change parallels the New York State Education Department’s acceptance of the work experience these individuals gain under the supervision of a CPA for their application to obtain a CPA license.

The second change is a set of amendments to the Society’s Code of Professional Conduct, and is intended to bring the code into alignment with the New York State Accountancy Reform Law of 2009. A total of 2,192 valid proxy votes were cast; the measure was approved by a vote of 2,066 to 126.

The revisions were proposed by the Society’s Code of Conduct Task Force, chaired by Past President Brian Caswell. The law expanded the scope of public practice to include all CPAs working in public firms, taxation, industry, academia, financial advisory and consulting. Many of the changes come directly from New York State law; these will assist the membership in complying with the changes therein. The task force also took this opportunity to modernize the ethical standards and guidance that apply to NYSSCPA members.

All of the proposals were vetted by the Executive Committee and submitted to the NYSSCPA Board of Directors, which deliberated the changes on July 13 and overwhelmingly approved them for submission to the membership.