State Codes and Statutes

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442.04

442.04 Certified public accountants; qualifications.

442.04(1)

(1) The examining board shall grant a certificate as a certified public accountant to all persons who become entitled thereto under this section and s. 442.05. A certificate is permanent unless revoked and not subject to periodic renewal.

442.04(2)

(2) Examinations shall be held by the examining board at least once in each year at such times and places as are determined by the examining board. Notice of the time and place of each examination shall be published, as a class 2 notice, under ch. 985, in at least one daily newspaper published in the city of Milwaukee, and in at least one daily newspaper published in the city of Madison, with the last insertion not less than 30 days prior to the date of such examination. Not less than 30 days prior to each examination, each applicant who has made inquiry prior to the first insertion, shall be notified by mail by the department, at the address mentioned in the application, of the time and place of the examination.

442.04(4)

(4)

442.04(4)(a)

(a) In this subsection, "institution" means a bachelor's degree-granting institution of higher education accredited by the commission on institutions of higher education of the north central association of colleges and schools or its regional equivalent.

442.04(4)(bm)

(bm) A person may not take the examination leading to the certificate to practice as a certified public accountant unless the person has completed at least 150 semester hours of education with an accounting concentration at an institution, and has received a bachelor's or higher degree with an accounting concentration from an institution, except as provided in par. (c).

442.04(4)(c)

(c) If an applicant has a bachelor's or higher degree from an institution but does not have an accounting concentration required in par. (bm), the examining board may review such other educational experience from an institution as the applicant presents and, if the examining board determines that such other experience provides the reasonable equivalence of an accounting concentration required in par. (bm), the examining board shall approve the applicant for examination.

442.04(5)

(5) The examining board may not grant a certificate as a certified public accountant to any person other than a person who is 18 years of age or older, does not have an arrest or conviction record, subject to ss. 111.321, 111.322, and 111.335, and, except as provided in s. 442.05, has successfully passed an examination in such subjects affecting accountancy as the examining board considers necessary. The examining board may not grant the certificate unless the applicant has at least one year of public accounting experience or its equivalent, the sufficiency of the experience or the equivalency to be judged by the examining board. The examining board shall ensure that evaluation procedures and examinations are nondiscriminatory, relate directly to accountancy, and are designed to measure only the ability to perform competently as an accountant. The examining board may use the examination service provided by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

442.04 - ANNOT.

History: 1975 c. 224; 1977 c. 219, 418; 1979 c. 337; 1981 c. 356, 380, 391; 1995 a. 333; 2001 a. 16.

442.04 - ANNOT.

Cross Reference: See also ss. Accy 7.01 and 8.01, Wis. adm. code.