House Bill No. 870 - Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute - Board of Accountancy

Sep 4, 2026

Uploaded by Patrick

A Virginia House Bill proposes to amend and reenact specified sections of the Code of Virginia governing the Virginia Board of Accountancy. The bill focuses on licensing requirements and establishes related definitions used in the chapter, including terms for accredited institutions, assurance, attest services, compilation services, continuing professional education, and licensure concepts. It also addresses experience verification by an active licensed CPA and introduces mechanisms such as FSBA for peer review access, along with standards for professional services.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages2

Reading Time5 min

AccessFree to download

House Bill No. 870

Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute

Proposed Changes to Code of Virginia Sections 54.1-4400 and 54.1-4409.1

Key Definitions for the Board of Accountancy Chapter

2/3/26 18:08 2026 SESSION HOUSE SUBSTITUTE 26106693D 1 HOUSE BILL NO. 870 2 AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE 3 (Proposed by the House Committee on General Laws 4 on February 3, 2026) 5 (Patrons Prior to Substitute—Delegates Carroll and McNamara [HB 228]) 6 A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 54.1-4400 and 54.1-4409.1 of the Code of Virginia, relating to Board of 7 Accountancy; licensing requirements; inactive and emeritus status. 8 Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia: 9 1. That §§ 54.1-4400 and 54.1-4409.1 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows: 10 § 54.1-4400. Definitions. 11 As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: 12 "Accredited institution" means a degree-granting institution of higher education accredited either by (i) 13 one of the regional accrediting organizations, including the Middle States Association of Colleges and 14 Schools, New England Commission of Higher Education, Higher Learning Commission, Northwest 15 Commission on Colleges and Universities, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on 16 Colleges, and WASC Senior College and University Commission, or their successors or (ii) an accrediting 17 organization demonstrating to the Board periodically, as prescribed by the Board, that its accreditation 18 process and standards are substantially equivalent to the accreditation process and standards of the regional 19 accrediting organizations. 20 "Assurance" means any form of expressed or implied opinion or conclusion about the conformity of a 21 financial statement with any recognition, measurement, presentation, or disclosure principles for financial 22 statements. 23 "Attest services" means audit, review, or other engagements performed in accordance with the standards 24 that have been established by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, by the Auditing Standards 25 Board or the Accounting and Review Services Committee of the American Institute of Certified Public 26 Accountants, or by any successor standard-setting authorities. 27 "Board" means the Virginia Board of Accountancy. 28 "Compilation services" means compiling financial statements in accordance with standards established by 29 the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants or by any successor standard-setting authorities. 30 "Continuing professional education" means the education that a person obtains after passing the CPA 31 examination and that relates to services provided to or on behalf of an employer in academia, government, or 32 industry or to services provided to the public. 33 "CPA" means certified public accountant. 34 "CPA examination" means the national uniform CPA examination approved and administered by the 35 board of accountancy of a state or by the board's designee. 36 "CPA wall certificate" means the symbolic document suitable for wall display that is issued by the board 37 of accountancy of a state to a person meeting the requirements to use the CPA title in that state. 38 "Executive Director" means the Executive Director of the Board. 39 "Experience" means employment in academia, a firm, government, or an industry in any capacity 40 involving the substantial use of accounting, financial, tax, or other skills that are relevant, as determined by 41 the Board, to provide services to or on behalf of an employer or to the public. Such experience must be 42 verified by an active, licensed CPA. 43 "Facilitated State Board Access" or "FSBA" means the sponsoring organization's process whereby it 44 provides the Board access to peer review results via a secure website. 45 "Financial statement" means a presentation of historical or prospective financial information about one or 46 more persons or entities. 47 "Financial statement preparation services" means engaging a licensee in public practice for financial 48 statement preparation services executed in accordance with the standard

FAQs

What is the purpose of House Bill No. 870?

House Bill No. 870 proposes to amend and reenact Virginia Code sections governing the Virginia Board of Accountancy, focusing on licensing requirements and related status concepts.

Which Code of Virginia sections are targeted for amendment?

The bill amends and reenacts §§ 54.1-4400 and 54.1-4409.1 of the Code of Virginia.

How does the bill define important CPA-related terms?

It provides definitions for terms used in the chapter, including accredited institution, assurance, attest services, compilation services, continuing professional education, and licensed/licensee concepts, as well as how experience must be verified by an active licensed CPA.

Sep 4, 2026

Uploaded by Patrick