Mo. Rev. Stat. § 326.256

Current with changes from the 2024 Legislative Session

Section 326.256 - Definitions

1. As used in this chapter, the following terms mean:

(1)"AICPA", the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants;

(2)"Attest" or "attest services", providing the following services:

(a) Any audit or other engagement to be performed in accordance with the Statements on Auditing Standards (SAS);

(b) Any examination of prospective financial information to be performed in accordance with the Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements (SSAE);

(c) Any engagement to be performed in accordance with the auditing standards and rules of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB);

(d) Any review of a financial statement to be performed in accordance with the Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services (SSARS); or

(e) Any examination, review, or agreed upon procedures engagement to be performed in accordance with the SSAE, other than an examination described in paragraph (b) of this subdivision;

(3)"Board", the Missouri state board of accountancy established under section 326.259 or its predecessor pursuant to prior law;

(4)"Certificate", a certificate issued under section 326.060* prior to August 28, 2001;

(5)"Certified public accountant" or "CPA", the holder of a certificate or license as defined in this section;

(6)"Certified public accounting firm", "CPA firm" or "firm", a sole proprietorship, a corporation, a partnership or any other form of organization issued a permit under section 326.289;

(7)"Client", a person or entity that agrees with a licensee or licensee's employer to receive any professional service;

(8)"Compilation", providing a service to be performed in accordance with Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services (SSARS) that is presented in the form of financial statements information that is the representation of management (owners) without undertaking to express any assurance on the statements;

(9)"License", a license issued under section 326.280, or privilege to practice under section 326.283; or, in each case, an individual license or permit issued pursuant to corresponding provisions of prior law;

(10)"Licensee", the holder of a license as defined in this section;

(11)"Manager", a manager of a limited liability company;

(12)"Member", a member of a limited liability company;

(13)"NASBA", the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy;

(14)"PCAOB", the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board;

(15)"Peer review", a study, appraisal or review of one or more aspects of the professional work of a licensee or certified public accounting firm that performs attest or compilation services, by licensees who are not affiliated either personally or through their certified public accounting firm being reviewed pursuant to the Standards for Performing and Reporting on Peer Reviews promulgated by the AICPA or such other standard adopted by regulation of the board which meets or exceeds the AICPA standards;

(16)"Permit", a permit to practice as a certified public accounting firm issued under section 326.289 or corresponding provisions of prior law or pursuant to corresponding provisions of the laws of other states;

(17)"Principal place of business", the office location designated by the licensee for purposes of substantial equivalency and reciprocity;

(18)"Professional", arising out of or related to the specialized knowledge or skills associated with certified public accountants;

(19)"Public accounting":

(a) Performing or offering to perform for an enterprise, client or potential client one or more services involving the use of accounting or auditing skills, or one or more management advisory or consulting services, or the preparation of tax returns or the furnishing of advice on tax matters by a person, firm, limited liability company or professional corporation using the title "C.P.A." or "P.A." in signs, advertising, directory listing, business cards, letterheads or other public representations;

(b) Signing or affixing a name, with any wording indicating the person or entity has expert knowledge in accounting or auditing to any opinion or certificate attesting to the reliability of any representation or estimate in regard to any person or organization embracing financial information or facts respecting compliance with conditions established by law or contract, including but not limited to statutes, ordinances, rules, grants, loans and appropriations; or

(c) Offering to the public or to prospective clients to perform, or actually performing on behalf of clients, professional services that involve or require an audit or examination of financial records leading to the expression of a written attestation or opinion concerning these records;

(20)"Report", when used with reference to any attest or compilation service, means an opinion, report or other form of language that states or implies assurance as to the reliability of the attested information or compiled financial statements, and that also includes or is accompanied by any statement or implication that the person or firm issuing it has special knowledge or competence in accounting or auditing. Such a statement or implication of special knowledge or competence may arise from use by the issuer of the report of names or titles indicating that the person or firm is an accountant or auditor, or from the language of the report itself. The term report includes any form of language which disclaims an opinion when such form of language is conventionally understood to imply any positive assurance as to the reliability of the attested information or compiled financial statements referred to or special competence on the part of the person or firm issuing such language, and includes any other form of language that is conventionally understood to imply such assurance or such special knowledge or competence;

(21)"State", any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam; except that "this state" means the state of Missouri;

(22)"Substantial equivalency" or "substantially equivalent", a determination by the board of accountancy or its designee that the education, examination and experience requirements contained in the statutes and administrative rules of another jurisdiction are comparable to or exceed the education, examination and experience requirements contained in this chapter or that an individual certified public accountant's education, examination and experience qualifications are comparable to or exceed the education, examination and experience requirements contained in this chapter;

(23)"Transmittal", any transmission of information in any form, including but not limited to any and all documents, records, minutes, computer files, disks or information.

2. The statements on standards specified in this section shall be adopted by reference by the board pursuant to rulemaking and shall be those developed for general application by the AICPA or other recognized national accountancy organization as prescribed by board rule.

§ 326.256, RSMo

Amended by 2017 Mo. Laws, SB 395,s A, eff. 8/28/2017.

L. 2001 H.B. 567, A.L. 2002 H.B. 1600, A.L. 2008S.B. 788