The Nevada State Board of Accountancy recently passed regulations that will now require licensees that perform audit, review, full disclosure compilation or other attestation services to engage in a practice monitoring program (Peer Review) to ensure that he or she is maintaining the standards of the profession. The following information is provided to you so that you can begin preparation to transition into the new requirement.

PEER REVIEW PROCEDURES

Understanding the Difference - Board vs. Society

The Nevada State Board of Accountancy (Board) is the licensing agency that regulates the license to practice and utilize the CPA designation. The Board requires that you submit peer review information to maintain your license in Nevada.

The Nevada Society of CPAs (Society) is the professional membership organization to which CPAs may choose to belong. The Society is the Peer Review administering agency for Nevada.

The following is a summary of the steps involved for licensees new to the peer review process.

Step 1: Enroll with Peer Review Administering Agency

Nevada Society of CPAs contact information: Peer Review Coordinator 3983 S McCarran Blvd, #512 Reno NV 89502 (775) 826-6800

Licensees must complete the Peer Review enrollment form via the PRIMA system with the AICPA at the following link: Peer Review Enrollment Form PDF

Once the agency has reviewed and processed the enrollment form, the licensee will receive an Enrollment Letter or Notice of Date of Initial Peer Review. This letter identifies the date by which the peer review must be completed.

Step 2: Year in Review

The Peer Review Due Date is based on 18 months (1 ½ years) from the date of the enrollment or the licensee's first engagement.

For Example:

Enrollment Date = August 19, 2008 Due Date = February 28, 2010

The 18 months is based on the following timeline to allow a year to pass in which the licensee will be under review then 6 months following the year of review for actual peer review and report approval process

For Example:

Year of Review = September 1, 2008 - August 31, 2009 Peer Review Scheduled & Conducted after September 1, 2009 Peer Review Approval Process

Note: THE PEER REVIEW CAN NOT BE CONDUCTED PRIOR TO THE YEAR IN REVIEW ENDING DATE.

Step 3: Background Information Required

6 - 9 months prior to the peer review due date, the administering agency will send the licensee a background form titled "Information Required for Scheduling Reviews". This form must be completed and returned to the administering agency within 30 days. Delays often occur when the licensee does not return the background form by the deadline date. Due process letters are sometimes sent to the licensee by the administering agency to assure completion of the required form.

For Example:

Due Date = February 28, 2010 Background Form Sent to Licensee = July / August 2009

Step 4: Schedule Peer Review

The licensee can schedule their peer review anytime after their year in review has completed (e.g. September 1, 2008) from the AICPA and State Society list of individual reviewers.

A list of reviewers can be obtained by visiting the AICPA website at www.aicpa.org - Professional resources>peer review>aicpa peer review program>reviewer search

It is noted that Nevada currently has seven approved reviewers. In the event a licensee does not wish to select a reviewer from Nevada, the licensee can choose another reviewer from out of state.

Step 5: Peer Review Conducted - Approval Process

Once the peer review has been conducted by one of the approved reviewers, a report is made by the reviewer and submitted to the administering agency.

The report is then sent to a Technical Reviewer for their review of the report (note Nevada has two technical reviewers). The report is then returned to the administering agency.

The administering agency then sends the report for additional review/approval to committee members of the Review Approval Board (RAB). Each committee member is assigned specific reviews based on their area of expertise. Three members look at each consent review and the non-consents are assigned to specific members to present individually during the RAB meeting.

The committee member(s) will then recommend or concur with the peer reviewer the additional course of action the licensee must follow if deficiencies were found in the peer review. Course of action can include a concurrent year peer review, continuing education, updated library reference material, modifications to correspondence, post or pre-issuance review of reports prior to client release, and any other recommendation to resolve the issue identified.

The RAB meetings are generally held 4-5 times per year. Once the report has received final approval the Letter of Acceptance is sent to the licensee by the administering agency.