In every state in the country, professionals are held to certain moral, legal, and knowledge related standards. Ensuring that every person in any given profession meets the minimal level of education, statewide organizations overseeing certification of professionals as well as the states themselves will employ continuing education requirements. With that in mind, lets take a moment to look at Texas CPA ethics and see how it helps to keep accountants well trained and accountable to both their clients as well as the legal framework put into place by the government.
The CPA (or certified public accountant) is a professional who has been certified by the organization to work under the title of CPA. What this means is that they have taken courses and passed classes relating to accounting. Through demonstration of their skill and ability, they can be relied upon by the general public to perform intelligently and professionally as it relates to their job. The CPA ensures that certified accountants are meeting these requirements by requiring that every member go through yearly and bi-yearly training as well as certification. One of the required courses in Texas is ethics.
Texas CPA Ethics
Texas CPA ethics courses cover topics, procedures, and actions that should be followed when professional accountants find themselves at the intersection between ethic and accounting. A lot of times, this means learning about how the code of conduct for any given company relates to how accountants perform their job. A lot of information like this is given during a course that straddles between ethical theory, core values, AICPA, Board of Accountancys ethical rulings, independent judgment in accounting, objectivity, integrity, and ethical reasoning skills.
The Course Itself
The ethics course itself is required to be taken every other year. The course is 4-hours long and ends with an examination. The course can be taken online or in public. However, be aware that any course you take has to be certified by the board and their lesson plan approved. Without that, there is no way your course will count towards the satisfaction of this requirement. Failure to take the course can result in you losing your certification.
Anything Else?
Texas CPA ethics courses should never be considered punishment for a lack of ethics, but rather a necessary subject requiring its own time. For those who have taken the course before, little changes between the years. What does end up changing is changed to reflect new laws, regulations, and working environments as they develop.