Colorado § 12-100-120 - Grounds for disciplinary action - administrative penalties.

§ 12-100-120. Grounds for disciplinary action - administrative penalties.

(1) After notice and hearing as provided in section 12-100-123, the board may take disciplinary or other action as authorized in section 12-20-404 and impose other conditions or limitations on a person for any of the following causes:

(a) Fraud or deceit in obtaining or in attempting to obtain a certificate as a certified public accountant or in obtaining registration under this article 100;

(b) Fraud or negligence in the practice of public accounting in Colorado or any other state or in the filing of or failure to file the certified public accountant's own income tax returns;

(c) Violation of any provision of this article 100 or an applicable provision of article 20 of this title 12, of any final rule promulgated by the board, or of any valid agency order;

(d) Violation of a rule of professional conduct promulgated by the board under the authority granted by this article 100;

(e) Conviction of a felony or of a crime, an element of which is dishonesty or fraud, under the laws of any state or of the United States. For the purposes of this subsection (1)(e), a plea of guilty or a plea of nolo contendere accepted by the court shall be considered as a conviction.

(f) Discipline taken against the person's authority to practice as a certified public accountant or a public accountant in any jurisdiction;

(g) Discipline taken against the person's right to practice before any state or federal agency or agency outside the United States or the public company accounting oversight board, created by the federal "Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002", 15 U.S.C. sec. 7201 et seq., as amended, for improper conduct or willful violation of the rules or regulations of the state or federal agency or the public company accounting oversight board;

(h) Without an active certificate of certified public accountant or a valid registration:

(I) Providing certified public accounting services to the public for a fee; or

(II) Acting as a resident manager of an entity that is subject to section 12-100-114;

(i) Failure to comply with the requirements for continuing education as prescribed by the board;

(j) An act or omission that fails to meet generally accepted accounting principles or generally accepted auditing standards in the profession;

(k) Use of false, misleading, or deceptive advertising;

(l) A substance use disorder, as defined in section 27-81-102, or an excessive use of a habit-forming drug, controlled substance, as defined in section 18-18-102 (5), or alcohol beverage that renders the certified public accountant unfit to practice public accounting;

(m) Failure to retain records of the work performed for each client for a period of five years;

(n) Failure of a partnership, professional corporation, or limited liability company to register with the board pursuant to section 12-100-114 and to renew the registration as prescribed by the board;

(o) Fraudulent, coercive, or dishonest practices or demonstrated incompetence, untrustworthiness, or financial irresponsibility in Colorado, another state, a United States territory, or a foreign country.

(2) In considering the conviction of crimes, as provided in subsection (1)(e) of this section, the board shall be governed by the provisions of sections 12-20-202 (5) and 24-5-101.

(3) In addition to any other penalty that may be imposed pursuant to this section, any person violating this article 100 or any rules promulgated pursuant to this article 100 may be fined upon a finding of misconduct by the board as follows, either:

(a) In a proceeding against a certificant, a fine not in excess of five thousand dollars per violation; or

(b) In a proceeding against a registrant, a fine not in excess of ten thousand dollars per violation.

Source: L. 2019: Entire title R&RE with relocations, (HB 19-1172), ch. 136, p. 812, § 1, effective October 1; IP(1) and (1)(h) amended and (1)(o) added, (SB 19-155), ch. 235, p. 2337, § 18, effective October 1. L. 2020: (1)(l) amended, (SB 20-007), ch. 286, p. 1410, § 28, effective July 13.

Editor's note: (1) This section is similar to former § 12-2-123 as it existed prior to 2019.

(2) Before its relocation in 2019, this section was amended in SB 19-155. Those amendments were superseded by the repeal and reenactment of this title 12, effective October 1, 2019. For those amendments to the former section in effect from July 1, 2019, to October 1, 2019, see SB 19-155, chapter 235, Session Laws of Colorado 2019.

ANNOTATION

Law reviews. For note, "Licensing of Occupations and Professions in Colorado", see 35 Dicta 235 (1958).

Annotator's note. The following annotations include cases decided under former provisions similar to this section.

For evidence sufficient to support finding of gross negligence, see Mertsching v. Webb, 757 P.2d 1102 (Colo. App. 1988).

Applied in McGee v. State Bd. of Accountancy, 169 Colo. 87, 453 P.2d 800 (1969); People ex rel. State Bd. of Accountancy v. McFarland, 37 Colo. App. 93, 543 P.2d 112 (1975).