Nebraska § 1-136 - Public accountant; permits; issuance; fees; failure to renew; effect; inactive list.

§ 1-136. Public accountant; permits; issuance; fees; failure to renew; effect; inactive list.

(1) Permits to engage in the practice of public accountancy in this state shall be issued by the board to (a) persons who are holders of the certificate of certified public accountant issued under sections 1-114 to 1-124 and who have met the education and experience requirements of section 1-136.02, (b) partnerships and limited liability companies of certified public accountants registered under section 1-126, and (c) corporations registered under section 1-134 as long as all offices of such certificate holders or registrants in this state for the practice of public accountancy are maintained and registered as required under section 1-135.

(2)(a) Except as provided in the case of permits subject to subdivision (2)(b) of this section, the board shall charge an annual permit fee as established by the board not to exceed one hundred fifty dollars. All permits subject to this subdivision shall expire on June 30 of each year and may be renewed annually for a period of one year by certificate holders and registrants in good standing upon payment of an annual renewal fee as established by the board not to exceed one hundred fifty dollars. The board may prorate the fee for any permit subject to this subdivision issued for less than one year.

(b) The board shall charge a biennial permit fee as established by the board not to exceed three hundred dollars for permits issued under subdivision (1)(a) of this section. All permits subject to this subdivision shall expire on June 30 of the first calendar year after the calendar year of issuance in which the age of the certificate holder or the registrant becomes divisible by two, and may be renewed biennially for a period of two years by certificate holders and registrants in good standing upon payment of a biennial renewal fee as established by the board not to exceed three hundred dollars. The board may prorate the fee for any permit subject to this subdivision issued for less than two years.

(3) Failure of a certificate holder or registrant to apply for a permit within (a) three years from the expiration date of the permit last obtained or renewed or (b) three years from the date upon which the certificate holder or registrant was issued a certificate or registration if no permit was ever issued to such person shall deprive him or her of the right to issuance or renewal of a permit unless the board, in its discretion, determines such failure to have been excusable. In such case the renewal fee or the fee for the issuance of the original permit, as the case may be, shall be such amount as established by the board not to exceed three hundred dollars.

(4) Any certificate holder or registrant who has not lost his or her right to issuance or renewal of a permit and who is not actively engaged in the practice of public accountancy in this state may file a written application with the board to be classified as inactive. A person so classified shall not be issued a permit or be deemed the holder of a permit but shall be carried upon an inactive roll to be maintained by the board upon the payment of an inactive fee as established by the board not to exceed fifty percent of the fee charged persons actively engaged in the practice of public accountancy as provided in this section. A person so classified shall not be deprived of the right to the issuance or renewal of a permit and may, upon application to the board and upon payment of the current permit fee, be issued a current permit.

A public accountancy "certificate holder or registrant who has not lost his or her right to issuance or renewal of a permit," who may be classified as inactive pursuant to subsection (4) of this section, is a person who is otherwise entitled to issuance of a permit under the requirements set forth in the Public Accountancy Act. Forget v. State, 265 Neb. 488, 658 N.W.2d 271 (2003).