1. (a) A sponsor review oversight program is hereby established for the purpose of monitoring the compliance by board contracted CPE sponsors and the courses they offer with board contracts, standards and board rules. The program shall emphasize high quality education and compliance with professional standards. In the event a sponsor does not comply with board rules, or instruction or materials are inadequate, the board shall take appropriate action.

2. (b) The board shall contract with a sponsor review oversight board (SROB) composed of five (5) persons designated by the CPE Committee. The board shall set compensation of SROB members from revenue received from sponsors requesting review.

   1. (1) Each member of the SROB must be a CPA in good standing with the board.
   2. (2) An SROB member must recuse himself or herself from service if the member has an interest in the sponsoring organization under review or if the member believes he/she cannot be impartial or objective.
   3. (3) An SROB member may not concurrently serve as a member of the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy or its committees, or of any CPA society's ethics committee or CPE committee.

3. (c) The SROB shall:

   1. (1) monitor board-contracted sponsors of CPE to provide reasonable assurance that quality CPE is being offered in accordance with board contracts, standards and rules;
   2. (2) review the policies and procedures of board-contracted CPE sponsors as to their conformity with the rules;
   3. (3) when necessary, prescribe actions designed to assure correction of the deficiencies in the curriculum or CPE;
   4. (4) report to the CPE committee as required;

   5. (5) communicate to the CPE committee on a recurring basis:

      1. (A) problems experienced with sponsor compliance;
      2. (B) problems experienced in the implementation of the review program; and
      3. (C) a summary of the historical results of the SROB.

4. (d) The procedures used by the SROB in monitoring of sponsors of CPE may include, but not be limited to:

   1. (1) random visits of sponsors as deemed appropriate, and review of course materials;
   2. (2) meetings with the sponsor to review educational materials and other record keeping documents;
   3. (3) reviewing the sponsor's educational philosophy;
   4. (4) reviewing, on the basis of a random selection, the course evaluations from licensees to determine whether the materials have received adverse comments;
   5. (5) expanding the review of records if significant deficiencies, problems, or inconsistencies are encountered during the review of the materials;
   6. (6) reviewing the applications submitted by the board-contracted CPE sponsors to determine that they will provide reasonable assurance of conforming to the minimum standards for offering high quality CPE; and

   7. (7) determining that courses offered by board-contracted CPE sponsors provide that:

      1. (A) education meets the needs of the licensees;
      2. (B) course material is up-to-date and relevant; and
      3. (C) adequate record keeping procedures are in place and specified occurrences requiring consultation are outlined.

Source Note:The provisions of this §523.147 adopted to be effective April 7, 2004, 29 TexReg 3482.