CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 5

Honolulu, Hawaii

                 , 2017

RE:    S.B. No. 609

       H.D. 1

       C.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sirs:

     Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 609, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ATTESTATION ENGAGEMENTS,"

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

     The purpose of this measure is to require that peer reviews performed on public accounting firms are performed in accordance with the entirety of the Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements adopted by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).

     Your Committee on Conference finds that the Board of Public Accountancy's Peer Review Program encompasses the framework and implementation guidelines of the peer review program of the AICPA.  The Board has adopted the Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements of the AICPA (AICPA Standards) as the benchmark for the evaluation and peer review of the provision of attestation services by Certified Public Accountants and Certified Public Accountant firms and requires all licensees under its jurisdiction to adhere to these AICPA Standards when performing engagements that require the provision of attestation services.

     This measure deletes the specific reference to AT section 201 of the AICPA Standards to instead require that peer review procedures be subject to all of the AICPA Standards, which will enable the Board to make references to the pertinent sections of the AICPA Standards as needed.

     Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by changing its effective date to upon approval.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 609, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 609, H.D. 1, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

____________________________ TAKASHI OHNO Co-Chair	____________________________ ROSALYN H. BAKER Chair
____________________________ ROY M. TAKUMI Co-Chair