Structure of the accountancy profession in the USA
The structure of the USA accountancy profession reflects the country's underlying political philosophy in that considerable control is retained at state level. The principal organisations of the profession are:
- The 54 state boards of accountancy (i.e. the 50 states plus Washington DC and the overseas "commonwealths" of Guam, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands);
- the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA);
- the 54 State Societies of CPAs.
The State Boards of Accountancy are agencies of state governments and their employees are essentially civil servants. Each board operates under legislation enacted by each individual state and accordingly the regulations governing the training and licensing of accountants/auditors vary considerably.