SECTION 527.5. Deficient Reviews

(a) The board at its sole discretion may require a firm which has received a rating of pass with deficiencies or fail to have an accelerated peer review or subject it to any other disciplinary or corrective action under the Act.

(b) A firm, including a successor firm, which receives two consecutive reviews on a system or engagement review with ratings of either pass with deficiencies or fail in any order, or two pass with deficiencies shall be required to have an accelerated review. If that accelerated review results in a rating of pass with deficiencies or fail:

(1) the firm may complete attest engagements for which field work has already begun only if:

(A) prior to issuance of any report, the engagement is reviewed and approved by a third-party reviewer acceptable to the chairman of the Technical Standards Review Committee or the Peer Review Committee; and

(B) the engagement is completed within 60 days of the acceptance of the peer review report and LOR by the sponsoring organization; and

(2) the firm shall not perform any other attest services until given permission by the board and if approved by the Board may do so only under the supervision of a third-party reviewer approved by the chair of the Technical Standards Review Committee or Peer Review Committee; and

(3) the firm may only perform an attest service not under the supervision of a third-party reviewer following the recommendation of the Technical Standards Review Committee or the Peer Review Committee with the board's approval.

(c) A firm, including a successor firm, which receives two consecutive reviews with a rating of fail on a system or engagement review shall not perform any other attest services until given permission by the board to resume this practice. The firm may complete attest engagements for which field work has already begun only if:

(1) prior to issuance of any report, the engagement is reviewed and approved by a third party reviewer acceptable to the chairman of the Technical Standards Review Committee or the Peer Review Committee; and

(2) the engagement is completed within 60 days of the acceptance of the peer review report and LOR by the sponsoring organization; and

(3) if approved by the Board, the firm may perform attest services under the supervision of a third-party reviewer approved by the chair of the Technical Standards Review Committee or Peer Review Committee; and

(4) the firm may only perform an attest service not under the supervision of a third-party reviewer following the recommendation of the Technical Standards Review Committee or the Peer Review Committee with the board's approval.

(d) A firm may petition the board in writing for a waiver from the provisions of this rule.

Source Note: The provisions of this §527.5 adopted to be effective October 16, 2002, 27 TexReg 9579; amended to be effective October 12, 2004, 29 TexReg 9540; amended to be effective April 15, 2009, 34 TexReg 2381; amended to be effective June 13, 2013, 38 TexReg 3609; amended to be effective August 4, 2016, 41 TexReg 5553; amended to be effective November 29, 2023, 48 TexReg 6911