ALJDEC decisions subject to certification as final
18F-2018.136-ACY · State Board of Accountancy · 2018-09-10
IN THE OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS
In the Matter of
Certified Public Accountant
Certificate No. 5480-R
Issued to:
ROBERT JAMES GAUGHAN,
Respondent.
No. 18F-2018.136-ACY
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE DECISION
HEARING: August 31, 2018
APPEARANCES: No one appeared for Respondent; Scott Donald, Esq. for the Board of Accountancy
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE: Thomas Shedden
_____________________________________________________________________
FINDINGS OF FACT
The Arizona State Board of Accountancy (“Board”) is the authority for regulating Certified Public Accountants in the State of Arizona.
On April 26, 2018, the Board issued a Complaint and Notice of Hearing setting this matter for hearing on June 8, 2018 at the Office of Administrative Hearings in Phoenix Arizona.
The issue for hearing is whether good cause exists for the Board to revoke, suspend, or take other disciplinary action against Robert James Gaughan (“Respondent”), who holds Certificate No. 5480-R issued by the Board.
The matter was continued and scheduled to convene at 8:30 a.m. August 31, 2018.
No one appeared for Respondent at the scheduled hearing time and the matter was convened in his absence at about 8:47 a.m. on August 31st.
Through a letter dated October 4, 2017, the Board informed the Respondent that he had been selected for a continuing professional education (“CPE”) audit for the period from November 1, 2015 through October 31, 2017.
Through a letter dated October 9, 2017, Respondent provided the Board with certificates and other information in response to the audit. Respondent reported eighty-two hours of CPE, whereas eighty was required.
The Board’s CPE Advisory Committee reviewed Respondent’s CPE information. The Committee found that Respondent had claimed forty-five hours of credit for lecturing/discussion leader, whereas the maximum allowed is forty hours, and the Committee had questions about the word-count in an article Respondent had authored. The Committee noted that depending on the word-count, Respondent might be entitled to only eight hours of CPE, whereas he had claimed twenty.
Through a letter dated December 14, 2017, the Board informed Respondent of the Committee’s concerns and providing that he could provide any additional information on or before January 13, 2018. The Board also informed the Respondent that a failure to comply with the CPE requirements could result in discipline.
Respondent did not provide the Board with any additional information and, through a letter dated April 2, 2018, the Board informed Respondent that it had voted to offer Respondent a “Decision and Order (By Consent)” to resolve the matter. The letter also informed Respondent that if he did not accept the Decision and Order (By Consent), the Board would file a Complaint and Notice of Hearing in the matter.
Through an email dated April 5, 2018, Respondent informed the Board that he had effectively retired in July 2017, that he saw no need to be registered as a CPA, and that consequently it would make no sense to accept the Decision and Order (By Consent). Respondent also wrote that he tried to explain this on the telephone in an effort to avoid additional waste of time on the matter.
As of the hearing date, Respondent had not provided the information required to show that he had completed the required eighty hours of CPE.
At the hearing, the Board requested that Respondent’s license be suspended and that Respondent be assessed the cost of the Board’s investigation in this matter.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
The Board bears the burden of persuasion. Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 41-1092.07(G)(2) and (G)(3).
The standard of proof on all issues in this matter is that of the preponderance of the evidence. Ariz. Admin. Code § R2-19-119.
A preponderance of the evidence is:
The greater weight of the evidence, not necessarily established by the greater number of witnesses testifying to a fact but by evidence that has the most convincing force; superior evidentiary weight that, though not sufficient to free the mind wholly from all reasonable doubt, is still sufficient to incline a fair and impartial mind to one side of the issue rather than the other.
Black’s Law Dictionary 1373 (10th ed. 2014).
PPE shows that Respondent did not comply with the requirement to complete eighty hours of CPE between November 1, 2015 and October 31, 2017. See Ariz. Admin. Code § R4-1-453(C)(1).
Ariz. Rev. Stat. section 32-741.02(A) provides that after notice and an opportunity for a hearing, the Board shall suspend the certificate of a registrant who is fails to show proof of compliance with the CPE requirements.
Because Respondent has violated the Board’s statutes and rules, the Board is also authorized to impose additional disciplinary action against him, including requiring him to reimburse the Board for its costs of investigations and proceedings. Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 32-741 and § 32-701(10)(g).
Considering the facts and circumstances of this matter, and particularly Respondent’s failure to appear at the hearing, Certificate No 5480-R issued to Respondent Robert James Gaughan should be revoked and Respondent should be ordered to reimburse the Board for the costs it incurred during the investigation and proceedings in this matter.
RECOMMENDED ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that Certificate No. 5480-R issued to Robert James Gaughan is suspended;
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Robert James Gaughan must reimburse the Board for the costs it incurred during the investigation and proceedings in this matter.
In the event of certification of the Administrative Law Judge Decision by the Director of the Office of Administrative Hearings, the effective date of the Order will be five days after the date of that certification.
Done this day, September 10, 2018
/s/ Thomas Shedden
Thomas Shedden
Administrative Law Judge
Transmitted electronically to:
Monica L. Petersen, Executive Director
Arizona State Board of Accountancy