Section 10821.5 Of Article 3. Regulation From California Insurance Code >> Division 2. >> Part 2. >> Chapter 9. >> Article 3.
10821.5
. (a) The purchasing alliance shall furnish an annual
financial audit to the commissioner on the forms provided by the
commissioner. The annual financial audit may be filed either on a
calendar year basis on or before March 31, or, if approved in writing
by the commissioner in respect to any individual purchasing
alliance, on a fiscal year basis on or before 90 days after the end
of the fiscal year. The deadline for filing the annual audit may be
extended by the commissioner for good cause, as determined by the
commissioner for a period not to exceed 60 days. Failure to submit an
audit on time, or within any extended time that the commissioner may
grant, shall be grounds for an order by the commissioner to
prohibiting the alliance from accepting any new business pursuant to
this section. The audits shall be private, except that a synopsis of
the balance sheet on a form prescribed by the commissioner may be
made available to the public upon request. The audits shall be
conducted and prepared in accordance with generally accepted auditing
standards by an independent certified public accountant or
independent licensed public accountant whose certification or license
is in good standing at the time of the preparation. The fee for
filing of the audit shall be three hundred thirteen dollars ($313).
Any purchasing alliance that fails to file any audit or other report
on or before the date it is due shall pay to the commissioner a
penalty fee of one hundred eighteen dollars ($118) payable within 30
days of the due date of the audit and on failure to pay that fine or
any fee or file the audit required by this section, shall forfeit the
privilege of accepting new business until the delinquency is
corrected. The commissioner may refuse to accept an audit or order a
new audit for any of the following reasons:
(1) Adverse result in any proceeding before the California Board
of Accountancy affecting the auditor's license.
(2) The auditor has an affiliation with the purchasing alliance or
any of its officers or directors that could prevent his or her
reports on the purchasing alliance from being reasonably objective.
(3) The auditor has been convicted of any misdemeanor or felony
based on his or her activities as an accountant.
(4) Judgment adverse to the auditor in any civil action finding
him or her guilty of fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation in the
practice of his or her profession.
(b) Financial and performance audits or examinations of the
purchasing alliance shall be conducted by the commissioner once every
two years. The cost of the examinations or audits are to be paid by
the purchasing alliance. The commissioner may impose conditions on
registration, or continued registration to remedy compliance or
performance problems.
(c) At any time the commissioner determines, after notice and
hearing, that a purchasing alliance registered under this article has
willfully failed to comply with any of the provisions of this
section, the commissioner shall make his or her order prohibiting the
purchasing alliance from conducting its business for a period not to
exceed one year.
Any purchasing alliance violating an order made under this
subdivision is subject to seizure under Article 14 (commencing with
Section 1010) of Chapter 1 of Part 2 of Division 1, is guilty of a
misdemeanor, and may have its certificate of registration revoked by
the commissioner. Any person aiding and abetting any purchasing
alliance in violation of that order is guilty of a misdemeanor.
The purpose of this section is to maintain the solvency of the
purchasing alliance subject to this article and to protect the public
by preventing fraud and requiring fair dealing. The audit shall be
designed to ensure that the purchasing alliance is not a risk-bearing
entity, to ensure sound financial controls and money management, and
to prevent mismanagement or misappropriation of funds either through
neglect or malfeasance. In order to carry out those purposes the
commissioner shall make reasonable rules and regulations to govern
the conduct of the business of the purchasing alliance subject to
this chapter.
(d) The commissioner shall establish fees for initial registration
of a purchasing alliance and for renewal of registration of a
purchasing alliance in an amount sufficient to cover the costs of
administering this chapter. A purchasing alliance shall pay the
initial registration fee at the time of application for registration,
and the renewal fee at the time of application for renewal.