Who can review accountants and how the board oversees them

(a) A peer reviewer for a Hawaii supplement to the peer review report under section 466-36 shall be a person who: (1) Holds a permit to practice public accountancy under section 466-7; and (2) Is not affiliated with the firm being reviewed. (b) The board shall retain oversight of the peer reviewers for a Hawaii supplement to the peer review report by monitoring the peer reviewers to ensure that the peer reviewers are in compliance with subsection (a) and that peer reviews are conducted in accordance with the standards established under section 466-36. (c) Information concerning any peer reviewer that is obtained during the board's peer review oversight activities shall be confidential as required by section 466-32. (d) The board shall annually assess the qualifications of all peer reviewers for a Hawaii supplement to the peer review report based on a random selection of each reviewer's published Hawaii supplement to the peer review reports and shall determine whether the published reports comply with subsection (b). The board may suspend a person from being a peer reviewer for a Hawaii supplement to the peer review report for a period not to exceed one year for failure to comply with subsection (b). (e) A peer reviewer suspended under subsection (d) may appeal the suspension to the board at a public hearing that shall be an action or proceeding subject to discovery under the provisions of section 466-32(c).