Who We Are

The Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) is a professional association of more than 19,000 CPAs working together to improve the profession and better serve the public interest. Founded in 1897, the PICPA is the second-oldest CPA organization in the United States. Membership includes practitioners in public accounting, industry, government, and education. Headquartered in Philadelphia, PICPA has a government relations office in Harrisburg and a western regional office in Pittsburgh.

Affiliation with the PICPA represents commitment to the CPA profession, including adherence to the Code of Professional Conduct and to a stringent set of professional and technical standards. In addition to ensuring that standards are met, the PICPA provides information and resources that enable CPAs to enhance the quality of their services.

Our Mission Statement

PICPA’s founding purpose – preserving and promoting the interests of CPAs and the profession – serves to improve the industry, maintain the profession’s integrity, and provide better products for businesses and the public.

PICPA Mission Statement
The mission of the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants is to further the well-being of its members, while upholding the public interest by:

• Enhancing quality services founded on professional competence, integrity, and objectivity.
  
• Serving as an advocate for, and promoting the public image of, its members.
  
• Articulating positions on professional and public issues where the expertise of CPAs is relevant.

PICPA Foundation for Education & Research Mission Statement
The mission of the PICPA Foundation for Education & Research is to provide a broad spectrum of high-quality educational programs that enhance professional competence, integrity, and objectivity, without the participant fees for these programs exceeding what are necessary to continue this high-quality service.

PICPA Core Purpose
PICPA’s core purpose is to serve our members and to assist them in providing superior service to their clients and employers while enhancing their opportunities for success. PICPA is the best organization in the state to provide communities of CPAs with networking opportunities, to serve as an advocate for the profession while protecting the attestation function, and to help our members adjust to the changing environment in which they practice.

PICPA Value Statement
The PICPA team possesses these TRAITS when demonstrating our commitment to PICPA members:

Trust
Respect
Accountability
Integrity
Talent
Service-Orientation

Governance & Structure

The organizational structure of the PICPA is composed of the following:

• Council - The PICPA’s governing body. Council is composed of five officers, the immediate past president, ten elected members, and eleven chapter presidents.
• Foundation for Education and Research - Formed to provide a broad spectrum of high-quality educational programs to enhance the level of professional competence for CPAs.
• Committees - Committees, formed on both the state and chapter level, address an array of professional and technical issues by following specific objectives to reach their goals.
• Chapters - The membership of the PICPA is composed of 11 geographical chapters across the state, each led by a chapter president and a slate of officers. Members of the PICPA are automatically enrolled in a local chapter at no additional cost. Chapter membership provides individuals with a local support network that serves as a link to the state organization.
• PICPA Staff - The PICPA, headquartered in Philadelphia, with a government relations office in Harrisburg and a western regional office in Pittsburgh, employs a full-time staff to provide support for the organization’s broad range of activities. Collectively, staff members are known as the PICPA Team.