2. The Legislature finds and declares that it is the policy of this State, and the purpose of this act, to promote the reliability of information that is used for guidance in financial transactions or for accounting for or assessing the financial status or performance of commercial, noncommercial, and governmental enterprises. The public interest requires that persons preparing financial statements accompanied by reports or professing special competence in accountancy or offering assurance as to the reliability or fairness of presentation of such information shall have demonstrated their qualifications to do so, and that persons who have not demonstrated and maintained those qualifications, including license holders not in public practice, shall not be permitted to hold themselves out as having that special competence or to offer that assurance; that the professional conduct of persons licensed as having special competence in accountancy be regulated in all aspects of the practice of public accountancy; that a public authority competent to prescribe and assess the qualifications and to regulate the professional conduct of practitioners of public accountancy be established; and the use of titles relating to the practice of public accountancy that are likely to mislead the public as to the status or competence of the persons using those titles be prohibited.

L.1997,c.259,s.2.