Cite as: 512 U. S. 136 (1994)
Opinion of the Court
demonstrated with sufficient specificity that any member of the public could have been misled by Ibanez' constitutionally protected speech or that any harm could have resulted from allowing that speech to reach the public's eyes. We therefore hold that the Board's decision censuring Ibanez is incompatible with First Amendment restraints on official action.
I
Under Florida's Public Accountancy Act, only licensed CPA's may "[a]ttest as an expert in accountancy to the reliability or fairness of presentation of financial information," Fla. Stat. § 473.322(1)(c) (1991),2 or use the title "CPA" or other title "tending to indicate that such person holds an active license" under Florida law. § 473.322(1)(b). Furthermore, only licensed CPA's may "[p]ractice public accounting." § 473.322(1)(a). "Practicing public accounting" is defined as an "offe[r] to perform . . . one or more types of services involving the use of accounting skills, or . . . management advisory or consulting services," Fla. Stat. § 473.302(5) (Supp. 1992), made by one who either is, § 473.302(5)(a), or "hold[s] himself . . . out as," § 473.302(5)(b) (emphasis added), a certified public accountant.3
The Board learned of Ibanez' use of the designations CPA and CFP when a copy of Ibanez' yellow pages listing was mailed, anonymously, to the Board's offices; it thereupon commenced an investigation and, subsequently, issued a complaint against her. The Board charged Ibanez with (1)
2 This "attest" function is more commonly referred to as "auditing."
3 Florida's Public Accountancy Act is known as a "Title Act" because, with the exception of the "attest" function, activities performed by CPA's can lawfully be performed by non-CPA's. See Brief for Respondent 11- 12. The Act contains additional restrictions on the conduct of licensed CPA's. For example, a partnership or corporation cannot "practice public accounting" unless all partners or shareholders are CPA's, Fla. Stat. § 473.309 (1991), nor may licensees "engaged in the practice of public accounting" pay or accept referral fees, § 473.3205, or accept contingency fees, § 473.319.
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