Unethical or dishonest practices: Use of certain certifications and professional designations

1. A person engages in unethical or dishonest practices in the securities business if, without limitation, the person uses a certification or professional designation that: (a) Indicates or implies that the person has special certification or training in advising or providing services to older persons or retirees in connection with the offer, sale or purchase of securities or in the provision of advice as to the value of or advisability of investing in, purchasing or selling securities, either directly or indirectly, through publications or writings or by issuing or publishing analyses or reports related to securities if the person does not have such special certification or training; (b) The person has not earned or is otherwise ineligible to use; (c) Is nonexistent; (d) The person conferred upon himself or herself; (e) Indicates or implies a level of occupational qualifications obtained through education, training or experience that the person using the certification or professional designation has not obtained; or (f) Was obtained from a certifying or designating organization that, except as otherwise provided in subsection 2: (1) Is primarily engaged in the business of instruction in sales or marketing; (2) Does not have reasonable standards or procedures for assuring the competency of its certificate holders or designees; (3) Does not have reasonable standards or procedures for monitoring and disciplining its certificate holders or designees for conduct that is improper or unethical; or (4) Does not have reasonable requirements for continuing education for its certificate holders or designees in order to maintain the certificate or designation. 2. There is a rebuttable presumption that paragraph (f) of subsection 1 does not include a certification or professional designation that: (a) Does not primarily apply to sales or marketing; and (b) Was conferred by a certifying or designating organization that has been accredited by: (1) The American National Standards Institute; (2) The National Commission for Certifying Agencies; or (3) An organization that is on the list provided by the United States Department of Education entitled “Accrediting Agencies Recognized for Title IV Purposes.” 3. In determining whether a combination of words or an acronym standing for a combination of words constitutes a certification or professional designation indicating or implying that a person has special certification or training in advising or providing services to older persons or retirees, factors to be considered must include, without limitation: (a) The use of one or more words such as “elder,” “retirement,” “senior” or similar words combined with one or more words such as “chartered,” “certified,” “registered,” “adviser,” “consultant,” “planner,” or “specialist” or similar words in the name of the certification or professional designation; and (b) The manner in which those words are combined. 4. For the purposes of this section, a title of a job within an organization that is licensed or registered by a financial services regulatory agency of this State, any other state or the Federal Government is not a certification or professional designation if the title is not used in a manner that would confuse or mislead a reasonable consumer and the title: (a) Indicates seniority or standing within the organization; or (b) Specifies a person’s area of specialization within the organization. 5. As used in this section: (a) “Financial services regulatory agency” includes, without limitation, an agency that regulates broker-dealers, investment advisers or investment companies as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, 15 U.S.C. § 80a-3. (b) “Older person” has the meaning ascribed to it in NRS 200.5092.