The SEC is recruiting for a seat on the audit regulator's board, and the one hard requirement is never having been a certified public accountant

There is one absolute qualification for the job, and it is a disqualification.

Paul S. Atkins, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, opened the search on Tuesday for a member of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. Only individuals who have never been a certified public accountant are eligible to serve in this seat, the statement says, and the term runs to October 24, 2031.

The PCAOB was established by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and oversees the audits of the financial statements of public companies, brokers and dealers, through registration, standard setting, inspection and discipline. Under that Act the SEC, and not the board, selects its members and its chairman. The Act also fixes the qualification test, which Atkins quoted: members are appointed "from among prominent individuals of integrity and reputation who have a demonstrated commitment to the interests of investors and the public, and an understanding of the responsibilities for and nature of the financial disclosures required of issuers under the securities laws and the obligations of accountants with respect to the preparation and issuance of audit reports with respect to such disclosures."

Candidates send a cover letter addressing those criteria and a current résumé or curriculum vitae to boardrecommendations@sec.gov, on or by September 8. The window is three weeks. The SEC's Office of the Chief Accountant administers the selection.

Atkins added a line about the job that is worth reading twice. Board members serve the public interest, he wrote, "in a manner that minimizes unnecessary costs for the public companies, brokers, and dealers who ultimately fund the PCAOB's budget."