CPP CPP Professional Development 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which organization administers the Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) exam?
- American Payroll Association (APA) (Correct answer)
- Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)
- National Payroll Institute (NPI)
- Institute of Certified Payroll Managers (ICPM)
Correct answer: American Payroll Association (APA)
The APA administers the CPP exam and sets the standards for payroll certification in the United States.
Question 2: How many recertification credits (RCHs) must a CPP earn during each five-year recertification cycle?
- 60 RCHs
- 120 RCHs (Correct answer)
- 80 RCHs
- 100 RCHs
Correct answer: 120 RCHs
CPPs must earn 120 Recertification Credit Hours (RCHs) every five years to maintain their certification.
Question 3: Which of the following activities qualifies as a Recertification Credit Hour (RCH) for CPP maintenance?
- Completing personal tax returns
- Attending an APA-approved payroll seminar (Correct answer)
- Reviewing a payroll vendor's product demo
- Reading general business news articles
Correct answer: Attending an APA-approved payroll seminar
Attending APA-approved seminars, webinars, and educational programs earns RCHs toward CPP recertification.
Question 4: A payroll manager wants to earn RCHs by teaching a payroll course at a local community college. This activity is:
- Not eligible for RCH credit
- Eligible only if the course is APA-approved
- Eligible for RCH credit as a professional development activity (Correct answer)
- Eligible only during the first recertification cycle
Correct answer: Eligible for RCH credit as a professional development activity
Teaching payroll-related courses qualifies as a professional development activity and earns RCHs toward CPP recertification.
Question 5: Which professional competency area is most directly developed by participating in an APA chapter's local study group?
- Tax compliance
- Networking and professional community engagement (Correct answer)
- Payroll systems implementation
- Wage garnishment administration
Correct answer: Networking and professional community engagement
Study groups foster peer learning and professional community engagement, a core element of payroll professional development.
Question 6: The APA's code of ethics requires payroll professionals to handle employee data with:
- Transparency to all department heads
- Strict confidentiality and integrity (Correct answer)
- Open access within the HR department
- Disclosure upon manager request without restriction
Correct answer: Strict confidentiality and integrity
The APA Code of Ethics emphasizes confidentiality and integrity when handling sensitive payroll and employee information.
Question 7: A CPP who discovers that their employer is intentionally misclassifying workers to avoid payroll taxes is ethically obligated to:
- Follow employer instructions and process payroll as directed
- Report the issue internally and, if unresolved, consider escalating to authorities (Correct answer)
- Ignore the issue as it is outside the payroll function
- Immediately contact the IRS without any internal discussion
Correct answer: Report the issue internally and, if unresolved, consider escalating to authorities
Ethical practice requires raising compliance concerns internally first; if unresolved, escalation to relevant authorities may be warranted.
CPP CPP Professional Development 2
Which organization administers the Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) exam?