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March 10, 2025 Politics & Policy

With accounting profession facing staffing ‘crisis,’ lawmakers debate creating new pathways to earn CPA certification

CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Bonnie Stewart, CEO of the Connecticut Society of CPAs, speaks at a press conference in Hartford.
By David Krechevsky

The state legislature’s General Law Committee is considering a bill that would offer more flexibility for state residents to become a certified public accountant.

House bill 7020, “An Act Concerning Certified Public Accountants,” proposes three different “pathways” to certification.

Brian Reilly, a CPA and chairman of the Connecticut Society of CPAs’ pipeline task force, is in favor of the changes.

He said the task force is composed of accounting professionals, business leaders, educators and accounting students.

“The CPA profession is facing a crisis,” Reilly states in testimony supporting the bill. “There is a deluge of Baby Boomer retirements expected in the next several years, combined with continuously lower accounting major enrollments in our colleges and universities.”

He continued, “At the same time, the demand for CPA services is increasing, driven by the growing complexity of tax laws, financial regulations, and business operations. Inaction will be detrimental to our state and lead to large repercussions for the economy.”

Reilly said the task force believes the existing state CPA licensure framework “no longer supports the profession’s current and future workforce needs, given the ongoing talent shortage and growing need for CPAs to serve the business community and protect public interests.”

The bill offers three pathways to CPA licensure:

  • Earning a bachelor’s degree, passing the state CPA exam, and two years of general experience;
  • 150 credit hours, passing the CPA exam, and one year of general experience; or
  • Earning a master’s degree, passing the CPA, and one year of general experience.

Broadening access

According to the state Department of Consumer Protection’s website, the current CPA certification requirements in Connecticut include passing the CPA exam, completing 150 semester hours of post-secondary education, and working for a minimum of two years.

The bill also allows the state licensing board to deny certification in Connecticut for any accountant licensed in another state if the board determines, in its discretion, that the standards of the other state do not meet those required in Connecticut.

John H. Schuyler, chairman of the Connecticut State Board of Accountancy, said he supports the legislative changes.

“The members of the State Board of Accountancy — the state’s regulatory agency for CPAs — are in favor of the proposals in the bill and feel it would have a meaningful and positive impact on the state’s CPA profession and business community,” Schuyler wrote in public testimony.

He adds that similar licensing pathways and mobility proposals “are active in more than 30 states across the country, making it imperative that our state acts now to ensure we remain relevant and competitive with our neighbors and the rest of the country.”

Bonnie Stewart, CEO of the Connecticut Society of CPAs, said the new licensure pathways would accommodate different educational and professional backgrounds, while also broadening access to the CPA profession, encouraging diversity and inclusion.

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