Pennsylvania passes licensure changes bill

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill on Thursday that establishes an additional path to CPA licensure, and it awaits Gov. Josh Shapiro's signature.

Backed by the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs, the legislation passed the Senate on June 11. It creates another pathway to licensure, in addition to the current 150-hour path, which requires 120 credit-hours, two years of experience and passing the CPA Exam. It also ensures interstate mobility, allowing out-of-state CPAs to practice in Pennsylvania.

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"The future is so bright — we're excited that the profession has come together to make this change to provide more access for candidates coming into accounting," said PICPA president Jennifer Cryder. 

Because the bill makes the pathway change effective upon being signed into law, Pennsylvania will be the first state whose law will go into effect, Cryder said, despite several other states passing similar bills earlier. Most recently, New York passed its bill on June 12, and Illinois and Minnesota passed bills in May.