Committee hears bill to loosen CPA education and firm-mobility rules to address Alaska shortage

Amanda Ndemo, staff to Representative Calvin Shrogy, told the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee that House Bill 121 would "remove the outdated and, onerous requirement that students complete 150 credit hours" and make technical changes to practice privileges for out-of-state firms. Ndemo told the panel the changes aim to address a shrinking number of CPAs practicing in Alaska.

Beth Stewart, Chair of the Alaska State Board of Public Accountancy and managing partner of KPMG’s Anchorage office, and Karen Brewer Tarver, chair of the Alaska Society of CPAs’ legislative committee, both testified in favor of the bill. Stewart said the Board "believes that removing the extra credits requirements ... would encourage students to pursue accounting as a profession and remove that barrier to becoming a CPA." Brewer Tarver described a workforce shortage among licensed accountants and said the extra 30 credit hours beyond a bachelor’s degree deter many candidates.

Ndemo summarized the bill as updating "practice privilege" for out-of-state firms, removing the 150-credit-hour requirement, and permitting CPAs to more easily become licensed conservators with a streamlined path and education requirement tied to the Board’s oversight. Stewart and Brewer Tarver said the bill aligns Alaska’s rules with a broader national trend and with recent American Institute of CPAs model language.

The committee accepted invited testimony and then set House Bill 121 aside for future consideration at a subsequent meeting. Director Sylvain Raab of the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing was present and available for questions but no roll-call votes or final action were taken at this hearing.

Direct quotes and testimony in this account come from the committee record and invited witnesses during the May 14 hearing.