Minnesota approved a bill on Monday night to create additional pathways to CPA licensure, and it awaits the signature of Gov. Tim Walz.
As part of an omnibus bill, Senate File 3045, it creates two new pathways to CPA licensure: a bachelor’s degree plus two years of experience, or a master’s degree plus one year of experience. The new pathways will be effective Jan. 1, 2026.
The bill sunsets the current 150-hour credit rule after June 30, 2030, and establishes automatic mobility and practice privileges one day following the bill’s ratification. All candidates must still pass all parts of the CPA exam.
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“It’s a step forward in the right direction,” said Geno Fragnito, government relations director at the Minnesota Society of CPAs. “It allows some flexibility to hopefully bring in people who are on the fence about whether they could afford the extra year of education and whether the accounting profession fit into their long-term goals because of that.”
Generally, the governor has 14 days to act on the presented bill. Otherwise, without any action, the bill becomes law. Minnesota is one of more than a dozen states that have already passed changes to licensure requirements in an ongoing effort to address the profession’s talent shortage.
(Read more: “New ways to CPA”)
Minnesota was the first state to propose licensing changes in February 2023.
“Initial strong opposition eventually turned into support as more professionals, state societies, universities, government entities and businesses rallied behind broadening pathways to CPA licensure with the first state, Ohio, passing its law in January,” said an MNCPA blog post.
“There were a lot of people — chairs ahead of me and other people on the board and at the Minnesota society — that have done a ton of work on this and really deserve a lot of credit for all of the conversations they had and the testifying they did,” said MNCPA chair Eric O’Link. “We’re very appreciative of our legislative sponsors and everybody who helped make it a reality.”
