The legislation originally proposed by the Illinois CPA Society creates two new pathways to become a licensed certified public accountant in response to the state’s accounting talent shortage.
CHICAGO, May 23, 2025 – The Illinois CPA Society (ICPAS)—one of the largest state associations serving the certified public accountant (CPA) community—is proud to share that its legislation to evolve Illinois’ CPA licensure framework in response to talent pipeline issues, shifting demographics, and changing financial and audit regulatory standards, has passed the Illinois House and Senate.
The legislation, House Bill (HB) 2459, originally introduced in March by Reps. Natalie Manley, CPA (D-Joliet), and Amy Elik, CPA (R-Edwardsville), gained several co-sponsors and was unanimously passed out of the House in early April. In the Senate, the bill was supported by Chief Senate Sponsor Sen. Suzy Glowiak Hilton (D-Oakbrook Terrace) and Co-Sponsor Sen. Chris Balkema (R-Pontiac) and was passed unanimously on May 22, 2025.
The legislation amends the Illinois Public Accounting Act to create two additional pathways to CPA licensure in Illinois. These new pathways include:
- Obtaining a bachelor’s degree with a concentration in accounting, completing at least two years of relevant work experience, and passing the CPA exam.
- Obtaining a master’s degree with the required concentration in accounting, completing at least one year of relevant work experience, and passing the CPA exam.
The bill also preserves the state’s legacy licensure pathway, which requires aspiring CPAs to complete 150 credit hours of qualifying education, complete one year of relevant work experience, and pass all portions of the CPA exam to become licensed in the state—the pathway that’s been in place since 2001.
Additionally, the bill ensures that out-of-state CPAs can serve clients in Illinois without having to obtain an Illinois license if their issuing state’s licensure requirements are equivalent to Illinois’ and safeguards Illinois CPAs will have the same practice privileges across state borders.
For more than a year, ICPAS examined licensure pathway proposals and explored options to eliminate unnecessary barriers to entry into the CPA profession, most notably, the time and costs required to become a CPA. Working closely with the Illinois Board of Examiners and the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, ICPAS drafted this legislation to evolve the state’s CPA licensure model and address Illinois’ ongoing accounting talent shortage and growing need for CPAs to serve the business community and protect public interests.
“As states in the Midwest and across the nation move forward with their own legislation to protect and grow their CPA ranks, passage of this legislation is an important step in keeping Illinois’ CPAs at the forefront of the national business landscape; protecting the needs of our state’s businesses, nonprofits, and units of government; and ensuring there’s a pipeline of next-generation accounting talent ready to step up to serve,” says ICPAS President and CEO Geoffrey Brown, CAE. “We thank the legislation’s sponsors, co-sponsors, and other supporters who were instrumental in advancing this important initiative for the accounting profession in our state.”
The bill now moves to the desk of Gov. JB Pritzker for consideration and action.
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