The era of the 150-hour rule is waning.
Utah lawmakers recently passed legislation eliminating 150- and 120-credit hour requirements for CPA licensure in state statutes. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox is expected to sign the bill, which will then become law on July 1, 2026, according to the Utah Association of CPAs.
“This is a major step forward for the accounting profession,” Susan Speirs, CEO of UACPA, said in a statement. “By modernizing the licensure pathway, we are making the profession more accessible while maintaining the highest standards of competency and integrity.”
Utah will reportedly become the third state to shed the 150-hour rule, following in the footsteps of Virginia and Ohio, according to CFO Dive.
It’s not just lawmakers pushing for reform; many in the industry want to see licensure requirements loosened as well.
AICPA earlier this month presented proposed changes to the Uniform Accountancy Act for stakeholder comment, as CFO Brew previously reported. If adopted, the changes would open a new pathway for licensure that would allow students to obtain an undergraduate degree in accounting and work for two years before taking the CPA exam, as opposed to the extra year of college the UAA currently requires.
Last year, KPMG came out against the 150-hour rule. “The cost of becoming a CPA has become too high,” Paul Knopp, KPMG US chair and CEO, wrote on LinkedIn. Around the same time, an audit leader at PwC told Bloomberg she supported “alternative pathways into accounting.”
This report was written by Alex Zank and was originally published by CFO Brew.
