Legislature(2025 - 2026)BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
04/22/2025 03:30 PM Senate STATE AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB116 | |
| SB102 | |
| SB26 | |
| HB121 | |
| SB35 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SB 116 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | SB 102 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | SB 26 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 121 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 35 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HB 121-ACCOUNTING; PRACTICE PRIVILEGE
4:48:52 PM
CHAIR KAWASAKI announced the consideration of HOUSE BILL NO. 121
"An Act relating to the practice of accounting; and providing
for an effective date."
4:49:48 PM
AMANDA NDEMO, Staff, Representative Calvin Schrage, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, presented the overview for HB 121
and moved to slide 2. She stated that Alaska faces a severe
certified public accountant (CPA) shortage, with exam candidates
down 30 percent nationwide since 2016. Current statutes create
unnecessary barriers, and HB 121 seeks to fix this by aligning
state laws with national standards.
4:50:30 PM
MS. NDEMO moved to slide 3, Section Analysis Summary, and stated
that HB 121 makes two key changes: lowers credit requirements
for CPA licensure and allows out-of-state CPA firms to practice
in Alaska through practice privilege. She said this aligns with
prior legislative updates.
4:50:55 PM
MS. NDEMO moved to slide 4, Education Requirement, and stated
that Alaska requires 150 credit hours and two years of
experience for CPA licensure, forcing candidates to complete 30
credits beyond a bachelor's degree.
4:51:20 PM
MS. NDEMO moved to slide 5 and discussed the following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Education Requirement
HB 121:
• Removes the 150 credit hour requirement for CPA
licensure (moving to a bachelors + two years of
experience model).
• Retains essential qualification requirements
-Passing CPA exam
-Bachelor's degree with an accounting
concentration
-Two years of relevant experience
4:51:44 PM
MS. NDEMO moved to slide 6, Practice Privilege: Current
requirements for out-of-state firms, and stated that HB 121
removes the requirement for out-of-state CPA firms without a
physical office in Alaska to obtain a state firm permit,
reducing administrative burdens while still allowing them to
serve Alaskan clients.
4:52:15 PM
MS. NDEMO moved to slide 7 and discussed the following points:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Practice Privilege
Current requirements for out-of-state individuals (AS
08.04.420 and 08.04.422)
• Licensed to practice public accounting in another
state
• The individual's licensing state satisfies
substantial equivalency requirements to the
qualifications required of an applicant for a
license in Alaska.
• Principal place of business for the practice of
public accounting is in that other state
• Consent to Alaska's jurisdiction and disciplinary
authority of the board
• Assign home state's board as agent for service of
process
• Do not need to provide notice, pay a fee, or
submit documentation
CPA license: license granted by the state of
application after all education, exam, and experience
requirements have been met.
"Principal place of business" office location
designated by an individual for the purposes of
substantial equivalency and reciprocity. AS
08.04.680(17).
"Practice privilege" means a practice privilege
authorized under AS 08.04.420. AS 0
MS. NDEMO said all the standards would be the same if Alaska
implements current changes for out-of-state firms.
4:53:09 PM
MS. NDEMO moved to slide 9 and discussed the following:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Benefits of HB 121
Increases the pipeline of CPA candidates
MS. NDEMO said this is done by amending the education
qualifications by lowering the credit hour requirements.
Encourages business growth and supports business needs
Regulatory oversight remains intact
Makes Alaska a more accessible market for accounting
professionals.
4:53:40 PM
MS. NDEMO moved to slide 10, Public Protection, and stated that
HB 121 ensures that high professional standards remain a central
condition for granting practice privilege by requiring continued
oversight from both the CPA's home-state Board of Accountancy
and Alaska's Board of Public Accountancy. This dual
accountability framework helps safeguard the quality and
integrity of services provided to Alaskans. In addition, the
bill strengthens the accounting profession, supports local
businesses by creating reciprocal opportunities for firms and
professionals, and positions Alaska to remain competitive in
attracting and retaining qualified accounting talent.
4:54:27 PM
CHAIR KAWASAKI referenced the 120- and 150-credit requirements
and asked whether the additional 30 credits must meet specific
criteria or if the credits are generally accounting related
courses.
4:54:45 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CALVIN SCHRAGE, District 12, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, sponsor of HB 121 replied that
there are no specific requirements for the additional 30
credits. Students typically meet them either by taking extra,
unrelated courses before committing to accounting, or by
pursuing a master's degree after completing their bachelor's
degree. He said many Alaska firms are concerned about losing
prospective accountants to out-of-state programs and would
prefer to keep candidates in state, combining education with on-
the-job training.
4:56:07 PM
SENATOR BJORKMAN stated there's separate legislation that
contemplates the idea of CPA's as conservators, without addition
training. He asked how would reducing CPA education requirements
affect the proposal to let CPAs serve as conservators without
additional training.
4:56:37 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SCHRAGE replied that reducing CPA education
requirements likely wouldn't affect their ability to serve as
conservators, since the extra 30 credits are often unrelated to
accounting. CPAs already gain significant financial expertise
through their degree, exam, and job training. He noted he isn't
an expert on conservatorship requirements.
4:58:01 PM
CHAIR KAWASAKI announced invited testimony on HB 121.
4:58:30 PM
BETH STUART, Office Managing Partner, Klynveld, PEAT, Marwick,
Goerdeler (KPMG) LLC, Anchorage, Alaska, testified by invitation
on HB 121. He shared his following testimony:
[Original punctuation provided.]
• Obtained my CPA license in 1996 and have
maintained it in good standing since that time;
nearly 30 years
• Appreciate consideration of HB121 in committee
today.
• Accounting professionals around the country are
concerned that the number of people entering the
accounting profession is declining, and studies
show this is in part because of the time and cost
of education required beyond a bachelor's degree.
• The Alaska board of accountancy is not alone in
trying to address the concern. There is a wave of
legislation across states to remove those "soft
30" additional credit hours required over a
bachelor's degree. As Rep Schrage mentioned,
these 30 credit hours are not required to be in
accounting, or even business. They could be
credits in underwater basket weaving. We do not
believe removing those 'soft 30' credits will
have an impact on quality of CPAs.
• The other element of HB121 that is supported by
the board relates to firm mobility. The purpose
of this section is to conform Alaska's firm
mobility laws with our existing individual
mobility laws, moving to a mobility model widely
recognized throughout the U.S. and recommended in
the UAA.
5:01:44 PM
KAREN BREWER-TARVER, Chair, Alaska Society of Certified Public
Accountants (AKCPA) Legislative Committee, Anchorage, Alaska,
testified by invitation on HB 121. She shared her following
testimony:
[Original punctuation provided.]
The AK SOCIETY of CPAS, overall mission is the
promotion, upgrading, continuation and unification of
the accounting profession. Society members are CPA
licensed in Alaska, as well CPA candidates.
The AK SOC OF CPAs AK legislative committee meet and
evaluated the changes proposed in HB 121. Our support
of HB121 was provided to our SOCIETY board who have
submitted a letter of support to the bill sponsors.
As previously shared regarding the education
requirements for licensure:
• HB121 allows a modernized path to licensure,
which will allow more candidates to become CPAs
and be available to serve Alaska residents and
businesses.
• Under the current statute employees working full
time often put off finishing additional credits
and reach the point of not pursuing licensure due
to the challenge of working while finishing
additional college credits. As a CPA firm
owner, I can share there is a shortage of
qualified accountants. Employees who get their
bachelor's degree (120 credits) want to start
working immediately as their work
responsibilities grow and personal obligations
increase the challenge of gaining the additional
30 credits creates a barrier to pursuing their
CPA license. The extra 30 credits also deters
many accounting students from pursuing the CPA
path and limits students entry into public
accounting as many firms will not hire students
without the 150 credits. If HB 121 were to pass
this allows candidates to pursue their CPA
licensure without the extra time and cost for the
additional 30 credits.
On a personal note, my son is graduating from high
school in May and plans to become a CPA I am
personally excited to let him know that he may only
have 4 rather than 5 years of college.
As previously shared related to FIRM mobility:
• HB121 allows CPAs licensed from other states to
serve clients in Alaska at a time when there is a
looming shortage of available service providers.
5:04:09 PM
MS. BREWER-TARVER continued with her testimony on HB 121:
Firm mobility has been a long time project for Alaska
STATE BOARD OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTANCY and the statue
changes in the past were leading up to this change to
align Alaska with other licensing jurisdictions.
During my 8 years on the state BOARD OF PUBLIC
ACCOUTANCY we worked with the AICPA and other
licensing jurisdictions to understand the impacts firm
mobility and the AK SOCIETY SUPPORTS THIS BILL AND
ALASKA ALLOWING FOR FIRM MOBILITY.
1.The changes noted in HB121 allow Alaska to
align with model national legislation, but more
importantly, changes that are being proposed and/or
enacted currently in many other jurisdictions
2.HB121 will allow more candidates to become CPAs
and be available to serve Alaska residents and
businesses.
3.HB121 allows CPAs licensed from other states to
serve clients in Alaska at a time when there is a
looming shortage of available service providers.
4.HB121 does not diminish the existing public
protection provisions contacted in the Statues and
regulations for Alaska CPAs.
5:05:32 PM
CRISTA BURSON, President, Alaska Society of CPAs, Anchorage,
Alaska, testified by invitation on HB 121. She shared her
following testimony:
[Original punctuation provided.]
Chair Kawasaki and members of the Senate State Affairs
committee my name is Crista Burson and I live in
Anchorage and I am the President & CEO of the Alaska
Society of CPAs. The Alaska Society of CPAs has over
600 members that include students, educators, and CPAs
and accountants in both public and private practice.
On behalf of our Board of Directors, the AKCPA would
like to express our support of the changes proposed in
HB 121. We are hopeful this legislation will assist in
filling the CPA pipeline shortage.
Recently I met with accounting students and faculty at
the University of Alaska Anchorage and the University
Alaska Fairbanks and discussions included HB 121.
Students were especially excited that the proposed
changes would help them enter the profession without
the additional expense and time.
Thank you for your continued efforts to protect the
public interest and for ensuring that Alaska has CPA
licensees to meet the current and future needs in
Alaska.
5:07:13 PM
TOM NEILL, Chair, Uniform Accountancy Act Committee, American
Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), Seattle,
Washington, testified by invitation on HB 121. He stated that
this legislation aligns Alaska's CPA licensing laws with the
Model Uniform Accountancy Act, bringing consistency with
national standards. Similar changes are already underway in 25
states, including Washington, Oregon, and California. HB 121
also updates firm mobility provisions, joining 37 other states
that allow out-of-state CPA firms to practice without added
permits.
5:08:23 PM
CHAIR KAWASAKI asked if most states were originally set at 150
credits and later reduced the requirement, or have they always
required 120 credits.
5:08:35 PM
MR. NEILL replied that most U.S. states currently require 150
credit hours, though recent changes to the Uniform Accountancy
Act aim to reduce that to 120. Since the extra 30 hours have no
specific requirements, the national trend is shifting back to a
four-year degree with an accounting concentration.
5:09:28 PM
CHAIR KAWASAKI opened public testimony on HB 121.
5:09:43 PM
THERESA OBERMEYER, representing self, Anchorage, Alaska,
testified in support of HB 121 and stated that the concept of
"practice privilege" originates from the legal field. She cited
Wisconsin's diploma privilege and similar rules in Washington
and Oregon that allow law graduates to practice without a bar
exam. Drawing on decades of family experience in law, she
expressed support for the bill and urged lawmakers to recognize
the parallels between accounting and legal practice.
5:11:58 PM
CHAIR KAWASAKI closed public testimony on HB 121.
5:12:11 PM
CHAIR KAWASAKI held HB 121 in committee.