Why Indiana CPAs should pay attention.
When Florida lawmakers introduced House Bill 1461 earlier this year, it set off alarm bells throughout the state’s accounting profession. The proposed legislation, which was eventually amended into HB 991 and then SB 110, would have eliminated all occupational licensing boards, including the Florida Board of Accountancy, and stripped away continuing professional education (CPE) requirements for CPAs.
The Florida Institute of CPAs (FICPA) immediately went to work, opposing the bill and calling it a fundamental threat to public trust, audit quality, and the very definition of a CPA. It wasn’t just another regulatory proposal; it was a deregulatory earthquake.
And it may not be confined to Florida for long.
As Indiana CPAs consider how the profession is evolving through modernization, new pathways to licensure, and ongoing workforce challenges, it’s critical to understand how similar deregulatory efforts could take hold in our state. What unfolded in Florida this year could easily serve as a playbook for future legislation elsewhere.
“The CPA profession relies on the strength of its licensing and regulation framework, rigorous education requirements, the Uniform CPA Exam, supervised experience and CPE. This infrastructure isn’t red tape; it’s the foundation of public trust.”
Florida’s Deregulation Push: A Closer Look
At the heart of Florida’s deregulation effort was a sweeping goal: to reduce what some lawmakers called “unnecessary” barriers to employment by eliminating professional licensing boards across multiple fields. For CPAs, the implications were extraordinary.
Under the bill, oversight of the CPA profession would have been removed from a peer-reviewed board of qualified CPAs and transferred to general staff at the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR). In addition, all CPE requirements for licensure renewal would have been eliminated, effectively ending the requirement that CPAs stay current with rapidly changing standards in tax, audit, and financial reporting.
“This bill doesn’t eliminate red tape. It creates chaos,” said Shelly Weir, president & CEO of FICPA, in a public statement during session. “It strips away the very guardrails that ensure CPAs remain competent, ethical and trusted.”
The CPA profession relies on the strength of its licensing and regulation framework, rigorous education requirements, the Uniform CPA Exam, supervised experience and CPE. This infrastructure isn’t red tape; it’s the foundation of public trust.
A High-Stakes Legislative Battle
Florida’s CPA community didn’t take the threat lightly.
The FICPA mobilized its membership, leveraging digital platforms to send more than 1,000 letters to lawmakers. Members also met directly with legislators, participated in an organized advocacy day, and amplified their voices through the media. The message was clear: Deregulation of the CPA profession is not reform; it’s risk.
Despite these efforts, the full contents of HB 991 were amended onto SB 110, and this amended version of the bill passed the Florida House of Representatives on April 25 by a vote of 69-42. Its fate then rested with the Florida Senate. Had the Senate concurred with the amendment, the bill would have passed and been sent to the governor for final approval.
The Senate, however, proved less willing to accept the House version of the bill. SB 110 stalled amid mounting concerns about the House deregulation language from business groups, professional associations, and bipartisan leaders. Ultimately, in early June, after numerous weeks of tense negotiations and advocacy from the FICPA, the measure was not included in the list of bills eligible to be considered during the final extended session on the state budget.
The FICPA celebrated the outcome as a victory for the profession but also issued a warning.
“We’ve won the day, but we know this battle is far from finished,” Weir said in a message to FICPA membership on June 5. “The 2026 Session starts in January, and the Florida Legislature’s interest in deregulation and licensure is part of a larger trend popping up in state legislatures around the country.”
“A license isn’t just a credential; it’s a public commitment to uphold standards that protect consumers.”
What This Means for Indiana
While Indiana has not seen proposals as sweeping as Florida’s HB 991, discussions around licensing reform and board consolidation have surfaced in recent years. These proposals often aim to “streamline” regulation but can unintentionally weaken safeguards that protect the public and ensure professional competence. INCPAS continues to monitor these developments and advocate for policies that modernize — not dismantle — the CPA pipeline.
Other States Grapple with Deregulation
Over the past several years, the push toward professional deregulation has steadily gained traction across the country — not as a single sweeping movement but a series of strategic, state-by-state actions that together tell a much larger story. From early efforts around board consolidation to the rise of universal licensure laws, policymakers have increasingly explored ways to reduce perceived barriers to entry for licensed professions, including CPAs. This trend has unfolded across a spectrum, with some proposals merely streamlining administrative oversight and others fundamentally reshaping licensure frameworks.
In 2025, two other states exemplified this spectrum in real time. Nevada discussed legislation (SB 78) that serves as a “light” version of deregulation by consolidating 20 occupational licensing boards into six new boards and an advisory committee, a move framed as cost-saving and efficient but one that raises real concerns about the erosion of profession-specific oversight and expertise.
Meanwhile, Kansas took a more “moderate” step, discussing a legislative change (SB 229) that automatically sunsets all state licensing rules every five years unless they are actively reviewed and renewed. This mechanism may sound bureaucratic, but it introduces significant instability into professions that rely on consistent standards and regulatory clarity.
These efforts reflect a broader national trend that Indiana’s lawmakers and CPAs should watch closely. Even well-intentioned deregulation can erode the systems that protect the public and uphold the profession’s integrity.
What This Means for Indiana
The most important lesson for Indiana CPAs is this: the fight to protect professional licensure isn’t theoretical — it’s happening across the country.
Indiana has not introduced legislation targeting the CPA license directly, but similar “licensing reform” efforts have emerged in recent sessions. While these have focused on reducing barriers in other fields, they signal growing interest in deregulation that could eventually impact CPAs.
“The CPA profession’s credibility is grounded in public trust,” said Courtney Kincaid, INCPAS President & CEO. “We support modernization and new pathways to licensure, but not at the expense of accountability or competence.”
What’s Really at Stake
While proponents of deregulation often frame it as a way to reduce bureaucracy or improve job access, the reality is more complicated and far more consequential.
1. Public Trust
At its core, CPA licensure is about public trust. Clients, from individuals and small businesses to governments and investors, rely on CPAs to be accurate, independent, and ethical. A license isn’t just a credential; it’s a public commitment to uphold standards that protect consumers.
Stripping away CPE requirements or removing disciplinary authority from a professional board sends the wrong message: that competence is optional.
2. National Mobility and Reciprocity
The CPA profession operates on a delicate balance of state-based licensure and national uniformity. Deregulation in one state could threaten mobility across others. In fact, the FICPA warned its membership that Florida CPAs could have lost their practice rights in many jurisdictions had the deregulation measure passed.
If Indiana were to reduce its CPA standards, it could jeopardize reciprocity with other states, limiting where Indiana CPAs can practice and potentially isolating our professionals from national uniformity.
3. Ethics and Enforcement
The peer-reviewed disciplinary model ensures CPAs are held accountable by those who understand the work. Removing the process of enforcement of ethical standards or transferring it to a general agency staff undermines the very idea of professional self-governance.
4. The Profession’s Future
At a time when accounting is experiencing talent shortages, declining enrollment, and growing complexity, weakening the profession’s foundation will only accelerate those challenges. A weakened licensure system won’t attract the next generation of professionals; it will deter them.
Modernization vs. Deregulation: A Critical Distinction
Importantly, not every change to CPA licensure is a threat. Indiana proved that with the passage of HEA 1143 in April 2025, a landmark law that adds a new pathway to CPA licensure beginning January 1, 2027. Candidates will be able to earn their license with a bachelor’s degree in accounting, two years of relevant experience and successful completion of the CPA Exam.
HEA 1143 strengthens the profession’s workforce pipeline by removing barriers without lowering standards. That’s the difference between modernization and deregulation: one builds the future, the other risks dismantling it.
How Indiana CPAs Can Protect the Profession
The fight in Florida offers a clear roadmap for how CPAs in Indiana can prepare, engage and act. Here’s how:
1. Stay Informed
Read the monthly CPA Advocates eNews and watch for legislative alerts. If you are not a CPA Advocate you can join at incpas.org/Advocates.
2. Build Relationships Now
Connect with your local legislators before issues arise.
3. Speak Up
Respond to INCPAS advocacy alerts — your story helps personalize the impact on CPAs.
4. Support INCPAS’ Advocacy Work
Contribute to the INCPAS PAC at incpas.org/PAC. Your voice makes change happen at the Statehouse.
A Final Word: Vigilance and Vision
The CPA profession has long stood as a model of public-private balance: a self-regulated profession built on competence, ethics and accountability. That model has earned the public’s trust for more than a century, and it’s worth protecting.
The Florida case was more than a state-level skirmish; it was a test of whether the CPA profession is prepared to defend its standards in a changing political landscape.
Thanks to advocacy from organizations like FICPA, the profession passed that test. Now, it’s Indiana’s turn to stay vigilant.
INCPAS will continue to champion reforms that improve access to the profession while preserving the integrity, accountability and trust that define what it means to be a CPA.
Article previously published by The Georgia Society of CPAs in the Sept/Oct 2025 issue of Current Accounts magazine and adapted for Indiana CPA Society use.
