According to CFO.com, CPA licensure has quietly become one of the most significant talent issues that CFOs have to deal with. They have had tackle with the issues' ripple effects throughout the organization's hiring, audit readiness, internal controls, and longer-term succession planning. 

CFO.com said that was once seen as a professional gatekeeping debate has become a strategic workforce question as states adopt alternative pathways, governing bodies clash over standards, and companies face a dwindling number of skilled and credentialed accountants.

The article mentioned that this year attempted solutions to this problem were enacted. New York approved a new CPA pathway bill that Governor Kathy Hochul signed on Nov. 21, capping a successful year of advocacy for the NYCPA.

Elsewhere, Illinois reopened its requirements while about 20 states moved to introduce or formally adopt pathways that let candidates obtain licensure with 120 credit hours together with additional experience. 

Meanwhile, national accounting groups sent mixed signals regarding whether the 150-hour rule is a much-needed shift to tackle the labor shortage or a standard-lowering solution that can affect CPA quality.

Simultaneously, when data demonstrates fewer than half of public company accounting staff hold CPA licenses, young  professionals and CFOs have questioned if the credential's benefit is commensurate to the cost, CFO.com stated.

Private equity firms have also been increasingly vocal against licensure restrictions that present a business risk.

For those CFOs making plans for next year, their decisions regarding where they should hire, how to structure accounting teams, what credentials must take priority, and how to engage with regulators will shape audit quality, finance transformation efforts, and leadership pipelines going forward, CFO.com said.