May 28, 2025
A KSCPA Ignite Blog by:
Danielle Hologram, CAE, President & CEO, KSCPA
Legislative Issues Impacting the Accounting Profession: Kansas and National Issues
It's been a busy 2025 for legislative changes in the accounting profession. New CPA licensure pathways, deregulation efforts, and national tax legislation have dominated the headlines. Most CPAs struggle to keep up with legislative issues and changes during peak busy times. KSCPA advocates for the profession in Kansas and nationally on federal issues in partnership with the AICPA. Here's a summary of what's happening in Kansas and beyond.
The Kansas Legislature adjourned Sine Die on April 12, 2025, ending the 2025 legislative session. This session was one of the quickest in recent memory. There was an overall sense of bipartisan work, with 116 bills passed into law. Many bills were introduced, and there was much discussion on tax issues.
Key bills passed include:
Attack on Development Incentives
This session, bills were proposed to eliminate PEAK and HPIP, and the legislature expressed concerns on large project incentives such as APEX and STAR Bonds. The KSCPA is part of an Incentive Review Group that includes representatives from the Kansas Chamber, Kansas Economic Development Alliance and others. The group's goal is to review incentives and recommend changes during the 2026 legislative session.
Deregulation Efforts
A bill was introduced during the session that would require the legislature to approve the adoption of new occupational licenses and material changes to existing licenses, including changes made by the Kansas Board of Accountancy. The KSCPA and AICPA reviewed the bill and weighed in during the Veto Session, asking the Senate not to pass it. The Senate did not take the bill up before adjournment. Read the KSCPA and AICPA joint letter here.
Other states are seeing deregulation bills this year, including Florida and North Carolina, so we will continue to monitor the national landscape for its impact on legislation in Kansas.
2025 was the first year of a two-year biennium, so all bills that were not passed or killed will remain alive during the 2026 session. Legislative leadership and committee assignments will remain the same unless a legislator resigns.
Looking ahead, the Legislative Coordinating Council will meet in June to set and announce the interim committee schedule, with most beginning in late summer/early fall. The Governor's race will heat up with more candidate announcements throughout the year. In addition, while not an election year for the House or Senate, campaigning and fundraising for 2026 state office elections begin right after the session ends.
2026 Legislative Priorities
For the 2026 legislative session, the KSCPA is focused on aligning Kansas requirements for CPA licensure with the new CPA licensure path approved by AICPA and NASBA. This path would add the option to earn CPA licensure with a bachelor's degree, two years of professional experience, and passage of the CPA Exam. 16 states have changed their licensure requirements this year. You can see an updated map created by the Minnesota Society of CPAs here. Kansas is currently drafting legislation for the 2026 legislative session.
Deregulation efforts are heating up nationwide, and KSCPA is anticipating continued legislative action focused on deregulating boards and regulatory agencies. We will keep members informed on how they can help our efforts to protect the CPA profession.
As always, the KSCPA will also maintain its focus as a resource to legislators on tax bills and their impact on businesses and individuals in Kansas. We will continue to work closely with the House and Senate Tax Committees to ensure they are informed on policy implications.
In addition to Kansas legislative issues, the KSCPA works in partnership with the AICPA to advocate for the profession nationally. As part of this partnership, Kansas AICPA Council delegates spent the week in Washington, D.C., meeting with congressional offices to discuss issues important to the accounting profession, including:
◾ Pass-Through Entity Tax (PTET)
◾ Recognizing accounting as a STEM profession
◾ Expanding 529 Plan usage
◾ Natural disaster relief
The House of Representatives approved an amended version of the budget reconciliation bill, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The legislative package is expected to undergo additional changes before being voted on in the Senate as soon as next week. The legislation includes language that would disadvantage specified service trades or businesses (SSTBs) - including accountants, lawyers, dentists, and doctors - by subjecting them to the individual cap on state and local income tax deductions at the federal level. This would apply regardless of the partners' or owners' income level or the state where they reside.
We will be sharing a Call to Action for members to contact their Senators regarding the PTET SALT provisions within the bill, as the profession advocates against the targeting of pass-throughs. You will receive an email with specific action steps next week.
We invite members to join our advocacy efforts by joining the KSCPA Advocate Task Force to help us advise legislation and donating to the KSCPA Political Action Committee to help us have a voice at the statehouse.
Stay informed about legislative issues in Kansas by watching or reading the weekly updates from our Legislative Affairs Consultant, Marlee Carpenter of Bright & Carpenter Consulting, LLC.
Contact legislators at both the state and federal levels to help them understand issues important to CPAs and the impacts of legislation. Through the KSCPA Advocacy in Action Toolkit, we outline the steps you can take to amplify our advocacy efforts.
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Danielle Hologram, CAE President/CEO Kansas Society of CPAs |
The Ignite blog is an official publication of the Kansas Society of CPAs, Copyright 2024.
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