On September 18, Governor Newsom signed AB 2783. It has an urgency clause, which means it took effect right away rather than in January.
For anyone who has looked at California licensure and walked away because of the skills test, this is the change you have been waiting for.
What it actually says
The Registered Professional Reporter certification from NCRA is now accepted in place of the dictation and transcription portion of the California CSR exam. That is the machine test. If you hold an RPR, you do not need to take it now.
You still have to pass two written exams: English and Professional Practice. The bill requires both within three consecutive years.
The same bill also extends the remote court reporting pilot program, which was set to expire July 1, 2026. It now runs through July 1, 2028, with repeal January 1, 2029.
A quick word on the remote pilot, because it gets misunderstood
The pilot is about court work only. It allows a reporter to cover a court proceeding without being physically in the courtroom, in a limited number of courts, while the state collects data on how it goes. The superior courts in Los Angeles, Mendocino, San Bernardino, San Mateo, and Tulare have to report that data to the Judicial Council by January 2027.
It has nothing to do with depositions. Remote depositions have been normal for years and run under their own rules. AB 2783 did not change anything about them.
And it is still a pilot, not permanent policy. It expires July 1, 2028, and the provision repeals January 1, 2029. The state extended it to keep studying it. Whether remote court reporting continues after that has not been decided.
If you hear someone say this bill opened up remote work in California, that is not quite what happened. Remote deposition work was already open. What got extended is a narrow court-side experiment in five counties.
If you hold an RPR and have thought about California
The path is now an application, study on California law and English, and two written exams that can be taken remotely.
Worth knowing before you start:
- The written exams are not a formality. California practice, codes, and procedure are their own body of knowledge, and you will need to actually study
- The three-year window applies to passing both exams, so plan the sequence
- Check the California Court Reporters Board directly for application steps, fees, and current exam logistics. Rules change and the Board is the only source worth trusting on the details
- Holding a California license is not the same as having California work. Licensure opens the door. Relationships get you the jobs
If you are already a California CSR
It is reasonable to have a complicated reaction to this. More licensed reporters means more people available for the same work, and that is a legitimate thing to think about.
A few things worth holding onto.
Nobody knows the volume yet. The barrier came down, but the written exams and the application process are still real, and plenty of RPR holders will look at this and not bother. The number of people who actually pursue it is an open question.
California has had a reporter shortage for years. That shortage has been painful for agencies, for courts, and frankly for reporters carrying too much of the workload. A wider pool addresses something that was genuinely broken.
And what makes a reporter sought after was never the license. They are reliability, turnaround, how you handle a hard room, and whether a scheduler can count on you. None of that changed in September.
If you are still in school
This does not change your path. You still take the exams you were going to take. What it changes is the market you will graduate into, which is likely to be a little more competitive and a little more national than the one your instructors trained in.
That is worth knowing, but it is not worth worrying about. The reporters who do well have always been the ones who are professional and easy to work with.
What we still do not know
The law changed. How it works in practice is still settling.
- How the Board handles RPR verification as part of the application
- Whether exam scheduling changes if application volume goes up
- What the Judicial Council does with the pilot data due January 2027, and whether remote court reporting continues past July 2028
We will update this post as the Board publishes more.
Where to get the real details
We are an educational resource, not a licensing authority. For application requirements, exam dates, fees, and anything that affects a decision you are about to make, go to the California Court Reporters Board. We will update this post as the Board publishes more detail on how the RPR substitution works in practice.
Source: AB 2783 (2025-2026), signed September 18, 2026. Bill text: https://legiscan.com/CA/text/AB2783/id/3445426
Beyond the Record is the free educational arm of The DuRoss Group. This is general information about a change in California law, not legal advice. Confirm all licensure details with the California Court Reporters Board.