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Cowan, Epperson & Associates

Evidence Score 28/100 at 75% evidence coverage 9 of 10 on the Illinois list How the score works

What we could verify

Registered business?
Not verified
CPA license or firm permit?
CPA firm permit active · 066003615 · Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (open data pzzh-kp68)
Publishes prices?
Not stated on its website
Local or remote?
Local
Software?
QuickBooks

Who they say they serve: restaurants, construction, medical, dental, retail (self-reported, from the firm's own website)

3 of 5 answered from a dated source.

Documents 1 of 5 core services; CPA license verified with the state board.

Score breakdown

Documented services + buyer fit17 of 40 pts, 40 checked
Independently verifiable qualifications8 of 20 pts, 8 checked
Operational + pricing transparency3 of 25 pts, 25 checked
Verified identity + continuity0 of 15 pts, 2 checked

Dark bar: points earned. Grey bar: the weight we could check.

Evidence

Unless a row says otherwise, the source is the named page of Cowan, Epperson & Associates's own website (self-reported), read Sep 26, 2026.
ClaimWhat the source showsSourcePoints
Business name Cowan, Epperson & Associates home page
Website https://www.ceassoc.com/ home page
Office locality Springfield, IL home page
Phone +12175236969 home page
Offers bookkeeping Documented: ...At CEA we do more than just taxes. In addition to our accounting services, we also do bookkeeping, business valuations, estate planning, payroll preparation, payroll taxes... /about
Payroll coordination Documented: ...our accounting services, we also do bookkeeping, business valuations, estate planning, payroll preparation, payroll taxes, retirement planning, and much more. In the event of a tax... /about 4 pts (max 4)
Industries served (documented) restaurants, construction, medical, dental, retail, law firms /about 5 pts (max 5)
Software supported QuickBooks /about 5 pts (max 5)
Local / remote model stated Local /contact 3 pts (max 3)
Active CPA firm or individual license (state board) CPA firm permit active · 066003615 · Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (open data pzzh-kp68) State accountancy board
Third-party
Sep 26, 2026
expires Nov 30, 2027
8 pts (max 8)
Named contact / team Darren Epperson, Managing Partner /our-team 3 pts (max 3)

Checked and not found

  • Not documented. Checked 5 pages of the firm's own site on 2026-09-26 (Firm's own website): Monthly bookkeeping (0 pts, max 8); Catch-up / cleanup (0 pts, max 5); AP / AR (0 pts, max 4); Month-end close + reporting (0 pts, max 6); Pricing approach published (0 pts, max 6); What is included / excluded (0 pts, max 5); Onboarding described (0 pts, max 4); Reporting cadence stated (0 pts, max 4); Communication channel / process (0 pts, max 3); Privacy / data-handling page (0 pts, max 2).

Not verified (not checked yet, so each scores 0 and counts against coverage): Service area; Current QuickBooks ProAdvisor or Xero advisor listing (0 pts, max 6); Bookkeeping designation (AIPB/NACPB) or IRS directory credential (0 pts, max 6); Entity found in the state business registry (0 pts, max 6); Years operating (registry formation date) (0 pts, max 5); Working contact route verified (0 pts, max 2).

Check it yourself on the state's own records: Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Professional Regulation license search and business registry search.

  • Active CPA firm or individual license (state board): Illinois lists an ACTIVE CPA firm permit (ACTIVE) under this name, expiring 2027-11-30. It does not prove service quality.

Data limitations

  • 20 of 21 evidenced items come from Cowan, Epperson & Associates's own website and are labelled self-reported.
  • No ratings or review counts are published here. Why.

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