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Pennsylvania considers changes to occupational licensing

Bills under consideration in Pennsylvania would replace licensure with registration or certification for 13 occupations: auctioneer, barber, cemetery salesperson, campground membership salesperson, natural hair braider, orthotic fitter, practitioner of Oriental medicine, ren­tal listing referral agent and vehicle factory representative. Also a priority for the administration is ways to reduce license processing time to 10 days or less. Streamlining the licensing process for military spouse is also an issue. A House bill has passed requiring state licensing boards to issue licenses by endorsement to applicants holding the same license in another state and meeting similar requirements.

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Article highlights recent trends in professional regulation in Canada

An article published by Field Law reviews changes in the Canadian regulatory arena over the past six months, including trends toward "societal and political skepticism of the value of self-regulation," establishment of independent oversight bodies, consolidation of regulatory organizations, inclusion of a majority of public members on Councils, merit-based appointments to Councils rather than election of members, and the loss of self-regulation in favor of government control of some professions.  The author urges regulatory bodies to "batten down the hatches" and "ensure that the captain is firmly on the wheel."

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Alabama introduces Sunrise Act

A bill under consideration in Alabama would add a sunrise provision to the Alabama Sunset Committee, reviewing a review of any new licensing requirements. Any new licensing proposal would have to:

• Demonstrate that it wouldn’t have an unreasonable effect on job creation or job retention, or place unreasonable access or restrictions on the ability of individuals who are practicing the profession.
• Explain why the public cannot be effectively protected by other means.
• And provide documentation of the nature and extent of the harm to the public caused by the unregulated practice of the profession or occupation.

The Alabama Policy Institute has recently released a report indicating that over 21% of the state's labor force is subject to occupational licensing with an estimated initial cost of $122 million.

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Florida occupational licensing reform bill stalls

SB 1640 and HB 27 in Florida have been permanently removed from the calendar for this legislative session without having been introduced on the chamber floors. The bills would have reduced or eliminated licensing requirements for occupations under 23 of Florida's professional licensing boards.
A related bill that did not advance through the Senate would have prohibited local governments from creating their own occupational licensing requirements and would have seen all local occupational licensing expire in 2021 with an economic impact analysis required before re-adoption.

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New article discusses explanations for occupational licensing

A new article by Ryan Nunn and Gabriel Scheffler published in the Administrative Law Review discusses "Occupational Licensing and the Limits of Public Choice Theory.  From the abstract: "Public choice theory has long been the dominant lens through which economists and other scholars have viewed occupational licensing. According to the public choice account, practitioners favor licensing because they want to reduce competition and drive up their own wages. This essay argues that the public choice account has been overstated, and that it ironically has served to distract from some of the most important harms of licensing, as well as from potential solutions. We emphasize three specific drawbacks of this account. First, it is more dismissive of legitimate threats to public health and safety than the research warrants. Second, it places disproportionate emphasis on those professions for which the justification for licensing seems weakest, rather than on those for which the justification is stronger. Third, it puts an inordinate focus on whether an occupation is licensed, rather than how it is licensed." The authors urge policymakers to focus on "which reforms would be most valuable and consider ways to improve licensure—not just get rid of it."

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Pennsylvania considers licensing of ex-offenders

The Pennsylvania Department of State is looking to update occupational licensing requirements for barbers, auctioneers, cemetery sales people, campground sales people and hair braiders in order to assist ex-offenders in transitioning into licensed occupations. The state recently began allowing appeal hearings if an applicant's license is denied due to a past criminal conviction. The state's 10-year ban on professional licenses for those with felony drug convictions has also been repealed.

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Occupational licensing economist Alan Krueger's research legacy

Alan B. Krueger, an economist whose research influenced recent and ongoing efforts of occupational licensing reform, passed away March 16. Krueger co-authored several papers with economist Morris Kleiner, exploring the extent of occupational licensing in the U.S., licensing's effect on wages, and licensing's effect on mobility. Krueger's research was also instrumental to the Obama administration report on occupational licensing reform.

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Association of Medical Councils of Africa to meet

Health experts and medical boards from 22 countries with the Association of Medical Councils of Africa are meeting in Nairobi with an agenda of building "an effective framework for information exchange and training collaboration between countries." The meeting is themed Core Operations of a Regulator and will discuss "the role of the Judiciary in dynamic medical regulation, building an effective registration platform, and corporate governance in health regulation."

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Ohio: sunset review law signed

Ohio's governor has signed a law requiring review of every occupational license requirement in the state over the next six years. The law automatically repeals any licensing laws that are not specifically renewed or modified to a lesser type of regulation. The law also creates a sunrise review process for new licensing laws and requires the use of the least restrictive form of regulation.

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Idaho: Licensing Freedom Act of 2019

Idaho's governor has issued an executive order for a comprehensive review and overhaul of the state's professional licensing system. The order requires sunrise and sunset processes, with a goal to review at least five license types a year. Another executive order will require state agencies to revoke two regulations for each new one implemented.

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