CLEAR

Utah: proposed occupational licensure review

Utah's governor has proposed a "Systemic Licensure Review Process" based on the Department of Commerce's Review of Occupational and Professional Licensing Report. The report identified 16 licenses to be reviewed for elimination or modification, 34 rules for immediate modification, and 23 statutes recommended for specific legislative action. The report recommends regular 10-year reviews of all occupational and professional regulations, with annual prioritizations and "one-off" quick responses where needed.

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Biden executive order to ban "unnecessary" occupational licensing requirements

President Biden has issued an executive order that will call on the Federal Trade Commission to ban unnecessary occupational licensing requirements. The executive order is part of a broader goal to increase competition in the US economy.

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Minnesota audit recommends changes to cosmetology licensure

A report from the Office of the Legislative Auditor notes that the licensing structure and requirements for cosmetology are overly burdensome and do not contribute to public health or safety. The report recommends creating a specialty license for those who only want to perform hair services, eliminating multiple salon type licenses, and evaluating if cosmetology and barbering should still be regulated separately.

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Massachusetts: proposal to move boards under Department of Public Health

A bill, the Act Relative to Licensing Accountability in the Commonwealth, filed by Massachusetts's governor would transfer 13 boards (allied health, allied mental health, chiropractors, dietitians and nutritionists, dispensing opticians, hearing instrument specialists, podiatry, optometry, psychologists, social workers, speech pathology and audiology, health officers, and sanitarians) from the Division of Professional Licensure to the Department of Public Health. The DPL would still include 15 licensing boards, 10 boards within the Office of Public Safety and Inspections, and the Office of Private Occupational School Education. DPL would be renamed Division of Occupational Licensure. The bill also would prohibit Level 3 sex offenders from being licensed by the Division or the Department.

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New Zealand: consultation of engineering regulation reform

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment in New Zealand has launched a consultation on proposed reforms to the regulation of engineering. A new registration scheme would be established for all engineers, and a new licensing regime would clarify who can "carry out or supervise engineering work in specified practice fields that have a high risk of harm to the public." The proposal also includes new continuing professional development requirements. A new regulator would be established to oversee the licensing process.

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UK care minister addresses need to modernize healthcare regulation

In this article, UK care minister Helen Whatley discusses the "Regulating Healthcare Professionals, Protecting the Public" consultation. "The reforms will modernise each of the healthcare professional regulators’ legal frameworks, making them simpler and more consistent. This will enable regulators to provide public protection more efficiently and spend more time supporting the professional standards of all registrants."

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Iowa considers greater scrutiny of regulation proposals

SF 487 under consideration by legislative committees in Iowa would require the legislature to review any new or expanded proposals to regulate a profession under the lens of "least restrictive" regulations. Regulation of new professions would only be approved for "the exclusive purpose of protecting the public health or safety" under these conditions: evidence that the unregulated practice of the profession will clearly harm or endanger the public, the public needs and would benefit from an assurance of professional ability, and the public cannot be protected by other means. A detailed written report demonstrating the necessity of regulation would be required. The bill would also increase the frequency of meetings of the government efficiency review committee from every two years to monthly, as necessary to review the usefulness, performance and efficacy of each current regulatory board.

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UK Department of Health and Social Care publishes proposed changes to healthcare regulation

The UK Department of Health and Social Care has published proposed changes to healthcare regulation and opened a public consultation. The aim of the reform is to make healthcare professional regulation "faster, fairer, and more flexible and to minimize costs to registrants." The consultation includes "detailed proposals to modernize each of the healthcare professional regulators' legislative frameworks." The proposed reforms cover four key areas: governance and operating framework, education and training, registration, and fitness to practice.

Just a few highlights:

• devolve many of the decisions about day to day procedures to the regulators themselves
• create a duty to co-operate, specific duties in relation to transparency, and a duty to assess the proportionality of changes to rules and procedures before they are introduced
• power for all regulators to set their fees without Parliamentary oversight
• power to set standards for and approve specific courses or programs of training rather than just the providers
• a consistent framework for fitness to practice across all regulators
• regulation of physician associates and anesthesia associates

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Julie Maciura with Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc offers analysis and commentary on the consultation paper in the April issue of Grey Areas

Bills in Washington consider easing licensing requirements

One bill under consideration in the Washington House would authorize the Department of Licensing to "develop a competency-based assessment that allows individuals to demonstrate proficiency of the knowledge and skills otherwise required by a professional licensing examination." The competency-based licensing requirement could be any combination of training, experience, testing or observation. Another bill would allow a temporary license for out-of-state workers while they complete skills assessments. Another bill would establish evaluation criteria to determine whether currently unlicensed professions should be regulated, for the sole purpose of protecting the public interest.

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Utah: Executive Order to review occupational licensing

An Executive Order signed by Utah's governor requires "a review of all regulated occupations and professions" no later than June 30, 2021. The order instructs agencies to "identify rules and regulations that are no longer necessary or can be amended to reduce barriers to working while still protecting the health, safety and well-being of Utah residents."

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