MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Gov. Scott Walker is moving forward with an effort to slow the increase in occupational licensing requirements in Wisconsin, while promising to reduce those already on the books without saying which could be targeted for removal.
There has been a bipartisan push in recent years across the country to curtail licensing requirements, which have been described as excessive and a burden to people trying to enter a profession while also passing along increasing costs to consumers.
There are more than 370,000 active license and credential holders in Wisconsin and 244 license types regulated by the Department of Safety and Professional Services. The number of license holders has increased 34 percent in 20 years, while the license types grew by 84 percent, based on a study of the issue released in November by the conservative law firm the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty.
Walker announced on Monday, that he intends to target occupational licenses in his next budget, to be released on Feb. 8. Walker said he will implement policies to slow the adoption of new license requirements and review existing ones. Ten states already have both so-called sunset and sunrise reviews, according to the WILL report.
Under the outline of Walker’s approach, any proposal to create a new licensing requirement would have to show whether the license would “address a legitimate threat to public health or safety, and the extent to which it raises barriers to entry for prospective workers.”
Existing licenses would be subject to review, but Walker has not released details about how such a review could lead to license requirements being eliminated.
“Putting a process in place to remove and restrict unnecessary licensures is another component of removing barriers to work,” Walker spokesman Tom Evenson said. “Once a licensure is considered unnecessary through the reform, we should rollback these barriers in a thoughtful and deliberative fashion.”
Walker’s plans closely mirror recommendations in the WILL report, and the Wisconsin chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a conservative group funded by the Koch brothers, has praised Walker’s promises to reform.
“This is a crucial step towards aligning state interests with economic freedom, not the special interests looking for protection, and giving more Wisconsinites the opportunity to earn a living,” said WILL’s Collin Roth.
Michigan, Rhode Island and Arizona have eliminated some licenses since 2014 and nine other states cited in the WILL report, mostly under Republican control, passed laws easing requirements to be credentialed for certain jobs.
While Walker and Wisconsin Republican lawmakers have been the most outspoken in support of reviewing licenses, Democrats have not been outspoken against it. Democratic Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca said it’s appropriate to review licensing requirements occasionally, as long as the focus remains on providing work opportunities while also safeguarding public health and safety.
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