BILL ANALYSIS �
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1057
Author: Medina (D)
Amended: 6/3/13 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE BUSINESS, PROF. & ECON. DEV.COMMITTEE : 10-0, 6/10/13
AYES: Lieu, Emmerson, Block, Corbett, Galgiani, Hernandez,
Hill, Padilla, Wyland, Yee
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 77-0, 4/29/13 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Professions and vocations: licenses: military
service
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires licensing boards within the
Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA), beginning January 1, 2015,
to ask on every application for licensure if the applicant is
serving in, or has previously served in, the military.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Provides for the licensure and regulation of certain
businesses, occupations, and professions by specified boards
within DCA created under the Business and Professions Code
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(BPC).
2. Requires these boards to adopt rules and regulations to
provide methods of evaluating education, training, and
experience obtained in the armed services of the United
States, if applicable to the requirements of the business,
occupation, or profession regulated, and to specify how this
education, training, and experience may be used to meet the
licensure requirements for the particular business,
occupation, or profession regulated. Requires these boards
to consult with the Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet)
and the California Military Department (CMD) before adopting
these rules and regulations.
3. Provides that any licensee or registrant of any board,
commission, or bureau within DCA whose license expired while
the licensee or registrant was on active duty as a member of
the California National Guard or the U.S. Armed Forces, may,
upon application, reinstate his/her license or registration
without examination or penalty, provided certain requirements
are satisfied.
4. Provides that every board within DCA shall waive the renewal
fees, continuing education requirements, and other renewal
requirements as determined by the board, if any are
applicable, for any licensee or registrant called to active
duty as a member of the U.S. Armed Forces or the California
National Guard if all requirements are met.
5. Requires DCA boards to expedite the licensure process for an
applicant who supplies evidence that the applicant is married
to, or in a domestic partnership or other legal union with,
an active duty member of the U.S. Armed Forces who is
assigned to a duty station in this state under official
active duty military orders and the applicant holds a current
license in another state, district, or territory of the U.S.
in the profession or vocation for which he/she seeks a
license from a board.
This bill requires boards at DCA, beginning January 1, 2015, to
ask on every application for licensure if the individual
applying for licensure is serving in, or has previously served
in, the military.
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Background
Veterans in California . California is home to over 1.8 million
veterans, representing 8.3% of the total U.S. veteran
population. 72% of the veteran population is 50 years of age or
above, and the number of veterans 85 years of age or older is
projected to increase 20% between 2010 and 2019. CalVet
anticipates receiving an additional 35,000-40,000 discharged
members of the armed services each year for the next several
years - more than any other state. According to CalVet,
historically, the largest demand for benefits and services for
veterans occurs immediately after discharge and again as the
veteran population ages and requires greater access to medical
facilities and long-term care services.
According to a January 2013 memorandum prepared by the Senate
Office of Research (SOR), titled "Employment Opportunities for
(Semi-Skilled or Unskilled) Veterans," California does not
provide a coordinated, integrated system that streamlines
employment-related services to veterans. According to SOR,
veterans find many services fragmented and without a single
point of entry. SOR also examined the need to facilitate
veterans who want to receive licensure or certification
(academic) credit for military education, training, and
experience.
DCA Report on military experience and licensure . As part of the
2012-13 Budget package, the Legislature directed the DCA to
prepare a report on the implementation of BPC Section 35
relating to military experience and licensure. The DCA was
specifically asked to provide a list of boards that accept
military experience and a description of the statutes and
regulations that authorize the acceptance of military experience
towards licensure. The DCA was also asked to provide a list of
boards that do not accept military experience and an explanation
as to why they do not.
In October 2012, DCA released its "Report to the California
State Legislature: Acceptance of Military Experience &
Education Towards Licensure." According to the Report, nine of
DCA's licensing programs have specific provisions in their
statutes and regulations that authorize the acceptance of
military experience or education towards licensure. Those
programs include the Bureau of Automotive Repair, Board of
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Barbering and Cosmetology, Board for Professional Engineers,
Land Surveyors, and Geologists, Board of Pharmacy, Physical
Therapy Board of California, Board of Registered Nursing,
Respiratory Care Board, Bureau of Security and Investigative
Services and Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric
Technicians. Many more programs also have broad discretion in
approving credit earned in the military towards licensure.
In the Report, DCA outlined the top three priority vocational
areas, as identified by the CMD, based on the large number of
veterans who possess skills in these areas when leaving the
military. Specifically:
Security (Bureau of Security and Investigative Services
(BSIS)) . BSIS has implemented the "Veterans Come First"
program, which helps veterans apply their military experience
and training towards part or all of the qualification
requirements for licensure. Through this program, BSIS has
already assisted nearly 400 veteran applicants obtain
licensure. As part of the program, BSIS has expedited
applications from veterans, provided veterans with direct
phone and email contact information for a BSIS staff person,
assigned staff to work one-on-one with applicants from the
military who have complex or complicated applications with
large amounts of information and experience to review and
trained staff to analyze "Certificate of Release or Discharge
from Active Duty" Papers (DD-214s) and Military Transcripts.
Construction (Contractors' State License Board (CSLB)) .
CSLB met with CMD and is developing a program to assist
eligible veterans to gain licensure. CSLB's objectives are
to partner with the CMD to identify the specific job
classifications in the military that would meet California's
minimum standards for licensure, expedite the application
process for veterans, provide veterans with direct email
access to CSLB employees who have been specifically trained
in military job ranges and military classifications and to
create a website dedicated to providing members of the
military with information on how they can become a licensed
contractor.
Automotive Repair (Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR)) . BAR
has also met with CMD and is currently working on modifying
its applications to include a statement regarding the ability
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of veterans to apply military experience and training
towards, providing similar information on its website and
coordinating with the CMD to determine possible military job
classifications that relate to the automotive repair industry
in order to simplify the acceptance of military experience
towards licensure. BAR also reports that diesel-powered
vehicles have recently been included in the state's SmogCheck
Program and smog inspections will be focused on interpreting
data obtained from vehicles' on-board diagnostic systems so
veterans with technical experience in related areas like
diesel-powered vehicles will help meet the need for skilled
technicians in these specialized automotive fields.
Bureau of State Audits (BSA) . BSA, per a request approved in
March of this year by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, is
currently conducting a comprehensive audit of the Employment
Development Department's (EDD) effectiveness in providing
employment assistance and job training programs to veterans.
This includes determining if EDD has identified best practices
for translating military training and experience into comparable
civilian job skills and determining if EDD's strategic plan
considers the unique needs of veterans.
Governor's Executive Order (EO) B-9-11 . In August, 2011,
Governor Brown issued EO B-9-11 creating the California
Interagency Council on Veterans to improve how veterans'
services are coordinated across local, state and federal
government. The EO stated that more than 30,000 veterans return
to California each year after leaving the U.S. Armed Services
and many of these veterans face hardships while transitioning
back into civilian life. The EO also stated that the
unemployment rate for Gulf War II veterans is 42% higher than it
is for non-veterans and approximately 25% of Gulf War II
veterans have a disability that is connected to their military
service, compared with approximately 13% of all veterans.
Executive Office of the President Report . A report issued by
the Executive Office of the President in February of this year,
"The Fast Track to Civilian Employment: Streamlining
Credentialing and Licensing for Service Members, Veterans and
Their Spouses," outlined the unique challenges that confront
service members, military spouses and veterans in establishing
their qualifications for civilian employment, and outlines the
measures that the Administration and states have taken, and
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still need to take, to ensure that the skills and abilities of
these individuals can be applied to meet employer needs while
providing good, meaningful jobs for our military families.
According to the Report, since February 2012, 17 states have
passed spousal licensing legislation, bringing the overall total
to 28 states with military spouse licensure measures in place
and an additional 15 states have active spouse licensure bills.
The Report stated that through collaboration with state
legislators and regulators, the Department of Defense (DOD) has
worked towards state adoption of best practice options that can
expedite the transfer of military spouse licenses that are in
good standing and are substantially equivalent: licensure
through endorsement; temporary licensure; and expedited
processes for issuing licenses. The report also stated that the
DOD Military Credentialing and Licensing Task Force (Task
Force), established in 2012 at the direction of President Obama,
has identified and created opportunities for service members to
earn civilian occupational credentials and licenses. The Task
Force has focused its efforts on well-paying industries and
occupations that have a high demand for skilled workers,
including: manufacturing, information technology,
transportation and logistics, health care and emergency medical
services. The Task Force has also worked with states and
institutions to streamline licensing for service members and
veterans, specifically targeting the occupations of bus and
truck drivers, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, and
licensed practical nurses. According to the Report, a total of
34 states have already passed laws to waive the driving skills
test for veterans with a record of safely operating vehicles
similar to the trucks and buses for which a commercial driving
license is required, and similar legislation is pending in the
District of Columbia and nine other states.
The Report also highlighted a number of best practices that
states and industry can adopt to streamline the certification
and licensing for service members and veterans.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (per Senate Business, Professions and Economic
Development Committee analysis of 6/10/13 -- unable to reverify
at time of writing)
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Board of Behavioral Sciences
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office, DCA
has 36 licensing programs, and each has a different policy to
address the acceptance of military education and experience
towards initial licensure. The author's office states that 24
programs accept military education and experience, five programs
offer general reciprocity for out-of-state applicants, two
programs do not have education or experience requirements that
would preclude a veteran from applying, two boards do not accept
military education and experience, and three programs do not
issue licenses.
There is concern that despite existing provisions that
facilitate the licensure of veterans and active military
members, the majority of license applications do not ask
applicants if they serve or have previously served in the
military. The author's office states that this situation
results in some applicants having to proactively inform a
licensing board if he/she is an active military member who may
be exempt from license renewal fees or continuing education
requirements, or if the individual is a veteran eligible to
apply military credit towards initial licensure, as provided for
under existing law.
The author's office further states that DCA's licensing programs
do not currently track licensure approvals or denials of
applicants with military service and that given the recent
amount of attention devoted to assisting military families and
veterans with obtaining professional licensure, it may be
helpful for DCA to gather accurate data on how many applicants
serve, or have served in the military in order to better assist
those applicants.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 77-0, 4/29/13
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Bigelow, Bloom,
Blumenfield, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Brown, Buchanan, Ian
Calderon, Campos, Chau, Ch�vez, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley,
Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier,
Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray,
Grove, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Roger Hern�ndez, Holden, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Logue, Lowenthal, Maienschein,
Mansoor, Medina, Melendez, Mitchell, Morrell, Mullin,
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Muratsuchi, Nazarian, Nestande, Olsen, Pan, Patterson, Perea,
V. Manuel P�rez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Salas, Skinner,
Stone, Ting, Torres, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk,
Williams, Yamada, John A. P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Atkins, Bradford, Vacancy
MW:k 6/26/13 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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