BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular Session
AB 2194 (Salas) - California Massage Therapy Council: business
of massage
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|Version: June 20, 2016 |Policy Vote: B., P. & E.D. 8 - |
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|Urgency: No |Mandate: No |
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|Hearing Date: August 8, 2016 |Consultant: Brendan McCarthy |
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This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill
Summary: AB 2194 would extend the operation of the California
Massage Therapy Council to January 1 2020.
Fiscal
Impact:
There is no fiscal impact to the state from the extension of
the operation of the California Massage Therapy Council. The
Council is a state-authorized non-profit organization and is
not part of state government. The state does not provide any
funding to the Council, which is funded by fees assessed on
applicants for certification.
Ongoing costs of about $300,000 per year for the Department of
Justice to process background checks for applicants applying
for certification by the Council (Fingerprint Fees Account).
The number of new applicants for certification over the last
several years has varied considerably. On average, the Council
has received about 10,000 applications per year. Currently,
AB 2194 (Salas) Page 1 of
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the Department of Justice assesses a $32 fee to cover its
costs to process a background check. (Applicants are also
required to pay a fee to the FBI and to the entity that
collects the applicant's fingerprint.)
Background: Under current law, the California Massage Therapy Council is
established as a nonprofit organization that is responsible for
the voluntary certification of massage therapists. Current law
does not require individuals providing massage therapy services
to be certified by the Council. Those who are not certified are
obligated to provide services in accordance with local laws and
regulations. For massage therapists who are certified by the
Council, current law provides some restrictions on local
governments' ability to regulate the provision of massage
therapy.
Applicants for certification by the Council are required to pay
an application fee and submit to a criminal background check,
performed by the Department of Justice.
Current law sunsets the Massage Therapy Act and the operation of
the Massage Therapy Council on January 1, 2020.
Proposed Law:
AB 2194 would extend the operation of the California Massage
Therapy Council to January 1 2020.
The bill would also extend an existing requirement for a report
from the Council and clarify that a local government may not
require a criminal background check from a person certified by
the Council.
Staff
Comments: As noted above, the bill will extend the current
costs incurred by the Department of Justice to process criminal
background checks for applicants for certification by the
Council. The cost estimate above reflects the average annual
cost for the Department to process those criminal background
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checks. However, in the absence of this bill, a significant
portion of those costs may still occur, to the extent that local
governments would require massage therapy practitioners to
undergo criminal background checks.
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