BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2859
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
2859 (Low)
As Amended August 3, 2016
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |79-0 |(May 5, 2016) |SENATE: |39-0 |(August 23, |
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Original Committee Reference: B. & P.
SUMMARY: Authorizes any of the boards, within the Department of
Consumer Affairs (DCA) to establish, by regulation, a system for
a retired category of licensure for persons not actively engaged
in the practice of their profession, as specified.
The Senate amendments specify that a retired license can only be
issued to an individual with an active or inactive license that
was not placed on inactive status for disciplinary reasons,
authorize boards to establish an appropriate fee for a retired
license, specify that boards with existing authority to
establish a retried license are not subject to specified
provisions, and make other minor and technical clarifying
changes.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, there are 25 boards, bureaus, and other licensing
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entities within the Department of Consumer Affairs that
currently do not have a retired license category. For any of
those entities that chose to create a retired license category,
the following costs are likely to occur:
1)Minor one-time costs to adopt regulations establishing a
retired license category (various special funds).
2)One-time costs between $15,000 and $75,000 to make changes to
the licensing system to accommodate a new retired license
category (various special funds). The potential cost to
update information technology systems used to process license
applications and renewals will depend both on the size of the
board's license population and whether or not the board is
using the BreEze licensing system or an internal licensing
system.
3)Minor revenue losses due to individuals with active licenses
shifting to a retired license (various special funds).
Currently, there are indications that individual licensees who
are effectively retired continue to renew their active license
because shifting to an inactive license or allowing their
active license to lapse implies that the licensee may have
been subject to some kind of disciplinary action. Therefore,
there are likely to be licensees who give up their active
license (which requires a biennial renewal with a fee) and
apply for a retired license (which is likely to be accompanied
by a one-time fee). There are 15 boards within the Department
of Consumer Affairs that currently have a retired license
category. The ratio of retired licensees to active licensees
for those boards is small (typically less than 1%). Therefore
it is likely that the number of licensees who would give up an
active license for a retired license would be fairly small as
would be any resulting revenue loss. There would also be some
revenue loss from individuals giving up an inactive license
(who are not inactive due to disciplinary action) in exchange
for a retired license.
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To the extent that licensees shift to a retired license that
does not require renewal and are not engaged in the practice
of their profession, the impacted board is likely to see a
commensurate reduction in licensing and enforcement activity.
COMMENTS:
Purpose. This bill authorizes any of the boards under the DCA
to establish, through regulations, a system to allow for a
retired license category for those licensees who no longer wish
to practice their profession or vocation but who do not want
their license to become "inactive". This bill is sponsored by
the author. According to the author, "[this bill] allows any of
the boards, bureaus, commissions, or programs within the [DCA]
to establish a system for a retired category of licensure for
those not actively in [the] practice of their profession.
An occupational license can be sent to 'inactive' for various
reasons, including violations and non-renewal. The same is done
for those individuals who decided to retire - a troublesome
label, as an 'inactive' status holds negative connotations and
does not appropriately illustrate the decades of service from
the license holder. To that end, this bill acts as a practical
means to bring uniformity to licensing at the DCA."
Background. Existing law permits the boards under the DCA to
adopt regulations to establish a system for issuing inactive
licenses. The law requires that those regulations cover fees,
renewal, restoration to active status, and practice
restrictions.
There are two differences to the laws permitting regulations for
inactive licenses for non-healing arts boards and healing arts
boards: 1) non-healing arts boards are permitted to reduce the
fees for renewal and change the continuing education
requirements, while the healing arts boards are not; and, 2) the
restoration fee is waived for a physician and surgeon that
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certifies he or she is restoring the inactive license to an
active license solely for volunteer purposes.
Retired Licenses. According to the author, some licensees
disfavor an "inactive" license designation and would prefer a
retired license designation. Because existing law only provides
for a system of inactive licenses, many boards have sought
legislation specific to their licensees that would permit them
to also create a retired license category. Prior bills have
included conditions for volunteering, enforcement of retired
licenses, and fees.
Thirteen other healing arts and non-healing arts boards have the
authority to issue retired licensees, including:
1)Board of Accountancy
2)Architects Board
3)Board of Barbering and Cosmetology
4)Board of Behavioral Sciences
5)Dental Board
6)Dental Hygiene Committee of California
7)Landscape Architects Technical Committee
8)Medical Board
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9)Board of Pharmacy
10)Board of Podiatric Medicine
11)Professional Fiduciaries Bureau
12)Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and
Geologists
13)Respiratory Care Board
This bill will provide the remaining boards with the authority
to establish a system of retired licenses if they desire to.
This bill does not require boards to offer a retired license.
BreEZe. The "BreEZe Project" was designed to provide the DCA
boards with a new enterprise-wide enforcement and licensing
system. The updated BreEZe system was engineered to replace
outdated legacy systems and multiple "work around" systems with
an integrated solution based on updated technology. BreEZe
enables consumers to verify a professional license and file a
consumer complaint. Licensees and applicants can submit license
applications, renew a license and change their address among
other services. The initial BreEZe project was to be
implemented in three separate phases. Release one was launched
in October of 2013, and included 10 boards. Release two was
launched in January of 2016 and included eight boards. The
remaining boards will be in a final release in which the vendor
and the release date have not been identified. Consumers can
verify licensure status through the BreEZe system.
A substantially similar version of this bill was introduced in
2015. AB 750 (Low) of 2015, passed the Assembly Committee on
Business and Professions (14 Ayes - 0 Noes) on April 14, 2015,
but was subsequently held in the Assembly Committee on
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Appropriations. The Appropriations Committee analysis noted
potential delays and costs associated with the Release two of
the BreEZe project. That analysis noted "[o]ne-time major state
costs, likely in the millions of dollars, resulting from
contract delays for Release two boards and bureaus if this bill
is implemented prior to January 1, 2017. At this stage of the
implementation, DCA would likely have to renegotiate the vendor
contract and likely trigger a Special Project Report resulting
in project delays. Currently, project delay costs are $1.25
million per month for the vendor contract and an additional
$500,000 per month in additional state costs associated with the
project."
It is unknown if similar costs or the issues cited prior to the
implementation of Release two will impact any boards' ability to
offer a retired license status. This bill does not require a
board to establish a retired license, but simply authorizes a
board to establish, through regulation, a process to offer a
retired status license.
Analysis Prepared by:
Elissa Silva / B. & P. / (916) 319-3301 FN:
0003868