BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1348
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Date of Hearing: June 21, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS
Rudy Salas, Chair
SB 1348(Cannella) - As Amended May 31, 2016
SENATE VOTE: 39-0
SUBJECT: Licensure applications: military experience
SUMMARY: Requires boards under the Department of Consumer
Affairs (DCA) that authorize veterans to apply military
experience and training towards licensure requirements to post
information on the board's website about applying military
experience and training towards licensure requirements.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of
various professions and vocations by licensing entities under
the DCA. (Business and Professions Code (BPC) §§1-11506)
2)Declares that it is the policy of this state that persons with
skills, knowledge, and experience obtained in the armed
services of the United States should be permitted to apply
this learning and contribute to the employment needs of the
state at the maximum level of responsibility and skill for
which they are qualified. (BPC § 35)
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3)Requires the rules and regulations of boards established under
the BPC to provide for methods of evaluating education,
training, and experience obtained in the armed services, if
applicable to the requirements of the business, occupation, or
profession regulated. Also requires the rules and regulations
to specify how the education, training, and experience may be
used to meet the licensure requirements for the particular
business, occupation, or profession regulated. Requires each
board to consult with the Department of Veterans Affairs and
the Military Department before adopting the rules and
regulations. Requires each board to perform the duties
required within existing budgetary resources of the agency
within which the board operates. (BPC § 35)
4)Requires each board under the DCA to inquire in every
application for licensure if the applicant is serving in, or
has previously served in, the military. (BPC § 114.5)
THIS BILL:
5)Specifies that, if a board under the DCA's governing law
authorizes veterans to apply military experience and training
towards licensure requirements, the board shall post
information on the board's website about the ability of
veteran applicants to apply military experience and training
towards licensure requirements.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations Committee,
this bill will result in:
1)"Minor one-time costs [to DCA] boards and bureaus to place
information on their websites about the ability for veterans
to apply military experience and training to license
requirements.
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2)One-time cost of about $100,000 for the Dental Board of
California to amend various existing regulations regarding
license applications to include the required information in
the bill."
COMMENTS:
Purpose. This bill is sponsored by the author. According to
the author, "While current law requires licensing boards within
the [DCA] to ask on every application for licensure if the
applicant has or is serving in the military, the law does not
require the applicable boards to also include [on] their
websites, a statement advising veteran applicants about their
ability to apply that experience and training towards licensure
requirements?. By building off of AB 1057 [(Medina), Chapter
693, Statutes of 2013], this bill closes this technical gap in
code, ensuring veterans receive notification when applying for
licensure in boards that accept military experience and training
towards their licensure requirements."
Background. In 2015, the White House's Council of Economic
Advisors (CEA) published a report titled Occupational Licensing:
A Framework for Policy Makers. In the report, the CEA pointed
out that strict licensing creates barriers to mobility for
workers in licensed professions, including military personnel
and veterans. The CEA suggests that this is because state
licensing schemes impose additional licensing costs on licensed
workers for movement between states, but no extra cost for
movement within a state.
Further, the burdens could be harder on military applicants and
their families, who tend to move much more than the general
population. Military applicants may be stationed away from the
state where they earned their license (Permanent Change of
Station (PCS) move). Veterans may also end up moving to a
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different state when they are discharged. If the state they
move to does not accept their license, the military applicants
and their families may have to repeat education and training to
meet the state-specific requirements.
DCA Board Assistance for Military Applicants and Licensees. Due
to the potential hardships of licensing on military applicants,
veterans, and their families, the Legislature has passed, and
the DCA boards have implemented, several policies to ease the
burdens on military applicants, spouses, and licensees. For
instance, BPC § 35 requires boards under the DCA to specify how
military education, training, and experience may be used to meet
the licensure requirements. Also, BPC § 114.5 requires each
board under the DCA to inquire in every application for
licensure whether the applicant is serving in, or has previously
served in, the military.
This bill would require that boards also put information on
their websites regarding the application of military experience.
While many boards already do this, this bill would codify the
practice.
Current Related Legislation. SB 1155 (Morrell) of the current
Legislative Session, requires on or after January 1, 2018, every
board under the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) to waive
initial license fees for veterans, as specified.
Prior Related Legislation. AB 1057 (Medina), Chapter 693,
Statutes of 2013, requires each board to inquire in every
application for licensure if the individual applying for
licensure is serving in, or has previously served in, the
military.
REGISTERED SUPPORT:
SB 1348
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California Board of Accountancy
REGISTERED OPPOSITION:
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Vincent Chee / B. & P. / (916) 319-3301