BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 1348 Page 1 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) SB 1348 Page 2 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. SB 1348 Page 3 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 SB 1348 Page 4 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 Page 5 California Board of Accountancy REGISTERED OPPOSITION: None on file. Analysis Prepared by:Vincent Chee / B. & P. / (916) 319-3301