BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 549|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 549
Author: Correa (D)
Amended: 5/11/09
Vote: 21
SENATE BUS., PROF. & ECON. DEVEL. COMMITTEE : 8-1, 4/20/09
AYES: Negrete McLeod, Corbett, Correa, Florez, Oropeza,
Romero, Walters, Yee
NOES: Aanestad
NO VOTE RECORDED: Wyland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 8-2, 4/27/09
AYES: Kehoe, Corbett, DeSaulnier, Leno, Oropeza, Walters,
Wolk, Yee
NOES: Cox, Runner
NO VOTE RECORDED: Denham, Hancock, Wyland
SUBJECT : Barbering and cosmetology: manicurists
SOURCE : Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality
California Health Nail Salon Collaborative
DIGEST : This bill authorizes the Board of Barbering and
Cosmetology to collect gender, language and ethnicity data
from new licensure applicants and renewal licenses and
requires that the information be posted on the board's
Internet website.
Senate Floor Amendments of 5/11/09 clarify that
establishment licensees may provide gender, language
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preference and ethnicity data to the Board of Barbering and
Cosmetology at the time of licensure rather than being
required to report that demographic information.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Creates the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology (BBC)
within the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) for the
licensing and regulation of cosmetologists, barbers,
estheticians, manicurists, electrologists, instructors
and establishments where barbering and cosmetology are
practiced.
2. Specifies that the practice of cosmetology includes,
among other things, the removal of superfluous body hair
from a person by the use of depilatories or by the use
of tweezers, chemicals, and preparations or by the use
of devices or appliances of any kind or description,
except by the use of light waves, commonly known as
rays.
3. Requires the BBC to conduct and administer examinations
for licensure applicants, issue licenses to qualified
applicants, discipline individuals who have violated the
statutes or regulations governing the conditions of
their licenses, and adopt rules governing sanitary
conditions and precautions to protect the public health
and safety in licensed establishments, approved schools,
and in the practice of barbering and cosmetology.
This bill:
1. States legislative intent to collect information on
gender, language preference and ethnicity of the BBC's
licensees and collecting the demographic data will help
ensure that appropriate health and safety information is
effectively provided to licensees.
2. Requires applicants for BBC licensure to report to the
BBC, on their initial application for licensure or
renewal, information regarding their gender, language
preference and ethnicity, and requires the BBC to
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collect this information.
3. Allows an applicant for an establishment license and an
establishment licensee to report to the board, in
his/her initial application for a license and at the
time of license renewal, the applicant's and licensee's
gender, language preference, and ethnicity, and requires
the BBC to collect this information.
4. Requires the BBC to compile the information collected
pursuant to this bill quarterly and post it on the BBC's
Internet website.
Background
In 1927, the Board of Barber Examiners and the Board of
Cosmetology were established to regulate the barbering
profession and cosmetology profession, respectively. Over
the years, there have been many changes to the laws of each
profession and their respective governing boards. For
example, laws were enacted to require separate licenses for
manicurists, electrologists and estheticians, and the
regulatory boards have evolved to become the Board of
Barbering and Cosmetolgy.
The BBC currently has approximately 438,000 licensees in
seven different licensing categories: cosmetologists,
barbers, manicurists (nail care), estheticians (skin care),
electrologists (permanent hair removal), apprentices and
establishments in which the practice of barbering and
cosmetology occurs.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12
Fund
Increased data Up to $75 one time, minor absorbable
Special*
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costs ongoing
*Barbering and Cosmetology Contingent Fund
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/12/09)
Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality (co-source)
California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative (co-source)
Asian and Pacific Islander American Health Forum
Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice
Asian Health Services
Asian Law Caucus
Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California
Breast Cancer Fund
Brest Cancer Action
California Pan-Ethnic Health Network
Coalition for Clean Air
National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum
Women's Voices for the Earth
WORKSAFE
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the Sponsors, the
Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality and the
California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative, current
gender, language and ethnicity data for beauty industry
employees is insufficient to protect them from the wide
array of occupational hazards they face in the course of
their work. Estimates on the number of licensed Vietnamese
nail technicians range from 40-80 percent, many of whom are
limited English-proficient. The Sponsors state that most
nail salon owners and workers often cite language as the
most common barrier they face in accessing workplace health
and safety information, and the lack of access to health
and safety information in a language workers and owners can
understand exacerbates occupational health hazards.
As the BBC is not currently required to collect demographic
information on its licensees, language preferences are not
known for beauty industry employees. As a result,
information may not be communicated in a language workers
understand. The Sponsors state they believe the collection
of the language and ethnicity data will enable BBC to
effectively communicate with the limited English proficient
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licensee population and allow the BBC to identify language
needs, conduct culturally competent outreach and develop
effective policy that will better serve the community.
The Sponsor asserts that knowing the gender and ethnicity
of BBC licensees is critical to understanding occupational
health hazards as disease risk often varies across gender
and ethnic groups and such information is necessary to
understanding whether workplace exposure is linked to any
disease. They believe this bill provides the demographic
information required to inform intervention efforts to
promote worker health and safety.
JJA:do 5/12/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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