BILL NUMBER: SB 975 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 14, 2012
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 27, 2012
INTRODUCED BY Senator Wright
JANUARY 19, 2012
An act to add Section 101.2 to the Business and Professions Code,
relating to professions and vocations.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 975, as amended, Wright. Professions and vocations: regulatory
authority.
Existing law, the Business and Professions Code, provides for the
licensure and regulation of various professions and vocations by
boards, bureaus, and commissions within the Department of Consumer
Affairs. Under existing law, a city or county shall not prohibit a
person or group of persons, authorized by one of these boards,
bureaus, or commissions, as specified, to engage in a particular
business from engaging in that business, and shall not prohibit a
healing arts professional licensed by one of those boards from
engaging in any act or performing any procedure that falls within the
professionally recognized scope of practice of that licensee.
This bill would provide that those boards, bureaus, and
commissions have the sole and exclusive authority to license and
regulate the practice of professions and vocations regulated by those
boards pursuant to provisions of that code, and that no licensing
requirements, as specified, shall be imposed upon a person licensed
to practice one of those professions or vocations other than under
that code or by regulation promulgated by the applicable board
through its authority granted under that code. The bill would
prohibit a city, county, city and county, school district, other
special district, a local or regional agency, or joint powers agency
from imposing a licensing requirement upon a person licensed to
practice a profession or vocation regulated by one of these boards.
The bill would state findings and declarations of the Legislature.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares the following:
(a) The State of California, State and Consumer
Services Agency , contains the Department of
Consumer Affairs, which contains approximately 38 boards, bureaus,
and commissions the mission of which is to regulate specified
professions and vocations. In addition to those boards, bureaus, and
commissions, the state government also is comprised of dozens of
other state agencies, departments, boards, bureaus, and commissions.
(b) California local government is comprised of 58 counties,
approximately 470 cities, and over 2,000 special districts, local and
regional agencies, and joint powers agencies.
(c) If other state governmental entities or local governmental
entities were to require persons licensed to practice a profession or
vocation by a board, bureau, or commission within the Department of
Consumer Affairs to satisfy additional licensing requirements in
order to practice their professions or vocations, before or within
the respective governmental entity, this would impose enormous
regulatory burdens upon those persons.
(d) The practice of adopting continuing education requirements
through regulatory action, and the imposition of mandatory training
programs to satisfy requirements for licensure, certification, or
registration, is becoming more prevalent with each passing year as
authority is shifted from direct legislative action to increasingly
broad, yet undefined, regulatory mandates.
(e) The imposition of educational and training requirements by
these governmental entities, in addition to state licensing
requirements, inhibits the practice of those professions within or
before those governmental entities.
(f) Further, as additional licensing requirements are imposed, it
is becoming difficult and impractical for the state and local
governmental entities to administer conflicting and diverse
requirements, resulting in greater confusion and increased costs.
(g) It is therefore imperative that the licensed professions and
vocations have a single set of licensing requirements that apply
uniformly throughout the state and apply equally in all state and
local governmental entities, and that licensed professionals clearly
understand the expectations with which they must comply in order to
legally operate within their scopes of practice in the state.
SEC. 2. Section 101.2 is added to the Business and Professions
Code, to read:
101.2. (a) (1) The boards specified in Section 101 shall have the
sole and exclusive authority to license and regulate the practice of
professions and vocations regulated by those boards pursuant to
provisions of this code.
(2) No city, county, city and county, school district, other
special district, local or regional agency, or joint powers agency,
shall impose a licensing requirement upon a person licensed to
practice a profession or vocation regulated by a board specified in
Section 101.
(3) A licensing requirement shall not be imposed upon a person
licensed to practice a profession or vocation regulated by a board
specified in Section 101 other than by this code or by regulation
promulgated by the applicable board through its authority granted
under this code.
(b) For purposes of this section, "licensing requirements"
include, but are not limited to, the following with respect to a
profession or vocation licensed and regulated by a board specified in
Section 101:
(1) Additional training or certification requirements to practice
within the scope of practice of a profession or vocation licensed
under this code.
(2) Continuing education requirements for renewal or continuation
of licensure.
(3) Any additional experience or qualification
requirements beyond those provided in this code or pursuant to
regulations promulgated by the applicable board specified in Section
101 through its authority granted under this code.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to do either of the
following:
(1) Prohibit parties from contractually agreeing to additional
experience, qualifications, or training of a licensee under this code
in connection with performance of a contract.
(2) Prohibit a licensee from voluntarily undertaking satisfaction
of certification programs not required under this code for licensure
by a board specified in Section 101.