§ 3107. Information required of applicants

Prior to review under this chapter and prior to consideration by the General Assembly of any bill that proposes to regulate a profession or occupation, the profession or occupation being reviewed or seeking regulation shall explain each of the following factors, in writing, to the extent requested by the House or Senate Committee on Government Operations:

(1) Why regulation is necessary, including:

(A) the nature of the potential harm or threat to the public if the profession or occupation is not regulated;

(B) specific examples of the harm or threat identified in subdivision (A) of this subsection (1);

(C) the extent to which consumers will benefit from a method of regulation that permits identification of competent practitioners, indicating typical employers, if any, of practitioners.

(2) The extent to which practitioners are autonomous, as indicated by:

(A) the degree to which the profession or occupation requires the use of independent judgment, and the skill or experience required in making such judgment;

(B) the degree to which practitioners are supervised.

(3) The efforts that have been made to address the concerns that give rise to the need for regulation, including:

(A) voluntary efforts, if any, by members of the profession or occupation to:

(i) establish a code of ethics;

(ii) help resolve disputes between practitioners and consumers;

(iii) establish requirements for continuing education.

(B) recourse to and the extent of use of existing law.

(4) Why the alternatives to licensure specified in this subdivision would not be adequate to protect the public interest:

(A) stronger civil remedies or criminal sanctions;

(B) regulation of the business entity or facility providing the service rather than the employee practitioners;

(C) regulation of the program or service rather than the individual practitioners;

(D) registration of all practitioners;

(E) certification of practitioners;

(F) other alternatives.

(5) The benefit to the public if regulation is granted, including:

(A) how regulation will result in reduction or elimination of the harms or threats identified under subdivision (1) of this section;

(B) the extent to which the public can be confident that a practitioner is competent:

(i) whether the registration, certification, or licensure will carry an expiration date;

(ii) whether renewal will be based only upon payment of a fee, or whether renewal will involve reexamination, peer review, or other enforcement;

(iii) the standards for registration, certification, or licensure as compared with the standards of other jurisdictions;

(iv) the nature and duration of the educational requirement, if any, including whether the educational requirement includes a substantial amount of supervised field experience; whether educational programs exist in this State; whether there will be an experience requirement; whether the experience must be acquired under a registered, certified, or licensed practitioner; whether there are alternative routes of entry or methods of satisfying the eligibility requirements and qualifications; whether all applicants will be required to pass an examination; and, if an examination is required, by whom it will be developed and how the costs of development will be met.

(6) The form and powers of the regulatory entity, including:

(A) whether the regulatory entity is or would be a board composed of members of the profession or occupation and public members, or a State agency, or both, and, if appropriate, their respective responsibilities in administering the system of registration, certification, or licensure;

(B) the composition of the board, if any, and the number of public members, if any;

(C) the powers and duties of the regulatory entity regarding examinations;

(D) the system for receiving complaints and taking disciplinary action against practitioners.

(7) The extent to which regulation might harm the public, including:

(A) whether regulation will restrict entry into the profession or occupation, including:

(i) whether the standards are the least restrictive necessary to ensure safe and effective performance; and

(ii) whether persons who are registered, certified, or licensed in another jurisdiction that the regulatory entity believes has requirements that are substantially equivalent to those of this State will be eligible for endorsement or some form of reciprocity;

(B) whether there are similar professions or occupations that should be included, or portions of the profession or occupation that should be excluded from regulation.

(8) How the standards of the profession or occupation will be maintained, including:

(A) whether effective quality assurance standards exist in the profession or occupation, such as legal requirements associated with specific programs that define or enforce standards, or a code of ethics; and

(B) how the proposed form of regulation will assure quality, including:

(i) the extent to which a code of ethics, if any, will be adopted; and

(ii) the grounds for suspension, revocation, or refusal to renew registration, certification, or licensure.

(9) A profile of the practitioners in this State, including a list of associations, organizations, and other groups representing the practitioners and including an estimate of the number of practitioners in each group.

(10) The effect that registration, certification, or licensure will have on the costs of the services to the public. (Added 1985, No. 255 (Adj. Sess.), § 7; amended 2015, No. 156 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 2019, No. 178 (Adj. Sess.), § 16, eff. Oct. 1, 2020.)