NW Ohio Times

The Ohio House of Representatives has passed House Bill 238, which aims to review and evaluate occupational licensure in the state. The bill was announced by State Representatives Sarah Fowler Arthur and Roy Klopfenstein.

Ohio law requires the General Assembly to review one-third of all licensing boards and commissions every two years. This year, the House State and Local Government committee, led by Chair Marilyn John, conducted the review of 19 boards and their 244 licenses.

The purpose of the review process is to ensure that each board is fulfilling its statutory purpose, remove unnecessary barriers to workforce entry, promote professional development and job creation, and align the state's occupational license standards with those of other states.

"We have captured the general recommendation changes with updates to the boards and licenses that would be included in future reviews, as well as establishing guardrails for continuing education and professional development requirements related to state licensure," said Fowler Arthur.

The boards and agencies that underwent the licensure review include the Ohio Peace Officer Training Commission, Department of Agriculture, Architects and Landscape Board, Ohio Casino Control Commission, Department of Commerce, Motor Vehicle Repair Board, Bureau of Motor Vehicles, the Department of Public Safety, and State Racing Commission.

"Through this process, we diligently worked to cut bureaucratic red tape while continuing to reduce barriers to occupational entry, incentivizing licensure of Ohioans in Ohio rather than losing them to more competitive surrounding states," said Klopfenstein. "We are particularly thankful we were able to work with the affected agencies so that none of them are in opposition to the provisions in this bill."

The bill will now move on to be considered by the Ohio Senate.