Editorial Staff

New Study: Excessive Occupational Licensing Hurts State Economy, Reduces Tax Revenue

/in , , , /by Editorial Staff
Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Share on
LinkedIn
+

Read media coverage of this report in The Boston Globe and MassLive.

BOSTON — Overly burdensome occupational licensing requirements not only slow down the Massachusetts economy and cost the state tens of thousands of jobs, but also reduce state and local tax revenue, according to a new study published by Pioneer Institute.

“Onerous occupational licensing laws in Massachusetts not only create unnecessary barriers to finding a job, they also impact state and municipal resources,” said Alex Muresianu, author of “How Occupational Licensing Laws Reduce State and Local Tax Revenues: The Public Finance Case for Occupational Licensing Reform.”

Occupational licensing laws have expanded greatly in the past half-century.  In 1950, only 5 percent of the U.S. workforce needed a license to do their jobs. Now, between 25 and 30 percent of workers need a license.

Get Updates on Our Economic Opportunity Research

Occupational licensing laws are usually justified on the grounds that they improve public health, safety, or service quality. But the existing literature on occupational licensing laws finds that these licenses do not always improve public health or consumer welfare.

Instead, overly broad occupational licensing regulations serve to protect those who currently work in an industry from competition by keeping new workers out. Licensing boards impose large fees and expansive education and training requirements inconsistent with the health and safety implications of the job.

As the public interest law firm Institute for Justice noted, Massachusetts requires cosmetologists to undergo 1,000 hours of training and accrue two years of experience to obtain a license. Meanwhile, becoming a state-licensed EMT, a job with a much clearer tie to public health implications, requires just 150 hours of education.

Licensing laws also have numerous indirect economic consequences. They make it harder for ex-convicts to re-enter the workforce, thus increasing crime and recidivism rates. Many states do not recognize licenses granted in other states, which reduces labor mobility, making the labor market less competitive and slowing down wage growth. Several studies have found that these laws increase economic inequality by keeping lower-income people out of these career paths, and have disparate, negative impacts on young people, ethnic minorities, and military spouses.

One of the roadblocks to reforming these regulations is that state governments are often unwilling to give up the revenue stream generated from fees for occupational licenses. However, licensing laws actually reduce state and local tax revenue by preventing more people from working. Slower economic growth means lower income and sales tax revenue.

“By reducing economic growth, occupational licensing laws reduce state and local tax revenues,” said Muresianu. The report found that in 29 of 36 states studied, state and local governments lose more tax revenue from reduced growth than they gain from occupational licensing fees.

There are several policies Massachusetts and other states can implement to reduce licensing burdens. Repealing licensing laws that most other states don’t have, requiring that any new licensing law address a specific public health concern, automatically recognizing all licenses earned in other states, and replacing licenses with voluntary certification programs are all effective approaches the Bay State legislature could consider to reduce the state’s licensing burden.

About the Author

Alex Muresianu was a Pioneer Institute Akin Fellow of Digi­tal Media. He is a Consumer Freedom Fellow at Young Voices, and his writing has appeared in publications such as National Review Online, The Orange County Register, The Kansas City Star, The Detroit News, and The Springfield Republican. He is currently a junior studying economics at Tufts University.

About Pioneer

Pioneer Institute is an independent, non-partisan, privately funded research organization that seeks to improve the quality of life in Massachusetts through civic discourse and intellectually rigorous, data-driven public policy solutions based on free market principles, individual liberty and responsibility, and the ideal of effective, limited and accountable government.

Related Posts

Report Finds “Reopening Day” in the Commonwealth Will Likely Include Phasing in Businesses and Contact Tracing

New study compares the reopening of three European countries – Austria, Denmark, and Germany – to highlight approaches that could inform the Commonwealth’s reopening strategy.

Hospitality, Retail Trade, Healthcare Among ‘Most Vulnerable Industries’ in Terms of Unemployment due to COVID-19

Recent data provided by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development show that hospitality, retail trade, healthcare and social assistance, and construction are the industries that have suffered the most unemployment as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, according to the new Pioneer Institute report, “A Look at the Massachusetts Industries that are Most Vulnerable Due to COVID-19.”

Report: MA Likely to See Sharp Spike in Unemployment Rate

The COVID-19 recession could cause Massachusetts’ unemployment rate to skyrocket to 25.4 percent by this June, according to a new policy brief published by Pioneer Institute. The authors recommend that the state join others in lobbying Congress for large block grants to avoid a severe fiscal crisis.

Pioneer Launches Report Series Highlighting Massachusetts Job Growth and Business Trends Since 1998

In “Some Big, Broad Economic Trends in Massachusetts,” Pioneer analysis of two decades of data shows fluctuating employment changes across the state, as well as firm size information and the largest employers. The report is part one of aa series that aims to provide deeper insight into COVID-19's economic impact.

Pioneer Report Offers Framework for Improving Greater Boston’s Global Competitiveness

Pioneer’s new report, Greater Boston as a Global Competitor, provides useful metrics to help Massachusetts formulate a strategy to become an even more attractive place for innovators and talent.

Pioneer Institute Announces New Economics Data Tool: MassEconomix

A new addition to Pioneer Institute’s Mass Watch data tool suite, MassEconomix, provides time-series data on job and business growth for all of Massachusetts. Pioneer has partnered with the Business Dynamics Research Consortium (BDRC), which is housed at the University of Wisconsin’s Institute for Business and Entrepreneurship, to acquire an employment database known as “Your-economy Time Series”, or YTS. This database provides a year-by-year look at companies and jobs that have existed in the Commonwealth since 1997.