When I started out to write this blog I had a good idea. That is before I checked on the core data of my blog subject.
My idea was quite simple. Many people getting out of jail or prison, many people arriving as immigrants, and people who have lost their job and are looking for new sources of income will look at the array of modest skills that appear to be income producing. Skills such as massage, hairdressing, personal care, home care, simplified nursing functions, gardening, vehicle driving and more.
It turns out that nearly every one of these simple jobs requires some form of state or federal licensing. In most cases this licensing acts as a barrier for low income people.
I was going to look at a possible solution using a national safety and skills test for the 50 to 80 occupations that should not require significant skills or knowledge and are amenable to on-the-job training and apprenticeship.
Then I looked at the number of business licenses that are required in California. Here is the list of businesses that require licenses in California. Over 120. I realize that any effort to short-circuit, circumvent or make this process more reasonable would face ungodly amounts of political opposition from established licensed businesses. And licensees.
Now that I look at the formidable opposition any change would generate, I realize the process would have to be set in motion at the national level at incremental stages.
To make this politically feasible we would have to start with 10 occupations that are clearly rudimentary and would require only a one hour federal health and safety test to be accompanied by a written certificate of apprenticeship for final certification.
We would not be getting around the certification process but would be making it simple and national. That would allow new entrants, allow mobility and preserve the value of existing licenses.
The legislation would also have two provisions: One would allow competitors to sue in small claims court over violations of industry norms. Each industry could publish its own norms. That would offer protection to the public.
The second provision would specify additional dozens of federal certifications to be introduced over multiple five-year periods if the first certification process was successful.
Comments?