Kevin Carey has a sadly amusing post on occupational licensing:
Back when I was working for the Indiana General Assembly, one member…became convinced that it was crucially important for the state to address, via statute, the problem of rogue hypnotists traveling the land, preying upon unsuspecting Hoosiers. He wasn’t anti-hypnotist, mind you–he thought the government needed to protect people from unqualified hypnotists…
So the state passed a hypnotist licensing law, complete with the requisite boards, professional standards, forms to fill out, fees to pay, and so on….Then, after the law was enacted, a funny thing started happening: The state began receiving license applications from people who didn’t live in Indiana….It turns out they were doing it so they could advertise in the yellow pages and on bus-stop billboards as “state-licensed.”
Hat tip to Matt Yglesias.
Good. A new revenue raiser for states when they need one.
Anyone want to take bets on the first state to provide licensing for bloggers?
Let’s have a post on colleges picking their own accrediting body.
By the way, there’s a hypnotherapists union (Local 472)
http://www.hypnotherapistsunion.org/laws/usa/
Who knew?
Interesting. So the licensing, while apparently silly at first, actually turned into a useful signalling mechanism that people from outside the state’s jurisdiction were attracted to. If we’re looking for beneficial government programs, this one clearly provided a valuable service in creating a way for businesses to signal their quality.
Back when I was working for the Indiana General Assembly, one member…became convinced that it was crucially important for the state to address, via statute, the problem of rogue hypnotists traveling the land, preying upon unsuspecting Hoosiers. He wasn’t anti-hypnotist, mind you…
No, he was hypnotized to do it.
Hmmmm, this has potential.
Maybe successful lobbyists are merely the best hypnotists?
Louis the XVI would be proud….
These things get pretty crazy. You need a license to be a fortune teller in Maryland.
It is not unusual that when a profession does not have a recognized licensing in a jurisdiction, a license obtained in a jurisdiction which does is used instead. For example, in Germany, it is common for parties in a real estate transaction to agree to use a licensed Charter Surveyor from Great Britain, as the profession is not licensed in Germany. One might even consider the practice to be extended to the US bond ratings agencies which are almost universally used in the absence of local competitors.
The current laws and structure accomplish NOTHING to promote the introduction of new highly qualified hypnotists within the state of Indiana. It only serves to limit entrance and to protect those few who are already licensed. Most of whom were grandfathered in and were not required to meet the current number of hours, nor pass the exam.
Good. A new revenue raer for states when they need one.
Good. A new revenue rr for states wn they need one.
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