Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp has less than three weeks to push through a massive reform of the system that licenses and doles out discipline for nearly half a million Georgia professionals.
His sweeping proposal contained in Senate Bill 445 proposes to take authority from Georgia's 43 licensing boards and about 300 board members and to give it to his shrinking staff and a new board of seven people appointed by the governor. It is being met with skepticism by licensees from architects to nurses, some of whom serve on the boards, and by politicians who question whether it will work and how it would affect the Georgians who need a license to earn a living.
Kemp's goal is to cut waiting times for a license from a month to a week, but critics wonder how licensing investigations done by 300 knowledgeable board members will speed up or whether they will be done safely when dropped into the laps of seven people without the same range of expertise.
"If a barber gives you a bad haircut, it's a bad haircut. If a nurse messes up, it may kill you," said Barry Cranfill, a member of the state Board of Nursing, which issues the largest number of professional licenses, 111,149.
Kemp says his staff that works for boards is already doing much of the work and the new system will gain efficiency. He hopes to get the legislation -- a massive bill of more than 800 pages -- passed this year, so it would take effect in 2013. But it would have to pass at least one chamber by March 7 to have a chance this legislative session, and the bill faces opposition from members of some of the more powerful boards, who can sway tens of thousands of members. Questions over the need for a complete overhaul versus a tuneup of the process also may slow the bill.
Kemp shopped the idea to Gov. Nathan Deal, looking for support.
A spokeswoman for Deal said he would support a streamlined concept that is an efficient and effective process for licensure and renewals, but he also supports the policy expertise of the 43 boards and expects their continued input.
The bill will have its first hearing in a Senate committee Tuesday.
Cranfill questioned the changes, saying his board issues most nursing licenses in less than 30 days. A percentage are slowed because of incomplete applications or past legal or discipline problems that need careful consideration. Rushing applications could be dangerous, he said.
The licensing boards are one of the services Kemp oversees, along with elections, state archives, incorporations and regulating securities. Board members are professionals appointed by the governor, along with one consumer per board. They set policies and standards, determine how much education and experience is needed and which exams applicants must pass.
They also hear complaints and determine fines or revocations. Boards make sure professionals who affect the public don't put people's health or property at risk. They don't get paid, but get reimbursed for expenses such as travel costs to board meetings, which also would be true for the proposed single board.
But Kemp's staff has been shrinking in the Great Recession and its aftermath. The General Assembly has cut the budget of Kemp's agency 17 percent since 2008. Kemp has reduced board staff from 126 to 86. He and board members agree that the loss of employees has been a problem.
More than 80 percent of applications go through without a delay. The majority of staff and board time is spent on the remaining 20 percent or less of applications that need more scrutiny.
Kemp said moving decision-making power and authority in discipline cases to his staff and the new seven-member board will save time and money for boards, applicants and his staff. His staff, which already handles much of the work, won't have to wait for a monthly board meeting -- some meet less often -- for approvals and more consideration before issuing a license or making discipline decisions. He thinks the new board can do its job meeting two or three days a month.
"If we can knock out 70 to 80 or 90 percent of the applications that are clean, we can reduce the number of board meetings," Kemp said.
The 43 boards will still set policies and standards, advise staff or the seven-member board and may participate in appeals of licensing issues, under Kemp's plan.
Jan Ligon, an assistant professor at Georgia State University who served eight years on the board that licenses counselors, social workers and therapists, said Kemp's rationale is not bad.
"But I think sometimes governments come through with notions that sound simple, but when you try to implement it, what actually occurs is more difficult than what you would think," he said.
Many professionals and board members questioned Kemp closely and offered criticism in two meetings he called in January to explain his proposal, which caught them by surprise. Some scoffed at the idea that a seven-member board could do in two or three days a month what all the boards do, and many said they believe the one board will not understand the nuances of 200 licensed professions.
Ligon is also concerned about bad counselors slipping through.
"There are people you don't want to send your teenage daughter to see," he said.
Other states have boards and procedures similar to Georgia, except for Texas, which Kemp holds out as an example to follow.
Kemp is facing political questions as well.
Senate Minority Leader Steve Henson, D-Tucker, wonders whether it creates a new level of bureaucracy and how giving Kemp's office new powers will affect people.
"When you are talking about licensing, which is somebody's bread and butter, it is an important thing, and we have to make sure this is not about getting a chance to have some kind of influential position for political reasons," Henson said.
"And there are a lot of concerns by a number of legislators whether this is necessary or if this is the way to do it," he said.
Kemp said it is about jobs, not politics.
“Georgians who obtained specialized education and training to start a new career don’t care about my political party affiliation; they want to get to work, support their families and start new businesses," he said.
A peek at who gets
licenses in Georgia
The largest group: 111,149 registered nurses
Smallest group: 93 athlete agents
Accountants, four types of licenses, 52,491 issued
Interior designers, 377 issued
Cemeterians, seven types of licenses, 1,151 issued
Cosmetologists, 19 types of licenses, 77,455 issued
Electrical contractors, 14 types of licenses, 30,870 issued
Foresters, 1,115 issued
Librarians, 991 issued
Occupational therapists, two types of licenses, 3,781 issued
Psychologists, 2,223 issued
Water/wastewater treatment plant operators, 13 different licenses, 9,234 issued
About the Author
