End Government Licensing

“If elected, I will sponsor and work diligently to pass legislation to end state-protected cartels by removing all restrictions on practicing in any profession. This includes allowing free-market certification to replace state-controlled licensing and restoring the right of all service providers to advertise and to publicize their prices.”

Why we should replace government licensing with market regulation

• Government-granted licensing breeds cronyist cartels that are among the most powerful lobby organizations in the U.S.
• Cartel lobbyists serve the needs of their members, not consumers, and exert undue influence over politicians.
• Cartel lobbyists work to block and outlaw their competition, restricting consumers’ choices.
• Cartel lobbyists work to secure government contracts and other special favors at taxpayer expense.
• Government licensing allows incompetent providers to continue their practice when they should be put out of business.
• Government licensing leads to artificial shortages, which drive up the price of services.
• Educational requirements set by government-mandated licensing boards often miss the mark, imposing years of costly, unproductive and often unnecessary schooling, while neglecting to ensure practitioners have all the training they need to be effective.
• How and where to be trained for a profession should be left up to the individual to decide. This will allow for a great variety of learning and training methodologies, which leads to adoption of best practices.
• Market regulation, including professional society certification and customer feedback, does a far superior job of weeding out unsafe and unqualified providers than government-mandated licensing.
• Market regulation keeps prices competitive.
• Market regulation holds providers to account for their performance and qualifications throughout their careers, not just when they initially qualify.
• Ending state licensing will create millions of jobs for qualified individuals.
• Ending state licensing will drive down prices of services.
• Ending state licensing will improve safety and quality of services.

Nebraska State Legislature passed Libertarian Senator Laura Ebke's licensing reform bill in 2018 [Reason Magazine].