Bill Caption

Fiscal Notes

From the LBB: Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for SB304, As Introduced: a negative impact of ($600,000) through the biennium ending August 31, 2019. The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill.

Bill Analysis

This bill would extend the sunset date of the Texas Board of Chiropractic Examiners until 2029, and also add “diagnose” to the definition of what a chiropractor does. The executive director of the board would be required to create a training manual and distribute it annually to each board member. Any complaint, adverse report, investigation file, and investigational report would be confidential, and the board would be prohibited from receiving anonymous complaints. The board would be required to establish an expert review process for any complaint requiring additional chiropractic knowledge to review. The board would require that an applicant for a license undergo a complete fingerprint background check, and the board would be required to search at least one national practitioner database to make sure the applicant has not been subject to discipline in another state. Licenses would be valid for a term of one or two years as determined by the board. 

Vote Recommendation Notes

This bill both uplifts and offends our liberty principles. By cutting licensure fees and allowing licenses to be valid for two years rather than maintaining the current requirement for annual renewal, this bill rolls back some government regulations on this licensed profession. To the extent that there is any dispute that chiropractors are able to offer diagnosis, this legislation also clarifies that chiropractors may diagnose. This clarification is also beneficial. On the other hand, this bill increases regulation by requiring aspiring chiropractors to submit to fingerprinting and background checks. Because this bill both supports and offends our limited government principle we remain neutral. 

For a fuller exposition of our views regarding occupational licensure, click here.

For further reading on this issue we recommend a couple excellent resources:

The Institute for Justice has done yeoman’s work in researching the pervasiveness of the licensing problem. Their 2012 national study, License To Work, which gives an in-depth report on the status of licensure in every state, should be required reading for policymakers working on licensure issues.  

Guild-Ridden Labor Markets: The Curious Case of Occupational Licensing by Morris M. Kleiner, which describes in easily readable language the history of occupational licensing in the United States, demonstrates the clear connection between licensure and industry protection.