Ohio think tank offers ideas on reducing licensing burdens

Over the last five or so years, Ohio leaders have nixed or lessened the requirements for nearly 100 licenses based on The Buckeye Institute’s recommendations.

However, the Columbus-based think tank says there is more work that lawmakers should take as they examine licenses that were first reviewed in 2019 and 2020.

The Buckeye Institute has issued its fourth “Opening Doors” policy brief, which identifies 39 licenses that Ohio should eliminate or reform. Doing so, the think tank said, would make Ohio more economically competitive and better for people to earn a living.

Its release comes as the Ohio House General Government Committee begins its review of occupational licenses in Ohio.

“To assist lawmakers in their review of Ohio’s occupational licenses, The Buckeye Institute’s examination has identified 39 licenses that the state can eliminate or reform,” said Greg R. Lawson, a research fellow at The Buckeye Institute and author of the Opening Doors series. “Doing so would make Ohio more economically competitive and end the ‘permission-slip’ policies that make it difficult for people to earn a living in the Buckeye State.”

In its review of the same licenses that the Ohio House General Government Committee is reviewing, The Buckeye Institute said it has identified 19 license or certification mandates that lawmakers should remove, including licenses for motor vehicle emissions repair professionals, refrigeration contractors and people in charge of food protection certification. The group also identified another 20 that lawmakers can modify to align them with the mandates neighboring states impose, including athlete agents, fish wholesalers, and lead abatement contractors.

House Bill 59, introduced in February and sponsored by state Reps. Sarah Fowler Arthur, R-Ashtabula, and Mark Hiner, R-Howard, is placeholder legislation declaring that “the General Assembly intends to enact legislation revising and streamlining occupational regulations to better accommodate the state’s workforce.”

More Policy Solutions

Concurrently, Americans for Prosperity–Ohio, another advocacy group, is traveling across the state to advocate for transformative policy solutions highlighted in its Buckeye Blueprint.

The Buckeye Blueprint focuses on four key areas: cutting taxes, expanding educational freedom, making energy more affordable, and modernizing government. The group contends that the policies will reduce red tape and eliminate barriers that limit opportunities and increase costs for Ohio families and businesses, setting a course for a more prosperous future.

“The current system in Ohio is rife with barriers holding residents of our state back from achieving their version of the American Dream,” Americans for Prosperity–Ohio State Director Donovan O’Neil said in a statement.

“We must advance a legislative agenda that prioritizes the needs of hardworking taxpayers and small businesses in order to create a prosperous future,” O’Neil added. “The Buckeye Blueprint lays out a framework for increased economic opportunity, energy abundance, education freedom, and government modernization that will benefit every Ohioan.”