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From: shawn <nanoflower@notforg.m.a.i.l.com>
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Subject: Re: State and local occupational licensing laws
Date: Wed, 05 Jun 2024 17:03:11 -0400
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On Wed, 5 Jun 2024 20:31:49 -0000 (UTC), "Adam H. Kerman"
<ahk@chinet.com> wrote:

>BTR1701 <atropos@mac.com> wrote:
>>"Adam H. Kerman" <ahk@chinet.com> wrote:
>>>Adam H. Kerman <ahk@chinet.com> wrote:
>>>>BTR1701 <atropos@mac.com> wrote:
>>>>>Adam H. Kerman <ahk@chinet.com> wrote:
>
>>>>>>>. . . 
>
>>>>>>Mere possession of lockpicks without being a licensed locksmith
>
>>>>>Do you have to be licensed to be a locksmith, too? Is there no 
>>>>>profession that the government doesn't believe you have to ask its 
>>>>>permission before you can perform your job?
>
>>>>You know the gag. A thief or burglar serving a sentence in prison learns
>>>>that if he takes courses or trains for a trade or profession, it counts
>>>>as "good behavior", reducing prison time. So he takes a locksmithing
>>>>course by correspondence... 
>
>>>>How can that possibly go wrong?
>
>>>>According to this Web page, 13 states require a trade license under
>>>>state law. In other states, trade licenses are issued under local
>>>>ordinance.
>
>>>>https://www.locksmithkeyless.com/blogs/news/a-comprehensive-guide-to-locksmith-licenses
>
>>>Hey! Look what I found!
>
>>>https://occupationallicensing.com/occupation/locksmith/
>
>>>This Web site discusses the burden of occupational licensing. It's a
>>>study by Institute for Justice!
>
>>In Texas, they used to force black women who made money providing 
>>hair-braiding services to their friends and neighbors to have a 
>>cosmetology license just to tie hair in little knots. For the "safety" 
>>of the community, of course. It had nothing to do with that fact that 
>>the license is expensive and puts money in the state's coffers. And to 
>>get the cosmetology license, not only does one have to pay the huge fee 
>>to the state, one has to take (and pay for) hundreds of hours of 
>>'training' that has no bearing on twisting hair into braids.
>
>>You used to have to go to 2000 hours of training and obtain a college 
>>degree just braid someone's hair. There's not even any "potentially 
>>dangerous equipment" like blow-dryers <snort> involved in hair-braiding 
>>and the worst that can happen if you fuck up someone's braids is they 
>>can undo them and have it redone by someone else. Yet the state wanted 
>>to make people spend thousands of dollars to be 'licensed' to do it. 
>>Thankfully that was repealed.
>
>Waitaminit: Texas got rid of an occupational license? Cool. My state
>still has that license. And it's a separate license from barber!
>
>>A wannabe librarian needs a master's degree just to get an entry-level 
>>job filing books.
>
>I'm self taught on book identification and cataloging. It's something
>self-published authors need to get right, and I maintain a Web site to
>give guidance. Every time I learn something, I update it. No clue if
>anyone reads it.
>
>>It's a massive scam. It's becoming almost impossible to do *any* job 
>>without someone telling you that you have to pay a tithe-- either to a 
>>college, a trade school, a union, or the state-- to do it. And all of it 
>>to use the power of the state to limit competition and keep prices 
>>artificially high.

The question is who is pushing for this. In most cases it seems to be
people who are already in the field pushing for the licensing to limit
the competition. Then we get governments (local/state) pushing for the
licensing as a way of getting free money. After all it impacts a
limited number of people unlike adding on an additional property tax
or sales tax that impacts a large number of people.

>Shhh. I hear there's this Scottish intellectual who wrote a book
>criticizing English guilds in restraint of trade and talks about the
>"invisible hand" in the free market. I wonder if anyone will read it.

Sounds like it might hold a wealth of national knowledge so it may get
rid by at least a few people.