A bill introduced by all 11 Republican members of the state Senate seeks to eliminate a variety of occupational and professional licensing and certification fees.
Senate Bill 105 is scheduled to be discussed during a public hearing Monday hosted by the legislature’s General Law Committee. The hearing is set to be held online via Zoom due to the snowstorm that has limited travel throughout the state.
The bill was introduced by the 11 members of the Senate’s minority caucus: Minority Leader Stephen G. Harding, Sen. Eric C. Berthel, Sen. Paul Cicarella, Sen. Ryan Fazio, Sen. Jeff Gordon, Sen. Tony Hwang, Sen. John A. Kissel, Sen. Henri Martin, Sen. Jason Perillo, Sen. Rob Sampson and Sen. Heather S. Somers.
The stated purpose of the bill is to “eliminate various occupational and professional license, permit, certification and registration fees.”
It seeks to amend the state’s general statutes to eliminate occupational license fees for speech and language pathologists; license, permit, certification and registration fees for occupations and professions regulated by the state Department of Consumer Protection; and certification fees for teaching certificates.
The bill follows Gov. Ned Lamont’s announcement in January that he signed an executive order intended to speed up the state’s processing of licenses, certifications and permits, including a new requirement to refund application fees if agencies miss prescribed deadlines.
That order directed state agencies to overhaul how residents and businesses apply for and renew credentials needed to operate, with an emphasis on faster response times and expanded digital services.
Administration officials said the goal of Lamont’s order is to make interactions with state government more predictable and less burdensome, particularly for small businesses that often depend on timely approvals to open or expand operations.
The bill proposed by the GOP senators would instead eliminate fees entirely for many licenses and certifications.
Anyone who wants to speak during today’s hearing can register here. Written testimony about the bill can be submitted here.
