Occupational Licensing and Scope of Practice

Co-funded with the W. K. Kellogg Foundation

Occupational licensing laws and regulations determine who gains employment, what tasks they can perform, and the terms of employment. Scope of practice requirements are a critical component of these licensing regulations because they define the capabilities of practitioners in occupations affected by licensing. Economist Morris Kleiner will examine how scope of practice provisions in state laws determine access to work, with an emphasis on nonstandard work. He will develop a comprehensive dataset on scope of practice requirements by state and year since 1990 and make it available publicly. He will also collect data to address these questions: What tasks and duties are practitioners legally able to perform? Are practitioners required to receive authorization from practitioners of another occupation before performing tasks or duties? Are practitioners required to be supervised (and to what degree) by practitioners of another occupation when performing work for pay? Are practitioners able to directly bill for services performed?