The Buckeye Institute presented its views to the Ohio Senate Government Oversight Committee regarding House Bill 238, which seeks to ease occupational licensing requirements in Ohio. Greg R. Lawson, a research fellow at the institute, commended the bill’s sponsors, Representative Fowler Arthur and Representative Klopfenstein, as well as the committee members for addressing this issue.
Lawson noted that almost half of the recommendations from The Buckeye Institute’s “Opening Door III” are included in House Bill 238. These include removing the two-year post-secondary education requirement for real estate brokers. However, he urged the Senate to reinstate certain changes made by the Ohio House, such as reducing state training requirements for cosmetologists and barbers and eliminating the Motor Vehicle Repair Board.
Lawson proposed forming a “joint committee tasked with ongoing licensing review,” emphasizing that this would ensure elected General Assembly members stay involved in reviewing licensing requirements rather than leaving it to unelected officials.
He expressed gratitude to Chair Roegner and other committee members for their work on reducing bureaucratic burdens in Ohio.
