Increasing Economic and Geographic Mobility

Executive Order 13966 of December 14, 2020

Increasing Economic and Geographic Mobility

By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of
America, including section 305 of title 5, United
States Code, and section 301 of title 3, United States
Code, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. Policy and Principles. As expressed in
Executive Order 13777 of February 24, 2017 (Enforcing
the Regulatory Reform Agenda), it is the policy of the
United States to alleviate unnecessary regulatory
burdens placed on the American people. Overly
burdensome occupational licensing requirements can
impede job creation and slow economic growth, which
undermines our Nation's prosperity and the economic
well-being of the American people. Such regulations can
prevent American workers and job seekers from earning a
living, maximizing their personal and economic
potential, and achieving the American Dream. The
purpose of this order is to reduce the burden of
occupational regulations in order to promote the free
practice of commerce, lower consumer costs, and
increase economic and geographic mobility, including
for military spouses.

My Administration is committed to continuing this
important work by partnering with State, local,
territorial, and tribal leaders throughout the country
to eliminate harmful occupational regulations, which
are frequently designed to protect politically
connected interest groups. To this end, in October
2019, my Administration announced the establishment of
the Governors' Initiative on Regulatory Innovation,
which works with State, local, and tribal leaders to
advance occupational licensing reforms, better align
State and Federal regulations, and eliminate
unnecessary regulations that drive up consumer costs.

Occupational regulations can protect practitioners from
competition rather than protect the public from
malpractice. Unfortunately, the number of occupational
regulations has substantially increased over the last
few decades. Since the 1950s, the percentage of jobs
requiring a government-mandated occupational license
has increased from less than 5 percent to between 25
and 30 percent. By requiring workers to acquire new
licenses when they move to a new jurisdiction,
occupational regulations reduce worker mobility,
disproportionately harm low-income Americans, and are
particularly burdensome to military spouses who must
relocate to support the service members committed to
keeping our country safe. Additionally, blanket
prohibitions that prevent individuals with criminal
records from obtaining occupational licenses may
exacerbate disparities in employment opportunity and
increase the likelihood of recidivism, particularly as
regulatory barriers to enter lower- and middle-income
occupations are associated with higher recidivism
rates. Licensing requirements unnecessary to protect
consumers from significant and demonstrable harm also
frequently impose expensive educational requirements on
potential job seekers, even for occupations with
limited future earnings potential. According to recent
research, licensing requirements have cost our country
an estimated 2.85 million jobs and over $200 billion
annually in increased consumer costs.

Therefore, it is the policy of the United States
Government to support occupational regulation reform
throughout the Nation, building on occupational
licensing reforms enacted most recently in Arizona,
Florida, Iowa, Missouri, and South Dakota, guided by
six principles:

Principle 1. All recognized occupational licensure
boards should be subject to active supervision of a
designated governmental agency or office.

Principle 2. All occupational licensure boards
recognized by a State, territorial, or tribal
government that oversee personal qualifications related
to the practice of an occupation should adopt and
maintain the criteria and methods of occupational
regulation that are least restrictive to competition
sufficient to protect consumers from significant and
demonstrable harm to their health and safety. The
policies and procedures of such boards should be
designed to protect consumer and worker safety and to
encourage competition.

Principle 3. State, territorial, and tribal governments
should review existing occupational regulations,
including associated scope-of-practice provisions, to
ensure that their requirements are the least
restrictive to competition sufficient to protect
consumers from significant and demonstrable harm.
State, territorial, and tribal governments should also
regularly review and analyze all occupational
regulations, including associated personal
qualifications required to obtain an occupational
license, to ensure the adoption of the least
restrictive requirements necessary to protect consumers
from significant and demonstrable harm.

Principle 4. Individuals with criminal records should
be encouraged to submit to the appropriate licensure
board a preliminary application for an occupational
license for a determination as to whether the criminal
record would preclude their attainment of the
appropriate occupational license.

Principle 5. A State, territorial, or tribal government
should issue an occupational license to a person in the
discipline applied for and at the same level of
practice if the individual satisfies four requirements:

(a) the individual holds an occupational license
for that discipline from another jurisdiction in the
United States and is in good standing;
(b) the individual verifies having met, as
applicable, the minimum examination, education, work,
or clinical-supervision requirements imposed by the
State, territory, or tribe;
(c) the individual:

(i) has not had the license previously revoked or suspended;

(ii) has not been disciplined related to the license by any other
regulating entity; and

(iii) is not subject to any pending complaint, allegation, or investigation
related to the license; and

(d) the individual pays all applicable fees
required to obtain the new license.

Principle 6. Accommodations should be made for any
applicant for an occupational license who is the spouse
of an active duty member of the uniformed services and
who is relocating with the member due to the member's
official permanent change of station orders.

Sec. 2. Review of and Report on Authorities,
Regulations, Guidance, and Policies. The head of each
executive department and agency (agency) shall, within
90 days of the date of this order and every 2 years
thereafter:

(a) review the agency's authorities, regulations,
guidance, and polices to identify changes necessary to
ensure alignment with the principles set forth in
section 1 of this order; and
(b) submit a report to the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget (Director of OMB), the
Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, and the
Assistant to the President and Director of
Intergovernmental Affairs (Director of IGA) identifying
all necessary changes identified pursuant to subsection
(a) of this section.

Sec. 3. Identification and Report of Opportunities to
Encourage Occupational Regulation Reform. (a) Within 90
days of the date of this order, and every 2 years
thereafter, the head of each agency shall submit a
report to the

Director of OMB, the Assistant to the President for
Domestic Policy, and the Director of IGA identifying a
list of recommended actions available to any and all
agencies to recognize and reward State, territorial,
and tribal governments that have in place policies and
procedures regarding occupational regulation that are
consistent with the principles set forth in section 1
of this order; and

(b) Within 120 days of the date of this order, and
every 2 years thereafter, the Assistant to the
President for Domestic Policy, in consultation with the
Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Labor, the
Director of OMB, the Administrator of the Small
Business Administration, the Director of IGA, and the
heads of other agencies and offices as appropriate,
shall submit a report to the President identifying:

(i) recommended changes to Federal law, regulations, guidance, and other
policies to ensure alignment with the principles set forth in section 1 of
this order;

(ii) recommended actions to be taken by agencies to recognize and reward
State, territorial, and tribal governments that have in place policies and
procedures regarding occupational regulation that are consistent with the
principles set forth in section 1 of this order; and

(iii) a list of criteria that may be used to evaluate whether a State,
territorial, or tribal government has in place policies and procedures that
are consistent with the principles set forth in section 1 of this order.

Sec. 4. Implementation of Recommendations to Recognize
and Reward State, Territorial, and Tribal Regulatory
Reform. (a) Within 180 days of the date of this order,
and every 2 years thereafter, the Administrator of the
Small Business Administration, in consultation with the
Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Labor, the
Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the heads
of other agencies as appropriate, shall seek and report
on information from State, territorial, and tribal
governments regarding whether they have in place
policies and procedures consistent with the principles
set forth in section 1 of this order and shall make the
report publicly available, including on agencies'
websites. The information sought shall be consistent
with the criteria identified as required by section
3(b)(iii) of this order.

(b) Consistent with applicable law, and to the
extent that the President approves any of the actions
recommended pursuant to section 3(b)(ii) of this order,
agencies shall implement such actions for the purpose
of recognizing and rewarding a State, territorial, or
tribal government that has in place policies and
procedures regarding occupational regulation that are
consistent with the principles set forth in section 1
of this order.

Sec. 5. Definitions. For the purposes of this order:

(a) ``Active supervision'' means:

(i) reviewing proposed occupational licensure board rules, policies, or
other regulatory actions that may restrict market competition prior to
issuance;

(ii) ensuring that any entity seeking to impose occupational licensing
criteria adopts the criteria that are least restrictive to competition
sufficient to protect consumers from significant and demonstrable harm to
their health or safety; and

(iii) analyzing, where information is readily available, the effects of
proposed rules, policies, and other regulatory actions on employment
opportunities, consumer costs, market competition, and administrative
costs.

(b) ``Agency'' has the meaning given that term in
section 3502(1) of title 44, United States Code, except
that the term does not include the agencies described
in section 3502(5) of title 44, United States Code,
other than the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.
(c) ``Occupational license'' means a license,
registration, or certification without which an
individual lacks the legal permission of a State,
local, territorial, or tribal government to perform
certain defined services for compensation.

(d) ``Occupational regulation'' includes:

(i) licensing or government certification, by which a government body
requires personal qualifications in order to be permitted to practice an
occupation; and

(ii) registration, bonding, or inspections, by which a government body does
not require personal qualifications in order to be permitted to practice an
occupation.

Sec. 6. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order
shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or
the head thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with
applicable law and subject to the availability of
appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not,
create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
enforceable at law or in equity by any party against
the United States, its departments, agencies, or
entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any
other person.

THE WHITE HOUSE,

December 14, 2020.