Entry regulation: means : (A) Any rule promulgated by a licensing authority for the purpose of regulating an occupational or professional group, including, but not limited to, any rule prescribing qualifications or requirements for a person's entry into, or continued participation in, any business, trade, profession, or occupation in this state. See Tennessee Code 4-5-501
Licensing: includes the agency process respecting the grant, denial, renewal, revocation, suspension, withdrawal or amendment of a license. See Tennessee Code 4-5-102
Licensing authority: means any state regulatory board, commission, council, or committee in the executive branch of state government established by statute or rule that issues any license, certificate, registration, certification, permit, or other similar document for the purpose of entry into, or regulation of, any occupational or professional group. See Tennessee Code 4-5-501
(1) No later than December 31, 2016, each licensing authority shall submit a copy of all existing or pending entry regulations pertaining to the licensing authority and an aggregate list of such entry regulations to the chairs of the government operations committees of the senate and house of representatives. The committees shall conduct a study of such entry regulations and may, at the committees’ discretion, conduct a hearing regarding the entry regulations submitted by any licensing authority. The committees shall issue a joint report regarding the committees’ findings and recommendations to the general assembly no later than January 1, 2018.(2) After January 1, 2018, each licensing authority shall, prior to the next occurring hearing regarding the licensing authority held pursuant to § 4-29-104, submit to the chairs of the government operations committees of the senate and house of representatives a copy of any entry regulation promulgated by or relating to the licensing authority after the date of the submission pursuant to subdivision (a)(1). The appropriate subcommittees of the government operations committees shall consider the licensing authority’s submission as part of the governmental entity review process and shall take any action relative to subsections (b)-(d) as a joint evaluation committee. Prior to each subsequent hearing held pursuant to § 4-29-104, the licensing authority shall submit any entry regulation promulgated or adopted after the submission for the previous hearing.(3) In addition to the process established in subdivisions (a)(1) and (2), the chairs of the government operations committees of the senate and house of representatives may request that a licensing authority present specific entry regulations for the committees’ review pursuant to this section at any meeting of the committees.(4) Notwithstanding this subsection (a), the governor or the commissioner of any department created pursuant to chapter 3 of this title, relative to a licensing authority attached to the commissioner’s department, may request the chairs of the government operations committees of the senate and house of representatives to review, at the committees’ discretion, specific entry regulations pursuant to this section.(b) During a review of entry regulations pursuant to this section, the government operations committees shall consider whether:
(1) The entry regulations are required by state or federal law;(2) The entry regulations are necessary to protect the public health, safety, or welfare;(3) The purpose or effect of the entry regulations is to unnecessarily inhibit competition or arbitrarily deny entry into a business, trade, profession, or occupation;(4) The intended purpose of the entry regulations could be accomplished by less restrictive or burdensome means; and(5) The entry regulations are outside of the scope of the licensing authority’s statutory authority to promulgate or adopt entry regulations.(c) The government operations committees may express the committees’ disapproval of an entry regulation promulgated or adopted by the licensing authority by voting to request that the licensing authority amend or repeal the entry regulation promulgated or adopted by the licensing authority if the committees determine during a review that the entry regulation:
(1) Is not required by state or federal law; and(2)(A) Is unnecessary to protect the public health, safety, or welfare;(B) Is for the purpose or has the effect of unnecessarily inhibiting competition;(C) Arbitrarily denies entry into a business, trade, profession, or occupation;(D) With respect to its intended purpose, could be accomplished by less restrictive or burdensome means, including, but not limited to, certification, registration, bonding or insurance, inspections, or an action under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act of 1977, compiled in title 47, chapter 18, part 1; or(E) Is outside of the scope of the licensing authority’s statutory authority to promulgate or adopt entry regulations.(d)(1) Notice of the disapproval of an entry regulation promulgated or adopted by a licensing authority shall be posted by the secretary of state, to the administrative register on the secretary of state’s website, as soon as possible after the committee meeting in which such action was taken.(2) If a licensing authority fails to initiate compliance with any recommendation of the government operations committees issued pursuant to subsection (c) within ninety (90) days of the issuance of the recommendation, or fails to comply with the request within a reasonable period of time, the committees may vote to request the general assembly to suspend any or all of such licensing authority’s rulemaking authority for any reasonable period of time or with respect to any particular subject matter, by legislative enactment.(e) Except as provided in subdivision (a)(2), for the purposes of reviewing any entry regulation of a licensing authority and making final recommendations under this section, the government operations committees may meet jointly or separately and, at the discretion of the chair of either committee, may form subcommittees for such purposes.
