Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is kicking off his administration with a day-long “Florida Deregathon” tomorrow, focusing on occupational licensing in the state. From the Governor’s press release:
Governor DeSantis recently wrote a letter to the members of Florida’s 23 Professional Licensing Boards, calling on them to join him, Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nuñez and Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) Secretary Halsey Beshears on Thursday, January 31, 2019 at Valencia College in Orlando for a one-day event called “Florida Deregathon” to find solutions to harmful regulations facing Floridians.
DeSantis’s enthusiasm is clear. “Our expectation is that each board arrives prepared to roll-up its sleeves, discuss, debate, identify and recommend substantive regulations that can be targeted for immediate elimination” said the governor’s letter.
While the event is unlikely to yield any proposals to delicense any professions (it’s an event for board members, after all) the governor’s move to bring these quasi-private regulatory agencies into the conversation shows how serious he is in addressing the harms of licensing specifically, rather than more general moves to cut “red tape.”
There are clear benefits to having an executive heavily involved in any legislative initiative, but especially so in Florida. While the Sunshine State passed a modest reform under the tenure of Governor Rick Scott, his lack of involvement on the issue made broader reform more difficult.
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