13-1b - Office of Professional Licensure Review
Title 13 > 13-1b
Sections (9)
General Provisions
13-1b-101 - Definitions.
As used in this chapter:
(1) “Department” means the Department of Commerce.
(2) “Director” means the director of the office.
(3) “Executive director” means the executive director of the Department of Commerce.
(4) “Government requestor” means: the governor;an executive branch officer other than the governor;an executive branch agency;a legislator; ora legislative committee.
(5) “Health, safety, or financial welfare of the public” includes protecting against physical injury, property damage, or financial harm of the public.
(6) “License” or “licensing” means a state-granted authorization for a person to engage in a specified occupation: based on the person meeting personal qualifications established under state law; andwhere state law requires the authorization before the person may lawfully engage in the occupation for compensation.
(7) “Newly regulate” means to create by statute or administrative rule a new license, certification, registration, or exemption classification regarding an occupation.
(8) “Occupation” means a course of conduct, pursuit, or profession that includes the sale of goods or services that are not illegal to sell, irrespective of whether the individual selling the goods or services is subject to an occupational regulation.
(9) “Office” means the Office of Professional Licensure Review created in this chapter.
(10) “Periodic review” means a review described in Subsection 13-1b-203(2).
(11) “Personal qualifications” means criteria established in state law related to an individual’s background.”Personal qualifications” includes:completion of an approved education program;satisfactory performance on an examination;work experience; andcompletion of continuing education.
(12) “Regulated occupation” means an occupation that: requires a person to obtain a license to practice the occupation; orprovides for state certification or state registration.
(13) “State certification” means a state-granted authorization given to a person to use the term “state certified” as part of a designated title related to engaging in a specified occupation: based on the person meeting personal qualifications established under state law; andwhere state law prohibits a noncertified person from using the term “state certified” as part of a designated title but does not otherwise prohibit a noncertified person from engaging in the occupation for compensation.
(14) “State registration” means a state-granted authorization given to a person to use the term “state registered” as part of a designated title related to engaging in a specified occupation: based on the person meeting requirements established under state law, which may include the person’s name and address, the person’s agent for service of process, the location of the activity to be performed, and bond or insurance requirements;where state law does not require the person to meet any personal qualifications; andwhere state law prohibits a nonregistered person from using the term “state registered” as part of a designated title.
(15) “Sunrise review” means a review under this chapter of an application to establish a new regulated occupation.
Enacted by Chapter 413, 2022 General Session
13-1b-102 - Applicability.
This chapter applies to any regulation of an occupation that is administered by a state executive branch agency.
Enacted by Chapter 413, 2022 General Session
Organization
13-1b-201 - Creation of office — Director appointed — Personnel.
(1) There is created within the department the Office of Professional Licensure Review to perform the functions and duties described in this chapter.
(2) The office is under the direction and control of a director appointed by the executive director with approval of the governor.
(3) The executive director shall establish the salary of the director in accordance with standards established by the Division of Human Resource Management.
Enacted by Chapter 413, 2022 General Session
13-1b-202 - Powers of the director and the office.
(1) The director may employ personnel necessary to carry out the duties and responsibilities of the office at salaries determined by the executive director in accordance with standards established by the Division of Human Resource Management.
(2) The office may: make rules, in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, to administer the responsibilities of the office described in this chapter, including rules creating criteria for conducting a sunrise review or a periodic review;make recommendations to other state executive branch agencies regarding regulated occupations; andsurvey stakeholders regarding appropriate criteria for conducting a sunrise review or a periodic review.
(3) A state executive branch agency may adopt or reject a recommendation described in Subsection (2)(b).
Enacted by Chapter 413, 2022 General Session
13-1b-203 - Duties.
The office shall:
(1) for each application submitted in accordance with Section 13-1b-301, conduct a sunrise review in accordance with Section 13-1b-302 before November 1:of the year in which the application is submitted, if the application is submitted on or before July 1; orof the subsequent year, if the application is submitted after July 1;
(2) in accordance with Section 13-1b-303, conduct a review of each regulated occupation at least once every 10 years;
(3) review and respond to any legislator inquiry regarding a proposed or existing regulated occupation;
(4) publish on the office’s website a submission form where an individual may provide feedback regarding an existing occupational regulation within the office’s jurisdiction that the individual requests the office repeal or modify;
(5) engage in a systematic review of the rules that relate to occupational regulations within the office’s jurisdiction in accordance with Section 13-1b-302; and
(6) report to the Business and Labor Interim Committee in accordance with Section 13-1b-304.
Amended by Chapter 483, 2025 General Session
Office Review and Reporting
13-1b-301 - Application for sunrise review — Fees.
(1) If a government requestor or a representative of an occupation that is not a regulated occupation proposes that the state make the occupation a regulated occupation, the government requestor or representative shall, before the introduction of any proposed legislation, submit to the office an application for sunrise review in a form the office prescribes.
(2) The application described in Subsection (1) shall describe: why making the occupation a regulated occupation is necessary to protect against present, recognizable, and significant harm to the health, safety, or financial welfare of the public; andthe least restrictive regulation of the occupation that would protect against present, recognizable, and significant harm to the health, safety, or financial welfare of the public.
(3) If a representative of an occupation submits an application in accordance with this section, the application shall include a nonrefundable fee of $500.
(4) All application fees collected under this section shall be deposited into the General Fund.
Enacted by Chapter 413, 2022 General Session
13-1b-302 - Review criteria.
In conducting a sunrise review, a periodic review, or a standalone review, unless otherwise directed in accordance with Subsection 13-1b-203(3) , the office shall consider the following criteria:
(1) whether the regulation of the occupation is necessary to address a present, recognizable, and significant harm to the health, safety, or financial welfare of the public;
(2) for any harm to the health, safety, or financial welfare of the public, the harm’s:severity;probability; andpermanence;
(3) the extent to which the proposed or existing regulation of the occupation protects against or diminishes the harm described in Subsection (1);
(4) whether the proposed or existing regulation of the occupation:affects the supply of qualified practitioners;creates barriers to:service that are not in the public financial welfare or interest; orentry into the occupation or related occupations;imposes new costs on existing practitioners;affects:license reciprocity with other jurisdictions; ormobility of practitioners; orif the occupation involves a health care provider, impacts the health care provider’s ability to obtain payment of benefits for the health care provider’s treatment of an illness, injury, or health care condition under an insurance contract subject to Section 31A-22-618;
(5) if the review involves licensing, the potential alternative pathways for a person to obtain a license;
(6) the costs to the state of regulating the occupation;
(7) whether the proposed or existing administering agency has sufficient expertise and resources;
(8) the regulation of the occupation in other jurisdictions;
(9) the scope of the proposed or existing regulation, including:whether the occupation is clearly distinguishable from an already regulated occupation; andpotential for regulating only certain occupational activities;
(10) the potentially less burdensome alternatives to the proposed or existing regulation and the effect of implementing an alternative method of regulation on:the health, safety, or financial welfare of the public;the occupation; andpractitioners of the occupation; and
(11) any other criteria the office adopts, including criteria suggested in a stakeholder survey.
Amended by Chapter 483, 2025 General Session
13-1b-303 - Legislative prioritization of reviews.
(1) Before October 1 of each year, the office shall prepare and submit to the Business and Labor Interim Committee a list of each periodic review that the office proposes to conduct during the upcoming year, including the scope of each periodic review.
(2) Before December 1 of the calendar year in which the office submits a list under Subsection (1), the Business and Labor Interim Committee shall: approve the list, with or without modification; andsubmit a copy of the approved list to the Legislative Management Committee for approval, with or without modification.
Enacted by Chapter 413, 2022 General Session
13-1b-304 - Reporting.
(1) On or before October 1, the office shall annually prepare and submit a written report to the Business and Labor Interim Committee that describes the office’s work during the prior year.
(2) In a written report described in Subsection (1), the office shall include:a summary of each periodic review, each sunrise review, each rule review, and each response to a legislator inquiry;each recommendation the office made to another state executive branch agency regarding a regulated occupation; anda summary of information received during the previous year by the office under Subsection 13-1b-203(4) including:the total number of submissions the office receives;each rule for which an individual filed a submission.
Amended by Chapter 483, 2025 General Session