Office of Regulatory Reinvention Appoints Members to the Occupational Licensing Advisory Rules Committee

Contact: Mario L. Morrow 517-373-9280

Agency: Licensing and Regulatory Affairs

 August 4, 2011 - Today, the Office of Regulatory Reinvention appointed twelve people to the Occupational Licensing Advisory Rules Committee. The Occupational Licensing Rules Committee will assist the Office of Regulatory Reinvention (ORR) in identifying duplicative, obsolete, unnecessary or unduly restrictive occupational licensing rules that are not conducive to business growth and job creation.

"The state currently regulates about 91 occupations. This committee will evaluate each one and determine if the rules in place provide enough benefits to outweigh the cost to the taxpayer. In some cases, we may find that the government should no longer regulate a particular occupation," said Rob Nederhood, deputy director of the ORR. "The ORR is focused on creating a regulatory environment that is conducive to business growth and job creation. Michigan is fortunate to have so many highly-credentialed citizens willing to do the hard work that is necessary to make Michigan's regulatory system more efficient and effective."

Specifically, the ORR appointed: 

• Rose Baran, Haslett, Assistant Professor, Pharmacy Practice, Ferris State University 
• Sandra Cotter, Lansing, Equity Member of the Regulated Industries Department, Dykema Gossett 
• Julie Deboer, Hastings, Executive Director, Michigan Society of Professional Surveyors 
• Russ Harding, Midland, Senior Environmental Policy Analyst, Mackinac Center for Public Policy 
• Jeffrey Hicks, Lansing, Managing Partner, Hicks & Mullett, PLLC 
• John Lindley, Troy, Vice President of Government Relations & Regulatory Affairs, Michigan Association of CPAs 
• Roger Newton, Ann Arbor, Founder, President, and CEO, Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. 
• Rae Ramsdell, Lansing, Director, Bureau of Health Professions 
• Al Schefke, Lansing, Director, Bureau of Commercial Services 
• Ralph Sherman, Southfield, Founding Partner, The Law Offices of Ralph M. Sherman, PC 
• Jay Tower, Huntington Woods, Sole Practitioner, Jay W. Tower, Esq.

Shelly Edgerton, Deputy Director of the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, will chair the committee. The first committee meeting will be held this month in Lansing.

The ORR was formed pursuant to Executive Order 2011-5. The Executive Order contemplates that, as part of its effort to obtain input from a broad spectrum of stakeholders, the ORR will create certain Advisory Rules Committees.

The Occupational Licensing Advisory Rules Committee (ARC) will function for 120 days after formation, unless that date is extended by the ORR. The ARC will issue a report to the ORR containing advisory recommendations upon the completion of their work.

The ORR has already identified approximately 514 and 537 rules promulgated by the Bureau of Health Professions and the Bureau of Commercial Services, respectively. The ARC will evaluate the applicable rules based of the factors listed in Executive Order 2011-5, including the health and safety benefits of the rules; the cost of compliance with the rules; whether the rules are duplicative or obsolete; and other factors.

Ultimately, the ORR will submit its findings and recommendations to the Governor, based in part on the reports from each of the ARCs. Three other ARCs, Environmental, Insurance &Finance, and Workplace Safety, have been created. The ORR is reviewing applications for two other ARCs; Liquor Control and Natural Resources. Other ARCs will be formed in the future, to address other areas of regulation, according to Nederhood.

In addition to forming ARCs, the ORR will provide interested parties with the opportunity to share their perspectives on the regulatory environment by, among other things, inviting the submission of comments online at www.michigan.gov/orrand by providing for public comment as part of any formal rulemaking process mandated by the Administrative Procedures Act.

For more information about LARA, please visit www.michigan.gov/lara. Follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/michiganORR , "Like" us on Facebook or find us on YouTube www.youtube.com/michiganLARA .