PRINTER'S NO. 234
No. 205 Session of 2003
INTRODUCED BY MUNDY, CORRIGAN, FLICK, HARHAI, HORSEY, LAUGHLIN,
McCALL, MELIO, SOLOBAY, STABACK AND TIGUE, FEBRUARY 11, 2003
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE,
FEBRUARY 11, 2003
AN ACT
1 Requiring certain information to be solicited in connection with
2 the consideration of professional licensure legislation.
3 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth hereby enacts as
4 follows:
5 Section 1. Short title.
6 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Sunrise Act.
7 Section 2. Legislative findings.
8 The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
9 (1) Regulation should be imposed on an occupation or
10 profession only when necessary to the protection of the
11 public interest.
12 (2) Establishing a system for reviewing the necessity of
13 regulating an occupation or profession prior to enacting laws
14 for regulation under paragraph (1) will better enable it to
15 evaluate the need for the regulation and to determine the
16 least restrictive regulatory alternative consistent with the
17 public interest.
1 (3) Expanding the scope of practice of an occupation or
2 profession necessitates a systematic review of the impact of
3 the proposed expansion on the health, safety and welfare of
4 the public.
5 Section 3. Definitions.
6 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
7 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
8 context clearly indicates otherwise:
9 "Committee." The committee in the Senate and the House of
10 Representatives to which proposed legislation to regulate
11 occupations and professions is referred.
12 "Legislation." A bill or an amendment to a bill.
13 Section 4. Sunrise evaluation report.
14 Neither chamber of the General Assembly shall vote on a bill
15 or an amendment which proposes the regulation of any unregulated
16 professional or occupational group or which proposes to expand
17 the scope of practice of a regulated professional or
18 occupational group until the Legislative Budget and Finance
19 Committee has submitted to the committee of the chamber in which
20 the bill originated or the amendment offered a sunrise
21 evaluation report containing at least the following:
22 (1) The name, address, telephone number and
23 representative of organizations known to be advocating or
24 opposing the proposed legislation.
25 (2) The extent to which members of the general public
26 are advocating or opposing the proposed legislation.
27 (3) The number of Pennsylvania practitioners in each
28 organization which advocates or opposes the proposed
29 legislation.
30 (4) The position of the Governor or a designated
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1 representative on the proposed legislation.
2 (5) The functions performed by the occupation or
3 profession which the legislation proposes to regulate or the
4 scope of practice which the legislation proposes to expand,
5 including the extent to which practitioners of this
6 occupation or profession work under supervision, the nature
7 of that supervision, the degree of independent judgment which
8 they are required to exercise, the level of skill and
9 experience required to exercise that judgment and the level
10 of education and experience which they possess.
11 (6) Any current statutory or case law which limits what
12 practitioners of this occupation or profession are permitted
13 to do or how they are permitted to hold themselves out to the
14 public.
15 (7) The extent to which the functions which the
16 legislation proposes to authorize for practitioners of this
17 occupation or profession differ from similar functions
18 performed by practitioners of other occupations or
19 professions.
20 (8) The client group with which practitioners of this
21 occupation or profession deal or would deal and the degree to
22 which these clients have the knowledge and the opportunity to
23 evaluate the qualifications of practitioners of this
24 occupation or profession.
25 (9) A description and examples of the typical work
26 settings of practitioners of this occupation or profession.
27 (10) The public's need for the services of the
28 practitioners of this occupation or profession or for the
29 expanded scope of practice of practitioners of this
30 occupation or profession.
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1 (11) Whether the legislation proposes to license,
2 certify, register or otherwise regulate this occupation or
3 profession.
4 (12) Whether persons who are not licensed, certified,
5 registered or otherwise regulated would be prohibited from
6 performing the functions which practitioners of this
7 occupation or profession would be permitted to perform or
8 from holding themselves out to the public in the manner in
9 which practitioners of this occupation or profession
10 licensed, certified, registered or otherwise regulated would
11 be permitted to hold themselves out.
12 (13) The impact of the proposed legislation on the
13 supply of practitioners of this occupation or profession,
14 including the degree to which existing practitioners would be
15 precluded from practice.
16 (14) The effect of the proposed legislation on the cost
17 of the goods or services provided by practitioners of this
18 occupation or profession.
19 (15) The physical, emotional or financial harm to
20 clients because of inappropriate, erroneous or incompetent
21 service by practitioners of this occupation or profession.
22 (16) Whether clients have direct access to practitioners
23 of this occupation or profession.
24 (17) Whether the proposed legislation would have the
25 effect of making practitioners of this occupation or
26 profession eligible for third-party insurance payments or
27 government grants for which they are currently ineligible.
28 (18) The minimum education, experience and examination
29 requirements proposed in the legislation, including a
30 comparison of those minimum requirements to the minimum
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1 requirements in other states, the adequacy of those minimum
2 requirements and the rationale for any exemptions or waivers
3 from those minimum requirements.
4 (19) The institutions offering accredited and non-
5 accredited programs to prepare practitioners to enter this
6 occupation or profession or to exercise the functions which
7 would be authorized by the expanded scope of practice.
8 (20) The requirements for renewal of a license,
9 certificate, registration or other form of regulation,
10 including continuing education.
11 (21) The extent to which a private organization provides
12 credentials to, sets standards for, or imposes sanctions on
13 practitioners of this occupation or profession.
14 (22) The extent to which stronger enforcement of
15 existing statutes is an alternative to the proposed
16 legislation.
17 (23) If the proposed legislation would create a new
18 board or commission, the extent to which this occupation or
19 profession could be regulated by an existing board or
20 commission.
21 (24) The estimated biennial fiscal impact of the
22 proposed legislation.
23 Section 5. Committee duties.
24 (a) Request for reports.--After proposed legislation has
25 been introduced to regulate an unregulated professional or
26 occupational group or to expand the scope of practice of a
27 regulated professional or occupational group, the committee of
28 the chamber in which the bill has been introduced or the
29 amendment has been offered may request a sunrise evaluation
30 report from the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee. The
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1 Legislative Budget and Finance Committee shall submit such a
2 sunrise evaluation report to the committee within 18 months of
3 the request.
4 (b) Public hearing.--After receiving the sunrise evaluation
5 report and prior to voting on the legislation, the committee
6 shall conduct at least one public hearing to receive testimony
7 from the public, the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee
8 and organizations advocating or opposing the proposed
9 legislation.
10 (c) Committee determination.--If the committee votes in
11 favor of the legislation, it shall submit a report to the
12 General Assembly setting forth its findings as to:
13 (1) The effect of the proposed legislation on the
14 health, safety and welfare of the public.
15 (2) The effect of the proposed legislation on other
16 professions and occupations.
17 (3) The public's need for the proposed legislation.
18 (4) The reasons why alternatives to regulating an
19 unregulated profession or occupation or expanding the scope
20 of practice of a regulated profession or occupation are not
21 adequate.
22 Section 6. Effective date.
23 This act shall take effect immediately.
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