"Unlicensed & Untapped: Removing Barriers to State Occupational Licenses for People with Records"

The title of this post is the title of this lengthy new report from the National Employment Law Project. Here is an excerpt from its executive summary:

This paper examines the significant flaws in state occupational licensing criminal background check requirements.  One barrier to employment that regularly appears in state occupational licensing laws is the blanket ban, which automatically disqualifies people with certain records.  As a gauge for the frequency of blanket bans in licensing laws across the nation, the ABA Inventory reports over 12,000 restrictions for individuals with any type of felony and over 6,000 restrictions based on misdemeanors.  In addition, the ABA Inventory reports over 19,000 “permanent” disqualifications that could last a lifetime and over 11,000 “mandatory” disqualifications, for which licensing agencies have no choice but to deny a license.

Another aspect of the barriers facing workers with records is the prevalence of overly broad criminal record inquiries. The rationale for far-reaching inquiries is ostensibly compelling — licensing agencies seek robust information to advance public safety and health.  No research, however, supports the persistent misconception that a workplace is less safe if an employee has a past record.  Thus, even seemingly rational inquiries frequently operate as overly broad bans against anyone with a record.

License applicants with records face additional challenges presented by a lack of transparency and predictability in the licensure decision-making process and confusion caused by a labyrinth of different restrictions.  Requirements for a single occupation vary widely across states, as do the standards applied to evaluate past offenses.  Further complicating matters, the statutory language and procedures governing individual, or classes of, professions often differ from more general state licensing statutes.