Businesses across the country are grappling with labor shortages, and unnecessary licensing requirements only make matters worse. Lee McGrath, former director of legislation, and Meagan Forbes, the current director of legislation at the Institute for Justice, discussed the Institute’s efforts to push the Overton Window toward reforming occupational licensing on The Overton Window Podcast.

When McGrath opened the Institute for Justice’s Minnesota office in 2004, he wasn’t initially involved in occupational licensing reform. “I got into this fight by tripping over Morris Kleiner,” McGrath jokes. Kleiner, a leading scholar on the subject, introduced McGrath to the issue and “put some flesh on the bone about what occupational licensing really is and how big it really is,” McGrath says. That encounter sparked the Institute’s broader commitment to addressing the problem of occupational licensing.

In the early stages of their work, McGrath recalls using research from the Mackinac Center. “I used the statistics that you were providing about the percentage of American workers who were union members,” he says. “And then I was able to show that twice as many required the permission of the government through an occupational license to enter into the field.”

Meagan Forbes, who now leads the Institute’s efforts on the issue, shares how the research strategy continues today. “We have been looking through our research where we see the greatest, most burdensome licensing requirements that fall heavily on lower- and middle-income workers” Forbes says. Armed with this data, the Institute identifies the discrepancies in licensing laws and presents them to lawmakers.

One of the most glaring examples is the disproportionate training requirements between occupations. “The average cosmetologist in most states completes 10 times the training as EMTs,” said Forbes, underscoring how excessive training requirements often don’t match the actual safety risks associated with these jobs.

McGrath adds that one of the biggest hurdles in reforming occupational licensing is convincing lawmakers that these licenses are not just harmless regulations, but serious barriers. “The first thing was to try to convince the legislators this was a big deal,” he says. “They equate it to education and training instead of thinking of it as a barrier, an excessive barrier, into a labor market.”

Forbes outlines how the Institute is confronting these misconceptions.

“We are putting people front and center,” Forbes says.

This approach stands in stark contrast to the typical voices lawmakers hear on the subject. “In the past, it’s been special interest groups that have come to the legislature to get these occupations licensed,” Forbes says. “And we’re combating that by bringing real people who are impacted by licenses, who see the problems and want to reach out to their legislators and make a difference.”

The Institute’s strategy is already showing results. “We are seeing interest and momentum with cosmetology licensing,” Forbes says. “There are about 20 bills that we’re involved with right now across the country, all with beauty and barbering professionals backing them and supporting them.”

As the Institute continues to challenge the status quo and push for reforms that remove unnecessary barriers to employment, they are making significant strides toward reshaping the national conversation about occupational licensing. By advocating for policies that promote greater access to work and remove redundant restrictions, the Institute is empowering individuals across the nation to seize opportunities that were previously out of reach.

“And in many ways, that’s the Overton Window in action,” McGrath says, “To bring this subject matter into the debate, into what is acceptable idea for consideration.”

Listen to the full conversation on The Overton Window Podcast.

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