By Caleb Taylor
ACRE Scholar and UCA Associate Professor of Economics Dr. Thomas Snyder discussed occupational licensing burdens in Arkansas and its surrounding states in an op-ed published on December 28 in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
In his op-ed, Snyder references a study released on November 13 entitled “License to Work: A National Study of Burdens From Occupational Licensing” which found that Arkansas has the third most burdensome occupational licensing structure in the nation. The study is from the Institute for Justice, a leading non-profit public interest law firm.
From Snyder’s op-ed:
“What is so magical about state borders? For job seekers, business owners, and customers, crossing the border into Arkansas means something very important: You are now subject to much more restrictive occupational licensing laws. These laws generally have no effect on quality and safety, but they often mean higher prices for consumers and fewer employment opportunities for workers.”
Snyder was a co-author of “The State of Occupational Licensing: Arkansas” with researchers from the the Mercatus Center. This report gives an overview of occupational licensing in Arkansas and makes suggestions for reform. Dr. Snyder is also the author of the ACRE Research Paper, The Effects of Occupational Licensing in Arkansas, and a co-author of the ACRE Policy Review Unnatural Rights in the Natural State, which both examine this issue in more detail. Snyder is also the co-author with UCA graduate Saliou N. Ouattara of “Occupational Licensure and Property Crime” which will be published in the Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy. This paper examines the relationship between licensing requirements and high property crime rates. You can read Snyder’s full op-ed here.
If you’d like to learn more about the effects of occupational licensing, Stephen Slivinski, a senior research fellow at the Center for the Study of Economic Liberty at Arizona State University, will be speaking to UCA students as part of ACRE’s Distinguished Speaker Series on March 27 from 1:40 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the UCA College of Business. He will discuss the link between occupational licensing burdens and crime recidivism. Slivinski is the author of “Turning Shackles Into Bootstraps: Why Occupational Licensing Reform Is The Missing Piece of Criminal Justice Reform” which examines this issue on the national level. Slivinski concludes that a state’s occupational licensing burdens are second only to its overall labor market conditions in effecting changes in recidivism rates.