Articles

Until the 1960s, public employees were organized like lawyers, doctors and other voluntary professional associations. They had no legal right to compel government to enter into contracts. Many already enjoyed civil service protections, and government work was generally sleepy, not ruthless. But public employees had become a huge voting bloc, and leaders of public employee associations wanted power over how government was run.

Today more Americans than ever are working in occupations that require an occupational license. The increase in occupational regulations has called into question whether this practice is in the best interest of the U.S. workforce.

A new report by the Archbridge Institute finds that occupational licensing creates unnecessary barriers that exacerbate skilled worker shortages and hinder opportunity and prosperity.

Occupational licensing affects more than 20 percent of workers in the United States. The extent of occupational licensing greatly differs across states. From both a research and public policy standpoint, it is important to have a comprehensive measure of occupational licensure across states and occupations.

Thomas Hobbes is not usually considered a defender of freedom, since his work Leviathan begins with an individualistic interpretation of human beings and their behavior but concludes by advocating a sovereign with absolute power. The lack of restrictions on the power of the sovereign makes him an unsuitable reference for many lovers of liberty; however, this popular perception of Hobbes is not universal in the academy.

In Arizona, a new study finds that easing occupational licensing requirements is boosting the state's economy. It's long past time after years of increasing difficulty for people seeking work. "Nearly thirty percent of American jobs require a license today, up from less than five percent in the 1950s," the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) noted in a 2018 report. "For some professions, occupational licensing is necessary to protect the public against legitimate health and safety concerns. But in many situations, the expansion of occupational licensing threatens economic liberty."

We all want a salary increase, but can the Island afford to give raises without a proportional increase in productivity, without demanding competence and work of excellence? Puerto Rico is a bankrupt territory that lives on federal funds to remedy natural disasters, provide health services, address social problems, provide security, finance public education, build and maintain water, electricity and road infrastructure, among others.

New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu’s new budget proposal includes a call for occupational licensing reform. In his February 14 budget message, Sununu expressed a commitment to “breaking down regulatory barriers, lowering the cost of entry to do business here, increasing free‐market competition, and signaling to the rest of America that New Hampshire is the #1 state in America for Economic Freedom.”

“You can’t bribe a computer,” Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said. Puerto Rico, during this time of rebuilding, should heed these words. Estonia—a member of the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization—is No. 1 in providing government services digitally, according to the United Nations; first in democratic development among 29 post-communist countries, according to Freedom House; first in international tax competitiveness, according to the Tax Foundation (the U.S. is 22nd); and sixth in the 2023 Index of Economic Freedom, according to the Heritage Foundation (the U.S. is 25th). It has the most startups per capita in Europe, and its 15-year-olds top the Continent in reading, science and mathematics.

The head of the Forbes publishing group denounces the loss of economic freedom on both sides of the Atlantic in an interview for LM.