FTC Official Describes Impact Of Licensing, Regulation on Competition

While licensing may be appropriate in some occupations to address consumer protection or safety concerns, it can impede competition in others and offer few, if any, meaningful consumer benefits, a Federal Trade Commission official said in remarks presented to the House Committee on Small Business on July 16.

Andrew I. Gavil, director of the FTC’s Office of Policy Planning, testified about licensing for occupations from nursing to accounting, how the agency evaluates the potential competitive effects of regulating occupations, trades, and professions and the agency’s efforts to promote competition among professionals.

He testified:

Occupational regulation can be especially problematic when ...