Delaware Executive Order 27: Occupational Licensing Modernization

EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT DOVER EXECUTIVE ORDER NUMBER TWENTY-SEVEN

TO: HEADS OF ALL STATE DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES

RE: OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING MODERNIZATION AND WORKFORCE MOBILITY

WHEREAS, occupational licensing plays an important role in protecting public health and safety and upholding professional standards, and the State of Delaware is committed to maintaining strong, effective licensing systems; and

WHEREAS, domestic and international workers relocating to Delaware, military families, individuals with experience obtained outside of Delaware, and those entering licensed professions through alternative or competency-based pathways may face additional administrative complexity, and the State has an interest in ensuring licensing processes are accessible while maintaining appropriate safeguards; and

\VHEREAS, the State of Delaware has a strong interest in ensuring that occupational licensing requirements are evidence-based, appropriately tailored, and administered efficiently, while maintaining appropriate professional standards and public protections; and

WHEREAS, executive agencies and professional licensing boards within the Executive Branch possess significant subject-matter expertise, and are well positioned to identify opportunities to modernize and streamline licensing processes, improve efficiency, and enhance service delivery consistent with statutory authority; and

WHEREAS, a focused, phased review of occupational licensing requirements will allow the State to prioritize areas of greatest impact while respecting administrative capacity and statutory authority.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, MATTHEW MEYER, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the State of Delaware, do hereby DECLARE and ORDER as follows:

1. Effective immediately, all executive-branch occupational and professional licensing boards are requested and urged to refrain, for the duration of this Order, from the proposal of new occupational or professional licensing requirements that would increase licensing or practice requirements or otherwise create or expand barriers to entry or continued practice, except where the proposing authority makes a written, evidence-based finding, supported by specific data, documented instances of harm, or comparable objective proof, that the regulation is necessary to address a demonstrable threat to public health or safety or is required to comply with federal or state law.

2. Where possible, the Division of Professional Regulation and executive-branch licensing boards shall expand the use of electronic applications, electronic attestations, national credential verification systems, and paperless processing.

3. Within thirty (30) days of the effective date of this Executive Order, the Department of State ("DOS") shall identify at least five (5) occupational and professional licensing boards or commissions for priority review. In selecting such boards, DOS shall consider objective factors including:

a. The number of active licensees regulated by the board;

b. The occupation's impact on workforce availability, cost of living, housing, or access to essential services;

c. Evidence of workforce shortages or barriers to entry; and

d. The presence.of education, training, supervision, or endorsement requirements that may exceed national norms or limit workforce mobility ..

DOS shall transmit the list of priority boards to the Office of the Governor for approval.

4. DOS shall, following consultation and review with each priority board, within one hundred fifty (150) days of the effective date of this Executive Order, submit to the Governor recommendations and proposed regulatory or administrative actions. to modernize and streamline. occupational licensing requirements. Such recommendations shall, to the maximum extent permitted by law:

a. Reduce required pre-licensure education or training hours, where such requirements arc established by regulation rather than statute, to the national median or below unless a direct, evidence-based public health or safety rationale is documented;

b. Eliminate duplicative Delaware-specific traimng, supervision, or experience requirements by recognizing substantially equivalent education, training, or experience lawfully obtained in another state, including through reciprocity or endorsement pathways;

c. Establish a default presumption of recognition or expedited endorsement of substantially equivalent out-of-state licenses within thirty (30) days of having a complete application, unless the licensing authority documents a specific public health or safety concern or identifies a specific statutory barrier; and

d. Permit competency-based pathways or recognition of equivalent experience in lieu of rigid hour-based requirements. To support this review, each priority board is requested and urged, within a timeframe specified by DOS, to provide written input addressing whether and how the board can implement the actions described in subsections (a) through (d) under existing statutory or regulatory authority, and to identify any statutory provisions or health and safety reasons the board believes limit such actions.

Where a priority board asserts that a temporary, provisional, supervised, or bridge license or pathway already exists, the board is requested to describe the eligibility criteria, application process, typical processing time, and recent utilization of such pathway. and identify any regulatory or administrative changes that could improve access or effectiveness.

5. DOS shall transmit the approved recommendations to each priority board and shall request that the board consider such recommendations at its next regular public meeting.

6. Within one hundred fifty (150) days of the effective date of this Executive Order, DOS, following consultation as appropriate with the Department of Health and Social Services, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Education, shall submit to the Office of the Governor proposed legislative recommendations to address occupational licensing barriers identified pursuant to this Order that cannot be resolved through regulatory reforms. Such recommendations may include consideration of universal license recognition, expanded reciprocity authority, provisional licensure pathways, competencybased licensure, and other statutory reforms to modernize Delaware's occupational licensing framework.

7. Nothing in this Executive Order shall be construed to alter statutory licensing standards, supersede requirements expressly established by law, or diminish the authority of professional licensing boards created by statute. This Order is intended to guide the exercise of discretionary authority, improve administrative efficiency, and inform future legislative recommendations.

8. This Executive Order shall take effect immediately.

Matthew Meyer Governor

ATTEST:

C- Secretary o