102 Lower-income Occupations
For its 2017 report License to Work, the Institute for Justice documented the requirements to get a license for 102 lower-income occupations across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Read more about the research methods.
State Profiles
For its 2017 report License to Work, the Institute for Justice documented the requirements to get a license for 102 lower-income occupations across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Read more about the research methods.
Select A State
What is Occupational Licensing?
An “occupational license” is, put simply, government permission to work in a particular field. To earn the license, an aspiring worker must clear various hurdles, such as earning a certain amount of education or training or passing an exam. In the 1950s, only one in 20 U.S. workers needed the government’s permission to pursue their chosen occupation. Today, that figure stands at almost one in four.
Dental Assistant
License required in 9 states
71st most burdensome licensing requirements among moderate-income occupations
81st most heavily regulated occupation among moderate-income occupations
What They Do
Dental assistants assist dentists, set up equipment, prepare patients for treatment and keep records.Licensing
Nine states license dental assistants. On average, these laws cost aspiring workers $138 in fees and 92 days in education and experience and require them to pass about one exam—the 71st most burdensome requirements of the 102 occupations studied. Because dental assistants are not very widely licensed, the occupation ranks as the 81st most widely and onerously licensed.
License requirements vary across states. Minnesota’s license is the most burdensome, requiring $681 in fees, about 425 days lost to education and three exams. California’s, by contrast, requires only about two days (10 hours) of education and no fees or exams.
License to Work
The data and information here come from IJ’s License to Work report, released in November 2017.
States Ranked by Average Licensing Burden for 102 Lower-Income Occupations
More Burdensome Less Burdensom
Based on data released in November 2017| Burden Rank | State | States Licensed | Fees | Estimated Calendar Days Lost | Education | Experience | Exams | Minimum Grade | Minimum Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minnesota | 9 | $681 | 425 | 303.33 Days | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | D C | 9 | $190 | 211 | 1 days and 900 clock hours | 0 | 12 | 18 | |
| 3 | Iowa | 9 | $86 | 185 | 20 clock hours | 6 months | 3 | 12 | 17 |
| 4 | Tennessee | 9 | $78 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 18 | ||
| 5 | Massachusetts | 9 | $60 | 1 | 4 clock hours | 0 | 0 | 18 | |
| 6 | Washington | 9 | $40 | 1 | 7 clock hours | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 7 | Vermont | 9 | $60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 8 | Oklahoma | 9 | $50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 9 | California | 9 | $0 | 2 | 10 clock hours | 0 | 0 | 0 |