THE NEW YORK TIMES DISCOVERS THE DISASTER THAT IS OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING:

Today, nearly 30 percent of the American work force needs a license to work, up from about 10 percent in the 1970s, according to Morris Kleiner, a professor of public affairs at the University of Minnesota, who has studied the issue.

The Obama administration and the conservative political network financed by the Koch brothers don’t agree on much, but the belief that the zeal among states for licensing all sorts of occupations has spiraled out of control is one of them. In recent months, they have collaborated with an array of like-minded organizations and political leaders in a bid to roll back licensing rules.

I wrote about this a while back, and note that here in Tennessee, the legislature passed State Rep. Martin Daniel’s and State Sen. Mark Green’s “Right To Earn A Living Act,” which requires various state boards and commissions that regulate people’s right to earn a living justify their regulations and licenses. In addition, a libertarian public interest foundation, The Beacon Center of Tennessee, has filed lawsuits against excessive regulation.