CT governor seeks elimination of licensure application fees in the education, childcare, and healthcare fields

by Jay Domingo, PDM Staff Writer

| Photo by Walter Otto on Unsplash

HARTFORD, CT – Governor Ned Lamont will propose to Connecticut lawmakers at its first legislative session this February to eliminate licensure application fees for workers to obtain specific jobs in the education, childcare, and healthcare fields.

The proposal aims to encourage workers seeking jobs in fields with a significant need to fill available openings. The governor said the proposal would save these workers about $3.5 million annually.

Eliminating licensure application fees for workers in education, childcare, and healthcare fields can be crucial to addressing workforce shortages in these critical fields. By reducing financial barriers to entry, the proposal can encourage workers to seek employment in these sectors, thereby increasing the pool of qualified candidates available to employers.

This increase in workforce availability can help healthcare facilities, schools, and childcare centers to provide better services to their communities. With more qualified staff, they can enhance the quality of care they offer, improve patient outcomes, and boost student achievement. Additionally, as these industries grow and improve, they can contribute positively to the State’s economy, creating more jobs and generating more revenue.

“Right now, there are many job openings in essential fields that employers need to fill, and by eliminating these licensure application fees we can help encourage those who are seeking employment to consider entering a career in these sectors,” Lamont said. “I am hopeful that legislators will agree and vote to approve these fee reductions.”

Increasing the availability of skilled workers can help attract more healthcare- and education-related businesses to the State, create more job opportunities, and generate additional revenue. In this way, the proposal’s impact can extend beyond the immediate savings for workers and significantly impact the State’s long-term economic growth.

The proposal includes these changes:

  • Eliminate the initial application fee for educator certificates. Administered by the State Department of Education, this fee costs $200 and generates about $1,000,000 in annual revenue.
  • Eliminate the initial application fee for home childcare licenses. Administered by the Office of Early Childhood, the home childcare license fee costs $40, and the initial application fee for staff costs $15. Combined, they generate about $20,000 in annual revenue.
  • Eliminate the initial application fee for registered nurse licenses. Administered by the Department of Public Health, this fee costs $180 and generates about $2,005,000 in annual revenue.
  • Eliminate the initial application fee for practical nurse licenses. Administered by the Department of Public Health, this fee costs $150 and generates about $174,300 in annual revenue.
  • Eliminate the initial application fee for advanced practice registered nurse licenses. Administered by the Department of Public Health, this fee costs $200 and generates about $260,000 in annual revenue.

At noon, Lamont will deliver his State of the State and Budget address on February 7, 2024. At that time, his full fiscal year 2025 budget adjustment proposal will be released, along with other legislative proposals that he is asking lawmakers to consider this year.

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