For the second time in just over three months, Republican Sen. Mark Jansen is sponsoring a bill that would impose licensing mandates and fees on home health care agencies.
Jansen, R-Gaines Township, introduced Senate Bill 221 on March 2. It would require that applications for licenses or renewals come with a fee not to exceed $500. Jansen also introduced Senate Bill 1596 on Dec. 29, 2010. Similar legislation, it was referred to committee and never got out.
"Over the past decade more than 100 bills have been introduced in Michigan to impose licensure on everything from interior designers to practitioners of 'oriental medicine,' ” Jack McHugh, senior legislative analyst at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, wrote in an e-mail. “These are always claimed to be about protecting the public, but it's actually a protection racket and conspiracy by existing businesses to raise prices.”
"Back in the 1990s, Gov. John Engler put a temporary halt to the conspiracy by imposing a moratorium on any new licensure mandates,” McHugh wrote. “That wouldn't be a bad policy for the new governor to bring back."
In the House of Representatives, freshman Rep. Greg McMaster, R-Kewadin, introduced House Bill 4045 in January. It is aimed at easing licensing, fees and regulations that are imposed on businesses. It would prohibit state agencies from creating fees, licenses and rules without first getting approval from the Legislature.
Marc Jordan, Jansen’s legislative director, didn’t return messages seeking comment.
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FROM MICHIGAN HOME HELP PROGRAM PROVIDERS — OFTEN FAMILY MEMBERS
ATTORNEY GENERAL ORDERED THE STATE TO STOP TAKING MONEY ON MAY 25, 2012
opinion May 25, 2012
The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) "organized” Michigan's self-employed Home Help Program providers for the purpose of skimming dues from their ailing and disabled clients' Medicaid subsidy checks. The majority of these providers are relatives or friends taking care of loved ones. It’s been estimated that less than 25 percent of the providers are hired in an employment setting.
The first counter tallies SEIU dues skimmed since the union and state officials first launched this scheme in late 2006. The second shows the amount skimmed since June 9, 2011, when the Michigan House passed and sent to the Senate a bill to ban this and all similar “stealth unionization” efforts. The third counter shows the dues skimmed since the Governor signed the bill into law on April 10, 2012. The fourth counter shows the amount skimmed since May 25, 2012, when the Attorney General opinion was announced.
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