September 25, 2009

Dear Friends:

For many of us, the passage of time is marked by memorable events, like birthdays, anniversaries, holidays and school years. I marvel at how quickly these events come and go and also enjoy a relatively new time marker for me—the regular session of the Florida Legislature. It is such a crucial and exciting time for government and for all Floridians. This is the time when there is ample opportunity to make legislative changes that support open government, promote public safety, remove burdensome regulation, boost the economy and workforce, and more.

As we're gearing up for the 2010 legislative session, we are on the brink of last session's changes taking effect. The legislative enhancements that streamline our processes and cut through red tape go into effect on Thursday.

One major change is that the Board of Surveyors and Mappers and all related licensing and regulatory functions will be moving to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Thank you to Commissioner Bronson and his team for working with us to ensure a smooth transition for these professionals.

Some other noteworthy changes are:

• Removing the signature notarization requirements for all applications and renewals in order to facilitate electronic submittals;
• Eliminating the requirement for Certified Public Accountants to complete the State Laws & Rules Exam in order to renew their licenses;
• Eliminating the application and issuance of the Qualified Business license for construction companies.
• Eliminating the practical portion of the barber exam;
• Removing the requirement that an applicant for a registered contractor's license provide a copy of his local Occupational License;
• Limiting the attorney exemption for Real Estate Continuing Education requirements to attorneys that are in good standing with the Florida Bar;
• Authorizing the Florida State Boxing Commission to adopt criteria for approval of certain amateur sanctioning organizations and to adopt health and safety standards for amateur Mixed Martial Arts;
• Prohibiting a person from advertising or holding himself out as a "talent agent" or "talent agency" unless licensed as such;
• Requiring talent agencies to provide certain records to the department for inspection upon request; and,
• Making permanent the two-year pilot program for local governments to allow patrons' dogs within certain designated areas of food service establishments.

I am looking forward to working with our licensees, industry members, consumers and legislators to make this Legislative Session just as successful as last year's. Together, we can better serve Florida's businesses and professionals.

Sincerely,

Charles W. Drago
Secretary

Department of Business and
Professional Regulation
1940 North Monroe Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399
Customer Contact Center:
850.487.1395
www.MyFloridaLicense.com