01/20/2021
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem has introduced House Bill 1016, which would consolidate the boards of massage therapy, cosmetology, and barbering into a new nine-person board. The bill would move the massage therapy board from under the Department of Health to this new consolidated board. There is a hearing tomorrow morning in the Commerce and Energy Committee, January 20, 2021, at 10:00 a.m (CDT).
The meeting is open to the public and one may attend the hearing at the Capitol, located at 500 E. Capitol Avenue, Pierre, South Dakota, Room # 464. There will be a short opportunity for public comment, perhaps two minutes. One may also submit comment to ty.paulsen@sdlegislature.gov. It is optimal that comment be sent in by close of business today, January 19, but if absolutely necessary, by 9:00 a.m. central daylight time, tomorrow, January 20.
It is our understanding that the bill would move the oversight from the Department of Health to a board with two massage therapists, two barbers, three public members, one cosmetologist, and one cosmetologist, esthetician, or nail technician. The current massage practice act can be found in the South Dakota Codified Laws in Title 36 – Professions and Occupations. The Professions and Occupations title includes statutes for massage therapists, medical professionals, cosmetologists, plumbers, electricians, and realtors, among many other statutes. It is our understanding that this bill creates an oversight board, but all three such boards would retain their current practice acts.
ABMP apologizes for the late notice on this. The legislative process moves fast without much notice and committee hearings get scheduled quickly. In this case, we were also waiting for the email for you to submit comments and received that today, the morning of January 19, 2021. Take this opportunity to participate in the legislative hearing about this bill.
If you have questions or concerns, email us at gr@abmp.com.