Michigan

House bill 5651, sponsored by Representative Paul Condino, passed 3rd and final reading by the Michigan House of Representatives on Thursday, June 26, 2008. The bill would establish state licensing standards for massage therapists and create a board of massage therapy to implement the process. If passed, a state license would pre-empt local regulations; only one license would be needed. The bill has been assigned to the Economic Development and Regulatory Reform Committee in the Senate; a committee hearing has not yet been scheduled.

Reform Committee on Tuesday, June 24, 2008. The bill would establish state licensing standards for massage therapists and create a board of massage therapy to implement the process. If passed, a state license would pre-empt local regulations; only one license would be needed. It is early in the legislative process and there is no action to take at this time. The bill establishes entry-level criteria for the profession:

• High school graduate or equivalent
• Good moral character
• 18 years old
• Passage of an exam approved by the board

House bill 5651, sponsored by Representative Paul Condino will have a second hearing by the House Regulatory Reform Committee on Tuesday, May 13, 2008. The bill would establish state licensing standards for massage therapists and create a board of massage therapy to implement the process. If passed, a state license would pre-empt local regulations, only one license would be needed. It is early in the legislative process. The bill establishes entry-level criteria for the profession:

• High school graduate or equivalent
• Good moral character
• 18 years old

Michigan REPEALS Service Tax On December 1, 2007, Governor Granholm signed HB 5408 into law. The law essentially repeals the controversial service tax passed in October and creates a Michigan Business Tax surcharge that is part of a compromise budget solution. Massage therapists, regardless of the setting in which they work, will not have to charge a service tax on massage.

In an effort to avert a full government shutdown and address the state’s budget deficit, the Michigan State Legislature passed a tax on services, including “massage,” on October 1, 2007. There are two bills being considered by the legislature at this time. One, SB 838, would repeal the tax before it’s even been implemented. The other, SB 845, would delay the implementation of this tax until December 20, 2007.

Senate Bill 788, sponsored by Senator Gilda Jacobs, has been introduced in the Michigan Legislature. The bill would establish state licensing standards for massage therapists and create a Board of Massage Therapy to implement the process. If passed, a state license would pre-empt local regulations, only one license would be needed. It is early in the legislative process, no action is needed at this time.