This Friday, February 1st, the Interior Designers Certification Act will be heard at 1:30 in Room 1114 in the State Capitol before the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee.
IT IS IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO ATTEND THE HEARING AND LET THE COMMITTEE MEMBER KNOW THAT THIS BILL IS BAD FOR YOUR BUSINESS AND THE CITIZENS OF NEBRASKA!
This bill will add nothing to the health, safety and welfare of the public. Rather, it will enable a handful of interior designers to market themselves as "state certified "and elevate themselves at the expense of our members and others in the design community who are essentially barred from being able to achieve the same status.
Study after study has shown no evidence to suggest that harm is occurring to the public as a result of the unregulated practice of interior designers.
ACT NOW! CALL OR WRITE THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS TO SHOW YOUR OPPOSITION FOR THIS INFRINGING LEGISLATION!
Due to the short time frame before the hearing, the best way to contact a member of the Committee will be by telephone. Just a quick message to the legislative office will be sufficient, letting them know your name, the name of your business and why you oppose further governmental regulation of an industry that has, for so long, served the public without concern or harm. If you are unable to call, you could send an e-mail to the Committee Cembers individually using the e-mail addresses below. Phone numbers and e-mail addresses of the committee members are at the bottom of this message.
Key points to consider include:
- this bill does nothing to protect the public beyond the protections that already exist, such as review by architects, engineers, licensed plumbers, electricians and contractors, building code enforcement officials, building inspectors and fire marshals.
- the educational requirements of the bill virtually assures that students in Nebraska will be unable to find jobs in the state and may never be able to achieve certification, thus establishing a small group of designers who can claim such elevated status to themselves.
- there is no need for additional governmental regulation of an industry which has for so long served the public interest without cause for concern. Remember, it is not the public, nor the Division on Consumer Affairs, nor the Attorney Generals Office, nor Better Business Bureau, nor any other consumer advocacy group who are seeking such legislation. Rather, it is a handful of designers who wish to distinguish themselves from the rest of the design community by seeking the aide of the government to help market their services.
- the public already has the ability to make a distinction between the credentials of interior designers. They may rely on existing credentialing systems developed by interior design professional organizations (such as NKBA, ASID, IDS and IIDA) that essentially duplicate the qualifications required under the proposed law.
You can send a letter or email to the Committee Members by following this link
PLEASE NOTE: The link will only send an email to representatives on the Committee who are in your legislative district. If a member is not in your district, then the email will go to your state representative. That is fine, but we need to let the Committee members know how many people this bill will affect. If your representative is not on the Committee, please also send a copy of your message to the Committee members as well. Here is a listing of the members along with their phone numbers and email addresses:
Sen. Greg Adams, District 24
State Capitol, 1445 "K" Street
P.O. Box 94604
Lincoln, NE 68509
(402)471-2756
gadams@leg.ne.gov
Sen. Bill Avery, District 28
State Capitol, 1445 "K" Street
P.O. Box 94604
Lincoln, NE 68509
(402)471-2633
bavery@leg.ne.gov
Sen. Mike Friend, District 10
State Capitol, 1445 "K" Street
P.O. Box 94604
Lincoln, NE 68509
(402)471-2718
mfriend@leg.ne.gov
Sen. Russ Karpisek, District 32
State Capitol, 1445 "K" Street
P.O. Box 94604
Lincoln, NE 68509
(402)471-2711
rkarpisek@leg.ne.gov
Sen. Scott Lautenbaugh, District 18
State Capitol, 1445 "K" Street
P.O. Box 94604
Lincoln, NE 68509
(402)471-2618
slautenbaugh@leg.ne.gov
Sen. Rich Pahls, District 31
State Capitol, 1445 "K" Street
P.O. Box 94604
Lincoln, NE 68509
(402)471-2327
rpahls@leg.ne.gov
Let your state legislators know that increased governmental regulation of your business is not necessary. ACT NOW by clicking this link .
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