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Massage‑therapy board faces practitioner outcry over fees, establishment licensing and emergency rules
Summary
Massage therapists and public commenters told the committee the board’s emergency rules produced large fee increases, that establishment licensing and inspections add regulatory burden without preventing illicit businesses, and that board practices need clearer ethics and training.
Multiple massage therapists and industry representatives told the Joint Sunset Committee they remain frustrated by recent rule changes, emergency fee increases and the board’s approach to establishment licensing.
Christy Williams, a frequent commentator on the issue, told the committee she supported sunset of the prior board but objected to what she called unlawful emergency rules that raised fees “overnight with no warning.” She said the profession had been “overregulated,” and that emergency rulemaking had caused fee spikes that harmed legitimate practitioners. Williams told the committee she helped draft a statute that she said was being contradicted by the board’s rulemaking.
Cynthia Kron, representing the industry, urged stronger professional standards, ethics and boundary training, and suggested sliding‑scale establishment fees and cooperative business models to reduce barriers for therapists starting independent practices. Miss Moore, a Madison owner, urged deregulation rather than burdensome new establishment licenses, saying she had renewed and never been inspected but now faces higher fees.
Board representatives said the board had researched whether classifying massage therapy as a “professional” board (to increase access to investigative records) could solve information‑sharing problems with law enforcement without giving police powers to board staff. Board counsel and members proposed education and orientation for board members on human trafficking and said they would explore changes to enable better cooperation with law enforcement while preserving due process.
The transcript records multiple public comments and extended discussion but no formal votes on the board's rules during the hearing.
