Barbering and Cosmetology board approves apprenticeship report for inclusion in sunset review amid calls for stronger enforcement

The Board of Barbering and Cosmetology voted to include an apprenticeship task‑force report in its sunset review, directing staff to return with any final edits at the board’s next meeting.

The report summarizes two task‑force meetings, identifies widespread fraud and enforcement gaps in the apprenticeship pathway, and recommends statutory changes such as requiring apprentices be W‑2 employees (not booth renters), establishing fees and approval standards for program sponsors, mandating maintenance of on‑the‑job training (OJT) logs, and creating formal disciplinary processes and civil penalties for program sponsors, trainers and establishment owners.

The apprenticeship item was presented by Christy Underwood, Executive Officer for the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology, who described the task force as “very intense, detailed” and recommended the board approve the draft report for inclusion in the sunset review. Underwood said the task force included board members, board staff, approved program sponsors, local educational agencies (LEAs) and a licensee owner who had been an apprentice.

Underwoo…