27-02-2025
Proposed bill would trim training hours for barbers and cosmetologists
SALT LAKE CITY () — Senate Bill 330 advanced from the Business and Labor Committee Wednesday by a vote of 5-1. The bill amends the requirements to get a license as a barber or cosmetologist.
The , sponsored by Sen. Scott Sandall (R), would also create micro-licenses or permits. This would allow people who are interested in a specific field to specialize and not go through full training.
For example, to get a license as a master esthetician, it would require 1,200 training hours. But if you're only interested in doing nails, that would take 300 hours. Eyebrows? Just 270 hours.
Supporters say it helps more people get into the business while saving on time and money.
Stylist Rhonda Halliday likes that idea, saying, 'The micro-licensing and the letting students have access to these programs without having to go through only beauty schools to get them.'
Barbers, however, say that dropping their hours from 1,000 to a 130 training hour permit doesn't make the cut.
Richard Hite owns The Barber School in Midvale and completely opposes the idea of a barber getting a permit after 130 hours.
He explained, 'These are craftsmen. These people are highly skilled people that provide a craft that can't be duplicated by a stupid certificate for 130 hours.'
Hite also believes the shorter hours would be bad for business. He claims that while it would open the door to more barbers, it would also open it to bad quality.
'The public eventually is going to say, 'Hey, I'm not getting a consistent haircut. I'm out of here. I'm going to go somewhere else,'' Hite said. 'So, the barber is no longer able to hire people because there's no qualified people out there in the pool to be hired.'
Jeff Shumway, the director of the Office of Professional Licensure Review, says the office would have supported even lower hours. He says they arrived at these hours by studying health professionals and the requirements they meet in certain training. They believe the license is issued to make sure standards of health and safety are met — not whether or not your barber can line you up correctly or perfect a fade.
'It doesn't necessarily say you're going to get, you know, exactly the haircut you want, but it's going to be safe. You're not going to get sick. You're not going to get hurt,' Shumway explained.
Hite and other barbers in attendance disagree. Dave Broderick, a local barber, referenced his ability to detect worrisome issues with his clients' skin. He mentioned two instances where he referred clients to dermatologists, and they found cancer — something he says his experience and training enable him to spot out.
Hite says 130 hours just isn't enough. 'It just satisfies that you've seen the words 'health and safety' somewhere, maybe in a book, and that you're no longer a health risk to the public. That's all that they care about.'
Sen. Sandall admits the bill's current form isn't perfect. In fact, he has 22 changes (and counting) that he wants to make in a substitute bill based on the feedback he received. Committee Chair Evan Vickers was the lone vote against the bill, citing it not being done as his reason. He pledged to help make sure the bill addresses the concerns as it moves through the process.
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