Supreme Court ruling puts state regulatory boards in crosshairs

The L.A. Times reports:

Want to get paid for shampooing someone's hair? In California, you may need to have at least nine months of experience and pass a licensing test overseen by the state barbering and cosmetology board, whose members include salon professionals.

Do you clean dogs' teeth for pay as part of a grooming service? You might run afoul of the state Veterinary Medical Board, which includes four veterinarians and a veterinary technician among its eight members. The board treats tooth cleaning using anything but a toothbrush as veterinary medicine — and the unlicensed practice of which is a crime punishable by up to a year in jail.

These are just two of countless ways that members of a business or occupation can close the doors to others by using their authority on a state regulatory board. This smacks of "restraint of trade," a fundamental no-no in antitrust law. Until a few weeks ago, such state regulatory boards thought they had an exemption from the law. The U.S. Supreme Court has now set them straight, ruling 6-3 on Feb. 25 that if a "controlling number" of a board's members are active participants in the business it regulates, they could be sued as antitrust violators.

The struggle against the rent-seeking society.