The Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation adopted a rule on March 24 requiring people to provide proof of legal immigration status if they want to obtain or renew a professional license.
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which the commission oversees, will implement the rule. The department provides licenses for more than 40 regulated programs in a wide range of industries, including barbering, cosmetology and electricians, which together account for the majority of licensees. There were more than one million licensees in the 2025 fiscal year, according to the department.
The commission approved the rule to abide by a U.S. code that “restricts eligibility for certain state and local public benefits, including professional and commercial licenses, based on citizenship or immigration status,” according to the commission meeting agenda.
The department found there “will be no adverse economic effect,” according to the proposed rule. Daniel Woodward, an attorney with the Texas Civil Rights Project, said the rule will have a big effect on the state.
“It’s going to have an economic impact because people who have licenses are people who are able to perform the work of professions at a higher level than the general public,” Woodward said.
Cameron Dodd, the political director for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 520 — which represents about 2,200 electricians in the Austin area — said licensing is important to the industry and its professionalization.
“Licensing ensures that everyone has base-level knowledge of the National Electric Code and a certain amount of on-the-job training as an apprentice,” Dodd said.
Dodd, who is a licensed electrician, said he had to do 7,000 on-the-job training hours as an apprentice before he was eligible to take the exam. In total, he trained 8,000 hours over four years before he received the license, Dodd said.
“There might be an increase in people working without a license if they can’t demonstrate their lawful permanent residency or work authorization,” Dodd said. “(The change) could lead to a de-skilling of the workforce.”
The union collectively bargains with approximately 30 contractors, or employers, to negotiate benefits, wages and more, Dodd said. He said contractors are historically the ones required to ensure work authorization is followed.
“An electrician is an electrician, regardless of where they’re born,” Dodd said.
The department is the latest state agency to pass rules impacting immigrants after the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles imposed new photo ID requirements to register vehicles and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s effort to prevent noncitizen voting and voter fraud.
“This is all part of a concerted effort by the state to make it harder to be an immigrant here in Texas,” Woodward said.
