By Rebecca Laurie
Special to The SUN
The Colorado Division of Professions and Occupations, part of the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA), announced recently that Colorado professional licensees will see more than $2 million in fee savings over the next two years. More than 50 regulatory programs for the state’s professions and occupations, such as doctors, nurses, cosmetologists and electricians, are managed through the division.
DORA’s Division of Professions and Occupations licenses nearly 400,000 professionals in the State — about 15 percent of the workforce — and houses multiple regulatory programs under one roof. The division reduced or held constant almost all of its 66 renewal fees this year by implementing efficiency processes and reducing operating expenses.
Fees to renew a psychologist’s license dropped from $147 to $37, an approximately 75-percent decrease; while renewal fees for chiropractors were reduced by 64 percent from $543 to $195. Registered nurses saw a smaller decrease of $5 to $87. The division is required by law to set licensing fees to cover the costs of regulation. Most fees, including those above, cover a two-year license period.
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