Aside from being totally freaking NUTS, the PI license requirement does, as you say, sound like a power grab--in this case by big firms that contract out computer service, PIs, and those who run the licensing and education firms. The trend of requiring a license or a certificate of some kind before someone can apply for a job (for which the applicant would OTHERWISE be qualified) has been going on for some time; nonprofits being some of the worst offenders. Many nonprofits start "certification programs" wherein the candidate pays money and takes a few courses, passes some exams (for a hefty fee), becomes an "apprentice" or gets linked up to a mentor, etc. Many times the certificate tells very little about the candidate beyond the fact that they're pretty good at navigating bureaucratic hassles. When the association I work for looked at the certification letters after the names of the members (most of whom do essentially the SAME work), they found that members held--as I recall--at least 100 different types of certification, which kind of argues that any ONE certificate was essential for the job.
Of course, unlike the Texas affair, very few nonprofits have legal sanctions behind their requirements--just moral suasion and advertising. One thing the Texans may not have considered: will the kinds of talent that enable one to be a super-competent computer technician be the same kind of talent that enables one to be a super-competent PI, or even to get through the required courses? Do you have to take self-defense training, and know how to legally shadow somebody's allegedly cheating spouse, to fix somebody's computer? I'll bet this kind of thing is part of the PI curriculum. I can see it now--Magnum, Computer Tech. The Rockford Files--in PC or Mac format. --Constance Warner > The Texas law seems to just be feeding those with PI licenses. Maybe if they restricted it to forensic criminal probes, requiring a PI-licensed participant; but that is not what their law says. Seems to be more like requiring someone who builds a fence to be a licensed surveyor. > ************************************************************************* ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *************************************************************************
