Wake up and smell the coffee… SB 337 will hurt your ability to compete!

This post has been moved to the No Design Legislation blog at http://nodesignlegislation.wordpress.com/2009/03/03/wake-up-and-smell-the-coffee-in-sb-337-will-hurt-your-ability-to-compete/

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URGENT – Immediate Action Needed In Indiana Against SB337!

ACTION NEEDED! Interior design SB 337 passes Senate committee 6-1 Bill goes to Senate floor on Tuesday, February 24th Yesterday, February 18th, the Senate Committee on Commerce & Public Policy passed SB 337. This bill would create a new state registration for a small group of interior designers who have passed the NCIDQ. It appears that this bill would benefit less than 10% of IN designers who would not qualify under the guidelines, thereby resulting in the state becoming the marketing agent for these select few, while placing the majority of the design community at an unfair competitive disadvantage. Beware! While this may on the surface appear to be an innocuous piece of legislation, historically the pro-regulation faction will accept any piece of legislation in order to get their foot in the door. Once some kind of regulation has been established, they will come back year after year, and quietly, under the radar, attempt to incrementally amend the law until it meets their true goal: a full blown practice act. This is not speculation. It has, and is, happening in many states. Incredibly, Governor Daniels, whose strong veto message denounced the 2007 Indiana title act bill, is now said to be in support of this bill because it could bring in state revenue. This is not true! The fiscal impact statement provided with the bill absurdly claims that 950 interior designers in Indiana will register @$100. The truth is that only a very small percentage of these designers (reportedly less than 100) are either qualified or willing to register, thus it will COST the state many thousands of dollars that would be better spent on recovering from the difficult economy. Reportedly, Sen. Ron Alting, the Chair of the Committee commented in a prior meeting that he is tired of the constant barrage from ASID. THAT IS NO REASON TO PASS LEGISLATION!!! Are you going to let ASID’s relentless whining that they “just want some recognition” result in their getting the business you deserve? Please note: According to reports that have come in referencing the ASID website, there are only 67 “professional” ASID members in Indiana [and many of those were most likely grandfathered and did not pass the NCIDQ.] According the the [ultra-conservative] BLS statistics, there are approx. 1512 interior designers in Indiana. Are you going to sit back and let this 4% [less if you take out those grandfathered] of elitist insiders dictate how the remaining 96% of designers in Indiana market themselves? Surely not! THIS BILL IS GOING TO PASS UNLESS THE SENATE IS BARRAGED WITH LETTERS AND PHONE CALLS OPPOSING THE BILL!!! IMMEDIATE ACTION: Contact your Senator. Phone and fax are best, followed by email. Do ALL THREE if possible. Ask your clients, vendors, friends and family to contact their Senators and register their opposition to the bill. Contact the Governor and ask him to withdraw his support for the bill. Link to sample letter provided below. PLEASE DO NOT MAKE THE MISTAKE of thinking that others will do this for you! THE ASID-LED CARTEL IS “BOMBARDING” THE SENATE WITH LETTERS RIGHT NOW! Without a groundswell of opposition, this bill is going to pass. But with your help, we can defeat it. If you live in a state surrounding IN and currently have business there or would like to work there in the future, please contact IN Senators and the Governor. Do not let this special interest group reduce you to a second class citizen within the design community. Protect your livelihood… Protect your rights… Protect your future! Executive Director INTERIOR DESIGN PROTECTION COUNCIL

Legislator Contact Info Click here to find your Senator Governor Contact Info Governor Mitch Daniels Phone: (317) 232-4567 Fax: (317) 233-4275 Sample Letter Click here for sample letter Contact Us email: info@idpcinfo.org phone: 603.228.8550

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