State Update - July 23

July 23, 2025

HEADLINES

• Indiana Releases Updated Beauty Culture Rules
• Pennsylvania Seeks to Authorize Barbering and Cosmetology Career and Technical Center Training Programs  
• State Bill Enactments from Mississippi through Oklahoma 

THIS WEEK IN THE STATES

The last full week of July finds only nine state legislatures – including Texas – actively meeting. Texas legislators will be returning to Austin this week to begin a 30-day special session focused on flood warning systems, emergency communications, disaster relief funding, property tax relief, the regulation of THC, Congressional redistricting, and other conservative priorities that failed to advance during the 140-day regular session. It has been widely reported that Texas Republicans are seeking to add up to five Republican-held U.S. House of Representatives seats.    

INDIANA SEEKS TO MODERNIZE BEAUTY CULTURE RULES

The State Board of Cosmetology and Barber Examiners has released proposed rules addressing professional practices, education, and licensing. According to the rulemaking’s History and Background statement, the Board “has not updated its rules in many years. Consequently, many of its rules are out of date when compared with current statutes, industry standards, and technology. For example, the statutes governing barbers were overhauled and recodified in 2015, but rules were never promulgated under the new statutes. The Board recognized that several of the existing rules place an undue burden on the beauty culture schools and students – unnecessarily driving up the cost of attendance. Among those unnecessary requirements, the Board noticed the requirement of a school seal, provision of paper texts, experiential requirements for educators, inflexible hour and coursework requirements, overbroad mandatory student toolkits, and stringent dress codes. Additionally, many of rules placed excessive burdens on the regulated public by requiring stringent equipment, inspection, sanitation, and facility design requirements.”

Other changes of interest to schools include: bringing Indiana in compliance with U.S. Department of Education postsecondary education institution requirements; reducing the required training course for instructors from 1,000 to 500 hours; revising school closure protocols to provide enrolled students with transcripts; providing the Board discretion to waive school space requirements for “good cause”; adding a barbering curriculum; updating and revising other course curriculums, and; specifying that student progress reports need to be updated on a weekly basis.

Written comments on the proposed rules may be submitted by August 15, 2025. A rulemaking hearing will be held in Indianapolis on September 15, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. Interested parties may attend in person or via Zoom to “express their views concerning the proposed rules. If the board does not receive substantive comments during the public comment period or public hearing, the rule may be adopted with text that is the same as or does not substantially differ from the proposed rule.”

Why this is important: Indiana is proposing new beauty culture regulations to achieve four primary goals: aligning with state and federal law, reducing obstacles for aspiring practitioners, updating sanitation and facility guidelines, and clarifying fee arrangements.

PENNSYLVANIA BILLS ON THE MOVE

The Senate recently voted 49 to 1 to pass bills to permanently authorize barbering (SB 877) and cosmetology (SB 878) Career and Technical Center training programs by removing the term “pilot” and the program’s expiration date. According to the measures, Career and Technical Centers (CTCs) and secondary schools participating in the program will continue to be required to submit annual reports to the State Board of Barber Examiners or the State Board of Cosmetology. Both measures are currently in the House Education Committee.

Earlier in the month, the House voted 115 to 88 to pass HB 1646. As previously reported, the bill would change the quorum requirement for State Board of Baber Examiners meetings from six members to a simple majority of currently serving members.



Why this is important: AACS is closely monitoring the expansion of public barbering and cosmetology training programs.

2025 STATE BILL ENACTMENTS - MISSISSIPPI THROUGH OKLAHOMA

The following is a compendium of 2025 state bill enactments from Mississippi through Oklahoma. The next State Update will feature bill enactments from the remaining states. Please note that this resource may not list all enactments of interest or concern to your school or business.   

Mississippi SB 2525 – A technical amendment Act that updates language due to the 2024 creation of unified Board of Cosmetology and Barbering.

Mississippi SB 2695 - Extends the sunset date for the Mississippi Professional Massage Therapy Act from July 1, 2025, to July 1, 2029.

Montana HB 336 - Authorizes apprenticeship licensure for (i) barbering; (ii) barbering nonchemical; (iii) cosmetology; (iv) electrology; (v) esthetics; and (vi) manicuring.

Montana SB 233 - Enacts the Interstate Massage Compact.

New Hampshire SB 194 – The Act reduces the minimum course of instruction for cosmetology in the Granite State from 1,500 to 1,200 hours.

North Dakota HB 1126 - Expands the Board from five to seven seats; establishes a 1,100-hour advanced esthetics license; allows “any person authorized to do business” in the state to own a “salon establishment;” provides for inspections generated by a complaint; eliminates the high school graduation requirement for prospective cosmetology students; simplifies and reduces training hours needed to obtain an instructor’s license and establishes a required curriculum; authorize U.S. Department of Labor registered apprenticeships for cosmetology, esthetics and manicuring, and; expands licensure reciprocity. North Dakota joins Washington, DC, and other six states in offering an advanced or master license that permits the performance of services and procedures not included in the state’s basic esthetics license.

North Dakota HB 1317 – Creates the following three new license categories: restricted barber (limited in practice to specific areas in which competence has been demonstrated), temporary barber (for recent graduates awaiting examination), and retired barber (for experienced barbers over 65 or with 20+ years of practice). The measure also adds two ex officio members to the State Barber Board to perform shop inspections and office duties.

Nebraska LB 160 – Pre-enactment, if an applicant failed the barber examination twice, they must complete a 500-hour course in a barbering school. The Act allows applicants to take the examination up to three times “without being required to take any further course of study.”

New Hampshire SB 194 – Reduces the minimum course of instruction for cosmetology in the Granite State from 1,500 to 1,200 hours.

New Jersey A3413 - Authorizes shampooing services. A registered cosmetology, beauty culture, or barbering student with at least 60 hours of course instruction completed may receive a shampoo permit. An individual who is not a registered student but seeks employment to shampoo and rinse hair can obtain employment as a shampoo technician by also completing 60 hours of training through a licensed school or by completing on the job training at a licensed shop.

New Mexico HB 281 – Deregulates hair braiding.

New Mexico SB 127 – Exempts make-up artists and hairstylists who are employed in theatrical or cinematic productions from New Mexico licensure.

North Dakota HB 1126 – Expands the Board of Cosmetology from five to seven seats; establishes a 1,100-hour advanced esthetics license; allows “any person authorized to do business” in the state to own a “salon establishment;” provides for inspections generated by a complaint; eliminates the high school graduation requirement for prospective cosmetology students; simplifies and reduces training hours needed to obtain an instructor’s license and establishes a required curriculum; authorizes U.S. Department of Labor registered apprenticeships for cosmetology, esthetics and manicuring, and; expands licensure reciprocity.

North Dakota HB 1317 – Creates the following three new license categories: restricted barber (limited in practice to specific areas in which competence has been demonstrated), temporary barber (for recent graduates awaiting examination), and retired barber (for experienced barbers over 65 or with 20+ years of practice). It also adds two ex officio members to the State Barber Board to perform shop inspections and office duties. 

Oregon HB 2380 – Establishes an ambiguously defined “provisional certificate program” that would allow holders to perform cosmetology services under the supervision of a certified practitioner. Applicants must live at least 50 miles from a school that offers a program in the field of practice and to pay a fee.

Oklahoma SB 676 – Extends the sunset of the State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering until July 1, 2025, which under state law allows beauty industry practitioners and schools to remain licensed until June 30, 2026.

BILL TRACKING AND QUESTIONS

Please visit our enhanced State Legislative Tracking page to access bill text and to see what may be pending in your state(s). Please note that this resource contains bills not listed in this report that may be of interest or concern to your school or business.

Please contact StateGR@myaacs.org with comments or questions.