ASLA Advocacy: Defending Licensure

Advocacy Day 2016 marked our 5^th annual event at the State Capitol.  Attendees from St. Louis and Prairie Gateway met with legislators to share the following facts about landscape architecture in Missouri.

•          Landscape architects plan projects that benefit communities with safe, attractive amenities and create positive economic impact for its constituents.
•          Licensure allows landscape architects to practice in other states and bring the revenue back to Missouri.
•          A vast majority of landscape architects are in small firms.
•          Licensure ensures vibrant competition for work in the design community, keeping costs down for clients.
•          The Licensure Law ensures that licensure does not impact the green industry such as landscape contractors and home builders.
•          The Missouri Board for Architects, Professional Engineers, Professional Land Surveyors and Professional Landscape Architects or APEPLSPLA is revenue neutral and runs at a surplus due to our payment of fees.
•          Landscape architecture licensure protects the public from unqualified or incompetent individuals that engage in professional practice.
•          Landscape architects graduate from a 4yr+ LAAB accredited program and practice under a licensed practitioner for 2-3 years.  Landscape architects also must complete 24 CEU’s in a two year period.
  
  

Why is this Important?
Many practitioners enjoy licensure which allows them to practice in all fifty states.  What would landscape architects do without licensure?  An important fact is that in the last five years, licensure has been challenged three times in Missouri and there is a nationwide trend in many other states to remove licensure.  The annual advocacy day event is an ongoing effort to educate the representatives about landscape architecture and reduce the threat of deregulation.

How Can You Participate in the Process?
The year 2001 marked a hard won effort to obtain licensure for the practice of landscape architecture in Missouri. You can help us be proactive in retaining licensure by designating an advocacy liaison from your firm to make the annual trip to Jefferson City to talk with legislators.  

Remember, St. Louis ASLA spends a lot of time and resources each year to defend licensure and promote the profession.  Please consider becoming a part of advocacy and a supporting member of ASLA.  Contact Susan Maag, VP of Advocacy [email protected] for more information and thanks for your support!