HB779 Alabama 2012 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Kurt Wallace

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2012

Title

Board of Cosmetology, clock hour qualifications for licensure further provided for, Sec. 34-27A-22 am'd

Summary

HB779 would set new instructional hour requirements and related licensure rules for the Alabama Board of Cosmetology.

What This Bill Does

It updates licensure qualifications by establishing specific ranges of credit hours and clock hours for cosmetologists, estheticians, and manicurists, and it allows apprenticeship paths with defined hour totals. It also updates requirements for instructors and student learners, including age, education, and progression rules, plus continuing education and optional master licenses. The bill also creates rules around special licenses (demonstrator) and sets timelines for examinations after training completion, with an effective date tied to passage.

Who It Affects

• Prospective license applicants in cosmetology, esthetics, and manicuring who must meet the new hour ranges or choose apprenticeship paths.
• Apprentices in licensed salons or schools who must complete specified hours (e.g., 3,000 hours for some cosmetology or esthetics paths; 1,200 hours for certain manicuring apprentices) within set time frames.
• Current licensees and those seeking instructor, managing, or master licenses, due to revised training hour requirements and continuing education rules.
• Cosmetology schools, esthetician schools, and manicuring schools that must align programs with board-approved credit-hour requirements.
• Salons and esthetician or manicurist salons that host student or apprentice training under the new rules.

Key Provisions

• Cosmetologist licensure may be earned by completing a program of 1,200 to 1,700 credit hours and corresponding clock hours, or by completing a cosmetology apprenticeship of at least 3,000 hours over up to three years.
• Esthetician licensure follows the same 1,200 to 1,700 hour framework (credit and clock hours) or a 3,000-hour apprenticeship option.
• Manicurist licensure can be earned via a 600+ hour structured program or a 1,200-hour salon apprenticeship over up to three years.
• Cosmetology, esthetician, and manicurist instructor licensure options include either a teacher’s training course of 1,250 to 1,700 hours or alternatives that require one year of practical experience plus at least 650 hours of teacher training; for enrollment in teacher training, 12th-grade education is required.
• Instructors must complete 16 hours of board-approved continuing education during each licensing period, and master licenses become available to those who complete approved continuing education during renewal.
• Student cosmetologists, estheticians, and manicurists must be at least 16 years old with a 10-grade education; student instructors must be licensed and complete a prescribed instructional program before applying for teacher licensure; student work in salons is allowed only after completing 70% of required instructional hours, with exam scheduling required within 90 days of finishing hours.
• A Demonstrator license is required to conduct demonstrations, with standard application requirements including health card, photos, notarized forms, and fees.
• The act becomes effective on the first day of the third month after it is enacted.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Cosmetology