An Act establishing the State Board of Opticianry; and providing for registration of opticians.

PRINTER'S NO. 3200
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 2386
Session of
2026
INTRODUCED BY GUZMAN, HILL-EVANS, BURGOS AND SANCHEZ,
APRIL 14, 2026
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE, APRIL 15, 2026
AN ACT
Establishing the State Board of Opticianry; and providing for
registration of opticians.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the Optician
Certification and Consumer Vision Protection Act.
Section 2. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Apprenticeship." An approved supervised training under a
certified optician, optometrist or ophthalmologist.
"Board." The State Board of Opticianry established in
section 4.
"Certification." A current certification by an agency
approved by the State Board of Opticianry.
"Certification-based registration." The process by which
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certified opticians are registered with the board.
"Optician." A health care professional who provides patient
education for prescription eyewear and associated optical
devices, performs measurements, analyzes and interprets a
prescription, prepares, fits and dispenses eyeglasses, contact
lenses and related optical devices based on a prescription from
an ophthalmologist or optometrist.
Section 3. Certification-based registration requirement.
(a) Requirement to practice.--An individual may not practice
as an optician or use titles such as "optician," "dispensing
optician," "optical technician" or "ophthalmic dispenser" unless
the individual is registered with the board and holds a current
certification.
(b) Requirements for registration.--An applicant for
certification-based registration shall submit to the board:
(1) Proof of passage of a certification exam approved by
the State Board of Opticianry.
(2) Documentation required by the board, including:
(i) Current national opticianry certification.
(ii) If fitting contact lenses, current national
contact lens certification.
(iii) Completion of minimum required continuing
education by the board.
(iv) Additional requirements of the board.
(3) Proof of passage of a certification exam approved by
the board and completion of one of the following:
(i) An associate degree in opticianry from a
regionally accredited opticianry program as approved by
the State Board of Education.
(ii) Certificate of completion of a minimum of 2,400
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hours of supervised apprenticeship.
(iii) Completion of a State-approved area career and
technical school education program.
(4) Payment of an applicable registration fee.
Section 4. State Board of Opticianry.
(a) Establishment.--The State Board of Opticianry is
established to oversee certification-based registration,
discipline and rulemaking.
(b) Membership.--The board shall consist of the following,
chosen by the Governor:
(1) Three certified opticians.
(2) One ophthalmologist or optometrist.
(3) One public member.
(c) Quorum.--A majority of members must be physically
present or online through a live-stream synchronous video
conference or similar virtual presence technology to constitute
a quorum. Members who miss three consecutive meetings without an
approved excuse shall forfeit their membership.
(d) Duties.--The board shall:
(1) Enforce this act.
(2) Review complaints and impose disciplinary actions
under this act and regulations promulgated under this act.
(3) Approve continuing education standards.
(4) Coordinate with agencies approved by the board for
certification verification.
Section 5. Certification maintenance and registry.
(a) Maintaining certification.--An optician must maintain
active certification from an organization approved by the board
to practice as an optician.
(b) Renewal.--Certification shall be renewed every three
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years with a minimum of nine credits in spectacle education and
12 credits in contact lens education, if applicable, tri-
annually received through in-person education. The board may
require additional continuing education credits annually.
(c) Acceptance.--The board shall annually accept an upload
of certified opticians from an organization approved by the
board.
(d) Public registry.--The board shall maintain a public
registry of certified and registered opticians.
Section 6. Applicability.
This act applies as follows:
(1) This act shall not apply to:
(i) Ophthalmologists or optometrists.
(ii) Technicians working under the supervision of a
licensed ophthalmologist or optometrist.
(iii) Students in accredited opticianry programs
under supervision.
(2) An optician with 10 or more years of documented
professional experience prior to the effective date of this
paragraph shall be exempt from certification requirements for
a period of 24 months. Opticians with a current license from
another state shall have three months to reinstate their
certification with the agency approved by the board.
Section 7. Effective date.
This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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