28° and Clear
Image
With residents leaving and business formation declining, Massachusetts cannot afford regulatory systems that block workers and entrepreneurs. A new Pioneer Institute report argues that outdated rules are constraining growth and outlines practical reforms to expand workforce participation, better integrate legal immigrants and new market entrants, support small business formation, and restore competitiveness.
“Massachusetts has extraordinary talent and entrepreneurial energy, but too many willing workers and aspiring business owners are stuck navigating unnecessary red tape,” said Jim Stergios, executive director of Pioneer Institute. “If we want to compete for jobs and investment, we need to modernize our systems so they work for entrepreneurs, immigrants, and small employers—not against them.”
The report is the final part of Pioneer’s Agenda for Leadership series that examines how Massachusetts can restore economic dynamism and offers policy solutions for the next administration on how to make the state a competitive giant once again. It follows previous analysis on housing production, healthcare, education and business competitiveness.
Among the report’s central findings: Massachusetts maintains one of the most complex and burdensome regulatory environments in the country. In Boston, for example, starting a restaurant requires navigating 92 steps across multiple agencies, completing numerous in-person tasks, and paying a dozen separate fees—far more than in many peer cities.
These barriers reflect deeper regulatory fragmentation. The report outlines practical reforms to streamline processes and expand access to work and entrepreneurship.
Create a statewide “One-Stop Business Portal.”
The report calls for the creation of a statewide portal that integrates registration, licensing, and permitting processes across state and municipal government. The portal would include multilingual access and connect users to legal, financial, and workforce support resources.
Adopt universal recognition of out-of-state occupational licenses.
Nearly one-third of U.S. workers now require a government license, and in Massachusetts the average license takes 511 days to obtain. The Commonwealth is one of the few states that does not recognize out-of-state licenses, forcing relocating professionals—including physicians—to repeat costly and time-consuming approval processes. “Universal recognition of out-of-state licenses is a simple, bipartisan reform that increases labor mobility and helps fill workforce shortages more quickly,” said Aidan Enright, Pioneer’s Economic Research Associate, & Fellow on Immigrant Entrepreneurship. “When qualified professionals move here, they should be able to get to work.”Twenty states, including Vermont and New Hampshire, have adopted universal license policies. The Institute urges Massachusetts to join them, particularly to address shortages in healthcare, trades, and personal services.
Replace low-risk occupational licenses with voluntary certification.
This reform would allow workers to practice while giving consumers the option to choose credentialed providers. Pioneer also calls for ending license suspensions related to student loan default and removing immigration-status barriers that prevent qualified individuals from working.
Expand pathways for internationally trained professionals and immigrant entrepreneurs.
Addressing crisis-level workforce shortages in healthcare, the report recommends building on the state’s physician apprenticeship pilot by creating structured supervised-practice models in nursing, behavioral health, dental hygiene, and elder care. It also calls for expanding the Global Entrepreneur in Residence program, which enables public universities to sponsor cap-exempt H-1B visas for immigrant founders launching companies in Massachusetts.
Reform the unemployment insurance system.
The report recommends using a portion of the state’s Rainy Day Fund to address outstanding UI liabilities and indexing benefit duration to economic conditions, similar to reforms adopted in Florida. Additional recommendations include strengthening fraud prevention and reforming experience rating to improve predictability for employers.
Align English language instruction with workforce development.
Immigrants make up roughly 20 percent of the Massachusetts workforce, yet many face underemployment due to limited English proficiency. The report recommends integrating English language instruction into job training and entrepreneurship programs and creating a centralized statewide waitlist system to match students with available seats more efficiently. “Economic freedom means ensuring that every qualified worker can contribute and every entrepreneur can compete,” Stergios said. “
By removing unnecessary barriers to work and modernizing outdated systems, Massachusetts can expand opportunity, grow its tax base, and remain a national leader in innovation.”The report is part of Pioneer Institute’s new book Agenda for Leadership: Choosing to Compete, edited by Jim Stergios. The book is available on Amazon today. Additional information is available at: https://pioneerinstitute.org/agenda-for-leadership-2026/
