By Kevin Boneske
Staff Writer

ASHWAUBENON – An ordinance drafted for the village to initiate an enforcement action against individuals and businesses not properly licensed for massage therapy was approved Tuesday, July 24, by the Ashwaubenon village board.

Village Attorney Tony Wachewicz said the new ordinance was created after public safety recently received a complaint and discovered a lack of enforcement by the state.

“It would have a two-fold effect,” Wachewicz said. “One, to push people to get licensed by the state and shift that licensing burden, I guess on individuals, to the state, as well as our ability to cite people who are not licensed by the state, and that would be either an individual or a business. So if they’re not licensed, then we can cite them and engage in further enforcement action. Really, it’s to incentivize people to get licensed by the state and allow us enforcement capabilities if they are not.”

Wachewicz said the village’s ordinances were revised about a year ago when a license for a massage establishment was eliminated while maintaining a license for massage technicians.

He noted that previous revision was based upon the state’s licensing process for those types of professions and establishments.