Source: www.dnainfo.com
NEW YORK, March 16, 2010: Within the next 10 days, Gov. David Paterson is expected to approve a bill that would exempt yoga teachers from state regulation of their training programs. The likely exemption comes after almost a year of rallies and protests by yoga instructors to avoid the licensing process.
“Small studios don’t have the umbrella of large studios and can’t even afford licensing procedures to hold teacher trainings,” said Caitlin Casella, a yoga teacher and teacher-traininer YogaWorks.
Paterson has until March 24 to sign the bill, which both the State Assembly and State Senate have approved. The Education Department has also backed the bill, despite the fact that they were part of the initial push for the licensing of yoga teachers. The bill lists yoga and martial arts as exempt from state oversight.
[HPI note: In other states, yoga teachers and studios are going to the courts to claim exemption from regulations and also taxes, on the grounds that yoga is a religious practice.]