Georgia professionals are still waiting to get state-issued professional licenses

Georgia professionals say they’re being left in the dark when it comes to getting state-issued professional licenses.

Channel 2 Action News reported on a backlog of license approvals from hairdressers to athletic workers to the medical industry.

Channel 2 Investigative Reporter Ashli Lincoln was live on Channel 2 Action News at 6 p.m. after learning how people are trying to get answers.

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A lot of people said they are tired of sitting around and waiting. What used to take a couple of weeks to process, is now taking several months.

“My final resort was going to be to drive down to Macon, Georgia,” said Pamella Kelly, nail technician.

Some Georgia professionals are considering driving nearly 100 miles to get answers from the licensing division under the Georgia Secretary of State’s office.

“I’ve emailed them constantly, but I haven’t heard back,” said Kelly.

“It feels hopeless, I mean you try to call over and over you don’t get a response,” said Chelsea Buffolino, hairstylist.

Both Kelly and Buffolino work in the cosmetology industry. They said they’ve come to a dead end whenever they attempt to get answers about the status of their license with the state.

Some people have driven to the state’s Macon office for answers.

“They tell you it takes a maximum of 15 business days from application to approval, it’s been six months for me,” said Buffolino.

Channel 2 Action News reported earlier this month that delays were due to the state updating its 20-year-old processing software.

Recently, the state launched GOALS, the Georgia Online Application and Licensing System. The new system was designed to expedite licensing, and the update is happening in three separate rollouts.

However, due to heavy volume, the state said it’s causing major delays in licensing processing.

“Since they changed their system over it’s been a lot of people falling through the cracks,” said Kelly.

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Industries including veterinary, nursing, transportation, and counseling are also being impacted by this.

“It’s just been really frustrating,” said Kelly.

The state told Channel 2 Action News the majority of the licenses have gone through without issues.

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