The Au.D. degree is a general practice degree that enables audiologists to have a broad scope of practice (SOP). It is this general broad SOP that is specified in licensing laws. Specialty practice and certification should have absolutely nothing to do with entry-level licensure. Certification should only be accomplished and acquired after post-licensure training and advanced education. Licensing boards and licensing laws should never use a narrow specialty certification as a measure to shortcut a determination of whether or not an applicant is eligible to receive an entry-level license for a broad scope of practice. That determination should be made by an applicant satisfying the state's degree requirements and acceptable national examination scores established by the board. State licensing regulates entry-level qualifications -- not specialty qualifications. States are sovereign -- they should not be encumbered by any professional organization in any legislative language, e.g., ASHA or AAA, nor by certification language, e.g., CCC-A or ABA certification designations.