Depressed

I am depressed because I found out that if I don't graduate in August, I won't be able to make very much money until I do graduate. It used to be that you could complete all of your requirements and then use a letter from your program indicating that you were completely done, in lieu of a diploma (received in December); however, Utah has now made it so I have to have the official document in order to do any work as a psychologist. They swing back and forth on this from year to year, so why do I have to be "not graduating" on the year the pendulum swung back to "No?"