This document includes Senate 2nd Reading Floor Amendments incorporated into the bill on Mon, Feb 10, 2020 at 5:31 PM by lpoole.
Senator Todd Weiler proposes the following substitute bill:


1     
MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELOR LICENSING AMENDMENTS

2     
2020 GENERAL SESSION

3     
STATE OF UTAH

4     
Chief Sponsor: Todd Weiler

5     
House Sponsor: Joel Ferry

6     

7     LONG TITLE
8     General Description:
9          This bill amends provisions relating to the licensure of a clinical mental health
10     counselor.
11     Highlighted Provisions:
12          This bill:
13          ▸     amends provisions relating to licensure as a clinical mental health counselor;
14          ▸     creates a reporting requirement;
15          ▸     creates a sunset date; and
16          ▸     makes technical changes.
17     Money Appropriated in this Bill:
18          None
19     Other Special Clauses:
20          None
21     Utah Code Sections Affected:
22     AMENDS:
23          58-60-405, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 77
24          63I-1-258, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapters 67 and 68
25     


26     Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
27          Section 1. Section 58-60-405 is amended to read:
28          58-60-405. Qualifications for licensure.
29          (1) An applicant for licensure as a clinical mental health counselor shall:
30          (a) submit an application on a form provided by the division;
31          (b) pay a fee determined by the department under Section 63J-1-504;
32          (c) be of good moral character;
33          (d) produce certified transcripts [from an accredited institution of higher education
34     recognized by the division in collaboration with the board verifying satisfactory completion of:
35     (i) an education and degree in an education program in counseling with a core curriculum
36     defined by division rule under Section 58-1-203 preparing one to competently engage in mental
37     health therapy; and (ii) an earned doctoral or master's degree resulting from that education
38     program;] evidencing completion of at least 60 semester credit hours or 90 quarter credit hours
39     completed as part of a master's or doctorate degree conferred to the applicant in:
40          (i) clinical mental health counseling, clinical rehabilitation counseling, or counselor
41     education and supervision from a program accredited by the Council for Accreditation of
42     Counseling and Related Educational Programs; or
43          (ii) clinical mental health counseling or an equivalent field from a program affiliated
44     with an institution that has accreditation that is recognized by the Council for Higher Education
45     Accreditation;
46          (e) have completed a minimum of 4,000 hours of clinical mental health counselor
47     training as defined by division rule under Section 58-1-203:
48          (i) in not less than two years;
49          (ii) under the supervision of a clinical mental health counselor, psychiatrist,
50     psychologist, clinical social worker, registered psychiatric mental health nurse specialist, or
51     marriage and family therapist supervisor approved by the division in collaboration with the
52     board;
53          (iii) obtained after completion of the education requirement in Subsection (1)(d); and
54          (iv) including a minimum of two hours of training in suicide prevention via a course
55     that the division designates as approved;
56          (f) document successful completion of not less than 1,000 hours of supervised training

57     in mental health therapy obtained after completion of the education requirement in Subsection
58     (1)(d), which training may be included as part of the 4,000 hours of training in Subsection
59     (1)(e), and of which documented evidence demonstrates not less than 100 of the hours were
60     obtained under the direct supervision of a mental health therapist, as defined by rule; and
61          (g) pass the examination requirement established by division rule under Section
62     58-1-203.
63          (2) (a) An applicant for licensure as an associate clinical mental health counselor shall
64     comply with the provisions of Subsections (1)(a), (b), (c), and (d).
65          (b) Except as provided under Subsection (2)(c), an individual's licensure as an
66     associate clinical mental health counselor is limited to the period of time necessary to complete
67     clinical training as described in Subsections (1)(e) and (f) and extends not more than one year
68     from the date the minimum requirement for training is completed.
69          (c) The time period under Subsection (2)(b) may be extended to a maximum of two
70     years past the date the minimum supervised clinical training requirement has been completed,
71     if the applicant presents satisfactory evidence to the division and the appropriate board that the
72     individual is:
73          (i) making reasonable progress toward passing of the qualifying examination for that
74     profession; or
75          (ii) otherwise on a course reasonably expected to lead to licensure.
76          (3) (a) Notwithstanding Subsection (1)(d), an applicant satisfies the education
77     requirement described in Subsection (1)(d) if the applicant submits documentation:
78          (i) verifying satisfactory completion of a doctoral or master's degree from an education
79     program in rehabilitation counseling that is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of
80     Counseling and Related Educational Programs; and
81          (ii) from the National Board for Certified Counselors, certifying that the Ŝ→ [
applicant's]
81a     applicant received a passing ←Ŝ
82     score on the Ŝ→ National Counselor Examination and the ←Ŝ National Clinical Mental Health  Ŝ→
82a     [
Exam is] Counseling Examination, and that the scores are ←Ŝ valid and in good standing.
83          (b) During the 2021 interim, the division shall report to the Occupational and
84     Professional Licensure Review Committee created in Section 36-23-102 on:
85          (i) the number of applicants who applied for licensure under this Subsection (3);
86          (ii) the number of applicants who were approved for licensure under this Subsection
87     (3);

88          (iii) any changes to division rule after May 12, 2020, regarding the qualifications for
89     licensure under this section; and
90          (iv) recommendations for legislation or other action that the division considers
91     necessary to carry out the provisions of this Subsection (3).
92          Section 2. Section 63I-1-258 is amended to read:
93          63I-1-258. Repeal dates, Title 58.
94          (1) Title 58, Chapter 13, Health Care Providers Immunity from Liability Act, is
95     repealed July 1, 2026.
96          (2) Title 58, Chapter 15, Health Facility Administrator Act, is repealed July 1, 2025.
97          (3) Title 58, Chapter 20b, Environmental Health Scientist Act, is repealed July 1, 2028.
98          (4) Section 58-37-4.3 is repealed January 1, 2020.
99          (5) Subsection 58-37-6(7)(f)(iii) is repealed July 1, 2022, and the Office of Legislative
100     Research and General Counsel is authorized to renumber the remaining subsections
101     accordingly.
102          (6) Title 58, Chapter 40, Recreational Therapy Practice Act, is repealed July 1, 2023.
103          (7) Title 58, Chapter 41, Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Licensing Act, is
104     repealed July 1, 2029.
105          (8) Title 58, Chapter 42a, Occupational Therapy Practice Act, is repealed July 1, 2025.
106          (9) Title 58, Chapter 46a, Hearing Instrument Specialist Licensing Act, is repealed July
107     1, 2023.
108          (10) Title 58, Chapter 47b, Massage Therapy Practice Act, is repealed July 1, 2024.
109          (11) Subsection 58-60-405(3), regarding certain educational qualifications for licensure
110     and reporting, is repealed July 1, 2022.
111          [(11)] (12) Title 58, Chapter 61, Part 7, Behavior Analyst Licensing Act, is repealed
112     July 1, 2026.
113          [(12)] (13) Title 58, Chapter 72, Acupuncture Licensing Act, is repealed July 1, 2027.
114          [(13)] (14) Title 58, Chapter 86, State Certification of Commercial Interior Designers
115     Act, is repealed July 1, 2021.
116          [(14)] (15) The following sections are repealed on July 1, 2022:
117          (a) Section 58-5a-502;
118          (b) Section 58-31b-502.5;

119          (c) Section 58-67-502.5;
120          (d) Section 58-68-502.5; and
121          (e) Section 58-69-502.5.