Marriage and family therapists: clinical social workers: professional clinical counselors.

Existing law, the Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Act, provides for the licensure, registration, and regulation of marriage and family therapists and associate marriage and family therapists by the Board of Behavioral Sciences. The Social Work Licensing Law provides for the licensure, registration, and regulation of clinical social workers and associate clinical social workers by the board. The Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor Act provides for the licensure, registration, and regulation of professional clinical counselors and associate professional clinical counselors by the board. A violation of these provisions is a crime. Existing law makes the above-described acts and that law inapplicable to an unlicensed or unregistered employee or volunteer working in a governmental entity, a school, a college, a university, or an institution that is both nonprofit and charitable if, among other things, the work is performed solely under the supervision of the entity. This bill would instead require the work of the employee or volunteer to be performed under the oversight and direction of the entity. The bill would define the term "nonexempt setting" for purposes of the acts and that law. The bill would also provide that a person who holds a valid license or registration who is working or volunteering in an exempt setting is not exempt from the provisions of the applicable act and that law, and that an entity that is licensed or certified by a government regulatory agency to provide health care services is not an exempt setting, except as specified. Existing law prohibits an applicant for licensure in one of the above-described professions from being employed or volunteering in a private practice until the applicant has been issued an associate registration by the applicable board. Existing law requires supervised experience that is obtained for the purpose of qualifying for licensure to be related to the practice of professional clinical counseling and comply with specified requirements, including by requiring at least 150 hours of clinical experience in a hospital or community mental health setting, as defined. Existing law also prohibits a trainee gaining supervisory hours from performing services in a private practice. This bill would also prohibit an applicant from being employed or volunteering in a professional corporation, as defined, and would prohibit specified trainees gaining supervisory hours from performing services in a professional corporation. The bill would eliminate the licensure requirement of completing at least 150 hours of clinical experience in a hospital or community mental health setting. Existing law requires a person with an associate registration to have direct supervisor contact, as specified, and authorizes a supervisor to supervise a maximum of 3 persons. This bill would authorize the associate to be supervised by a person who, among other things, has access to the associate's clinic records, in lieu of the supervisor providing psychotherapeutic services to clients of the associate's employer and would increase the maximum number of persons a supervisor may supervise to 6 persons. This bill would make conforming and other nonsubstantive changes. Because the bill would expand the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Sections 4980.01, 4980.43.3, 4996.14, and 4999.22 of the Business and Professions Code proposed by SB 801 to be operative only if this bill and SB 801 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.