SB 1030 - This act requires licensing for individuals who engage in applied behavior analysis and creates the Behavior Analyst Advisory Board to make recommendations to the State Committee of Psychologists on the licensing requirements. The Behavior Analyst Advisory Board is under the authority of the State Committee of Psychologists and has seven members. Except for the initial members of the board, the members will serve five year terms. The board members may be reimbursed for expenses and receive compensation up to fifty dollars a day. The Division of Professional Registration is required to provide staff for the board.
The committee is authorized to review and resolve applications for licensing as a behavior analyst or assistant behavior analyst, until the governor appoints the board and the board has a quorum. After the board is appointed, the board is authorized to make recommendations to the committee about applications for licensure, disciplinary referrals, and approving the entities that certify behavior analysts. The committee shall make all final decisions.
Applied behavior analysis intervention is required to produce socially significant improvements in human behavior, be based on empirical research, and to utilize changes and arrangements of contextual factors, antecedent stimuli, positive reinforcement, and other consequences to produce behavior change.
The requirements that an applicant must meet to become a licensed behavior analyst or licensed assistant behavior analyst, include among others: submitting a photograph, providing two sets of fingerprints for processing by the highway patrol, having passed an examination by a certifying entity, and having evidence of active status as a board-certified behavior analyst or assistant behavior analyst. Applicants for licensing as an assistant behavior analyst must also submit documentation that they will be directly supervised by a licensed behavior analyst in a manner consistent with the requirements of the certifying entity. Applicants may receive a temporary license to practice while their application is pending, if no disqualifying criminal history appears on the family care safety registry. The licensing requirements do not apply to people who provide services under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act or to students in supervised clinics.
Licensed behavior analysts and assistant behavior analysts are required to limit their practice to areas of competence, based on the education, training, and experience they received.
The committee is authorized to file a disciplinary complaint against licensees for specific violations. After the Administrative Hearing Commission finds that grounds for discipline are met, the committee may place the licensee on probation, or suspend or revoke the license.
Any person who violates any provision of the act is guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
The act also sets forth procedures for license renewal, for obtaining an inactive license, for obtaining a provisional license prior to August 28, 2012, and for seeking an injunction against unlicensed practitioners.
This act is similar to the perfected version of HCS/HB 1311 & 1341 (2010).
EMILY KALMER