BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 243
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 11, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND CONSUMER
PROTECTION
Richard S. Gordon, Chair
SB 243 (Wyland) - As Amended: May 7, 2013
SENATE VOTE : 34-0
SUBJECT : Professional Clinical Counselors.
SUMMARY : Revises the current training and education
requirements for Licensed Professional Clinical Counselors
(LPCCs) in order for them to complete the training required for
treatment of couples or families during a degree program, rather
than after the program. Specifically, this bill :
1)Deletes the current requirement that LPCCs obtain additional
training and education beyond the minimum training and
education required for licensure, and instead allows that
training and education to be obtained during a degree program,
as specified.
2)Adds the direct counseling of couples or families to the 1750
hours of direct counseling currently required of LPCC
applicants, as specified.
EXISTING LAW
1)Establishes the Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor Act
and authorizes the Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) to
license and regulate LPCCs. (Business and Professions Code
(BPC) Section 4999.10)
2)Defines professional clinical counseling to mean "the
application of counseling intervention and psychotherapeutic
techniques to identify and remediate cognitive, mental, and
emotional issues including personal growth, adjustment to
disability, crisis intervention, and psychosocial and
environmental problems." (BPC 4999.20)
3)States that professional clinical counseling does not include
the assessment or treatment of couples or families unless the
professional clinical counselor has completed additional
training and education beyond the minimum training and
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education required for licensure as specified. (BPC 4999.20)
4)States that in order to qualify for the LPCC licensure
examination, applicants complete a minimum of 3000 post-degree
hours of supervised clinical mental health experience related
to the practice of professional clinical counseling performed
over a period of not less than two years, which shall include
not less than 1750 hours of direct counseling with individuals
or groups among other specified requirements. (BPC 4999.46)
FISCAL EFFECT : None. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of the bill . Currently, LPCCs are not authorized to
provide counseling services for the assessment or treatment of
couples or families unless they have completed additional
training and education beyond the minimum requirement for
licensure. As the Board of Behavior Sciences interprets
existing law, LPCCs who are interested in providing these
services are required to take additional coursework or
training outside of a master's or doctoral degree program,
when many degree programs specifically offer marriage and
family coursework as a part of the degree program. This bill
simply revises current law to allow LPCCs to obtain the
required training and education during their master's or
doctoral degree program, rather than after, in order to
provide treatment and services for couples and families. This
bill is sponsored by the California Association for Licensed
Professional Clinical Counselors.
2)Author's statement . According to the author, "Existing
law specifies that Professional clinical counseling does
not include the assessment or treatment of couples or
families unless the professional clinical counselor has
completed all of the following additional training and
education, beyond the minimum training and education
required for licensure?Because the additional education
requirement for the LPCC license includes the language
'beyond the minimum training and education required,' the
[BBS] is interpreting this language to mean that
specialized coursework taken within an individual's
master's degree education cannot be accepted as the
'additional education' required for the practice of
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working with couples or families. It is also interpreted
that LPCC hours cannot be included within the required
3000 post-degree supervised hours. This unintentionally
required subsequent coursework and supervised hours in
addition to existing degree requirements. These
interpretations do not reflect the intent of the original
bill."
3)Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor . SB 788 (Wyland),
Chapter 619, Statutes of 2009, established the LPCC Act.
LPCCs are the newest of the four licensure groups for mental
health related services regulated by the BBS. California was
the 50th state to establish licensure for this profession.
LPCCs can use a variety of psychological techniques to help
their clients, including individual, group, marriage and
family therapy. Mental health services are provided in
numerous settings including, but not limited to, community
mental health clinics, private practice, and hospital
settings. LPCCs can be licensed to treat couples, families,
individuals and children.
4)Licensure Requirements . In order to obtain licensure as an
LPCC, an applicant who began graduate study on or after August
1, 2012 is required to obtain a master's or doctoral degree
from an accredited or approved institution, which covers
counseling or psychotherapy in content, and includes
supervised practicum in specified content areas. In addition,
an applicant must obtain a minimum of 3000 post-degree hours
of experience supervised by a LPCC, Licensed Marriage and
Family Therapist, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, licensed
psychologist or licensed physician and surgeon who is
certified in psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry
and Neurology.
Of the 3000 hours required, not less than 1750 hours must
involve direct counseling with individuals or groups in a
clinical mental health counseling setting and 150 hours in a
hospital or community mental health setting. In addition, an
applicant must receive a passing score on the National
Clinical Mental Health Counselor Examination (NCMHCE) and the
California Law and Ethics Exam, which are taken upon
completion of the supervised hours.
Under current law, in order to provide marriage and family
therapy services upon licensure, the LPCC must also complete
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education and training requirements beyond the minimum
education requirements outlined by their degree program
including six semester or nine quarter units of study focused
on the application of marriage and family therapy, not less
than 500 hours of supervised experience working directly with
couples, families or children, and at least six hours of
continuing education related to marriage and family therapy.
This bill seeks to allow an applicant for licensure to obtain
coursework on marriage and family services during an
appropriate degree program as opposed to obtaining coursework
after earning the degree.
5)Education . According to the BBS Web site, there are
approximately 35 schools that offer coursework in a master's
degree or doctoral program for licensure as an LPCC. The
appropriate coursework must be obtained from a program that
that is regionally accredited or at an institution that is
approved by the Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education.
There are degree programs which offer the appropriate
education relevant to the assessment and treatment of couples
or families as part of their degree program. Without the
change that this bill proposes, students will need to repeat
the course work post-degree which could be costly and
difficult, and would potentially delay licensure.
6)Arguments in support . The California Association for Licensed
Professional Clinical Counselors writes in support: "The LPCC
scope of practice prevents LPCCs from seeing families and
couples, unless they have additional education and training in
marriage and family therapy beyond the requirements for LPCC
licensure. This means that the additional optional education
must be above and beyond the degree requirements for the LPCC
license, and that the couples and family supervised hours must
be above and beyond the 3000 post-degree hours required by the
LPCC license."
The California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists
writes in support, "Although the law says the education and
experience must be in addition to, and not part of, what is
required for licensure, this was not the intent of the
legislation. This legislation will fix this confusing
language and allow for the education and experience to be
acquired as part of their 3000 hour requirement, as intended
by the original legislation."
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7)Previous legislation . SB 146 (Wyland), Chapter 381, Statutes
of 2011, extended existing law that applies to LMFTs to apply
to LPCCs as well.
SB 788 (Wyland), Chapter 619, Statutes of 2009, established
the LPCC Act which provides for the licensing and regulation
of LPCCs by BBS.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Association for Licensed Professional Clinical
Counselors (sponsor)
American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy-California
Division
Board of Behavioral Sciences
California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Elissa Silva / B.,P. & C.P. / (916)
319-3301