Amended in Assembly September 3, 2013

Amended in Assembly August 15, 2013

Amended in Assembly August 6, 2013

Amended in Assembly June 27, 2013

Amended in Senate May 24, 2013

Amended in Senate April 16, 2013

Senate Bill No. 570

Introduced by Senator DeSaulnier

February 22, 2013

An act to add Division 10.11 (commencing with Section 11999.40) to the Health and Safety Code, relating to alcohol and other drug counselors.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 570, as amended, DeSaulnier. Alcohol and other drug counselors.

Existing law provides for the registration, certification, and licensure of various healing arts professionals. Existing law provides for various programs to eliminate alcohol and drug abuse, and states the finding of the Legislature that state government has an affirmative role in alleviating problems related to the inappropriate use of alcoholic beverages and other drug use.

This bill would require the State Department of Health Care Services, commencing January 1, 2015, to require each person who applies to an approved certifying organization to become registered or certified as an alcohol or other drug counselor (AOD counselor) or any AOD counselor who is registered or certified as of January 1, 2015, to obtain a criminal background begin delete clearance end delete begin insert check end insert , as specified. The bill would require the State Department of Health Care Services to submit to the Department of Justice fingerprint images and related information for the purpose of obtaining information as to the existence of past criminal conduct, as specified. The bill would require the Department of Justice to obtain specified information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation with respect to an applicant’s or AOD counselor’s past criminal conduct, and to provide this information to the State Department of Health Care Services. The bill would require the Department of Justice to charge a reasonable fee to an individual obtaining a criminal background check, sufficient to cover the cost of processing the criminal background check begin delete request, and would authorize end delete begin insert request. The bill would require end insert the State Department of Health Care Services to establish a reasonable application fee begin insert , sufficient to cover the department’s actual reasonable administrative costs in implementing the provisions of the bill, end insert to be charged to the certifying organization for each applicant or AOD counselor requesting a background check. begin insert The bill would require the fees to be deposited into the Alcohol and Other Drug Counselor Professions Fund, which would be created by the bill. The bill would require the fund to be administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, and would make moneys in the fund end insert begin insert available, upon appropriation end insert begin insert , for purposes of administering the provisions of the bill. end insert The bill would require the State Department of Health Care Services, by September 1, 2014, to adopt regulations to implement the provisions begin delete described in end delete begin insert of end insert the bill, as specified. The bill would require the State Department of Health Care Services to establish the Director’s Advisory Panel, begin delete and would require each prospective panel member to obtain a criminal background clearance, as specified end delete begin insert consisting of members who meet specified criteria end insert . The bill would authorize the panel to advise the department on the development of criteria for baseline decisions regarding AOD counselors, as these decisions relate to criminal background checks, and to make recommendations to the department regarding the criteria for disciplinary guidelines. The bill would require the department and approved certifying organizations to share specified information.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Division 10.11 (commencing with Section
11999.40) is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

 

Division 10.11.  Alcohol and Other Drug
Counselors

 

11999.40.  

For purposes of this division, the following
definitions apply:

(a) “AOD counselor” means a person registered or certified as
an alcohol or other drug counselor by an approved certifying
organization.

(b) “Approved certifying organization” means an organization
that the department has approved to register or certify AOD
counselors.

(c) “Department” means the State Department of Health Care
Services.

(d) “Director” means the Director of Health Care Services.

(e) “Panel” means the Director’s Advisory Panel established
pursuant to Section 11999.43.

11999.41.  

(a) Commencing January 1, 2015, the department
shall require approved certifying organizations to require each
person who applies to become registered or certified as an AOD
counselor and any AOD counselor who is registered or certified
as an AOD counselor as of January 1, 2015, to submit fingerprint
images via Live Scan for purposes of obtaining a criminal
background begin delete clearance end delete begin insert check end insert under this section.

(b) For persons described in subdivision (a), begin delete and for prospective
members of the Director’s Advisory Panel established in Section
11999.43, end delete the department shall electronically submit to the
Department of Justice fingerprint images and related information
required by the Department of Justice for the purpose of obtaining
both of the following:

(1) The existence and content of a record of state or federal
convictions and state or federal arrests.

(2) Information as to the existence and content of a record of
state or federal arrests for which the Department of Justice
establishes that the person is free on bail or on his or her
recognizance pending trial or appeal.

(c) The Department of Justice shall forward to the Federal
Bureau of Investigation requests for federal summary criminal
history information received pursuant to this section. The
Department of Justice shall review the information returned from
the Federal Bureau of Investigation and compile and disseminate
a response to the department.

(d) The Department of Justice shall provide a state or federal
response to the department pursuant to subdivision (p) of Section
11105 of the Penal Code.

(e) The department shall request from the Department of Justice
subsequent notification service, as provided pursuant to Section
11105.2 of the Penal Code, for persons described in subdivision
begin delete (a) and members of the Director’s Advisory Panel. end delete begin insert (a). end insert

(f) The Department of Justice shall charge the subject of the
criminal background check a reasonable fee sufficient to cover the
cost to the Department of Justice of processing the requests
described in this section.

(g) (1) For persons described in subdivision (a), the department
shall review all criminal background information received from
the Department of Justice and determine, based on the regulations
developed pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 11999.42, whether
to deny an application or revoke a registration or certification based
on the criminal background information. The department shall
notify the individual’s certifying organization of the department’s
determination.

(2) The department may deny or revoke a registration or
certification pursuant to this subdivision only if the conviction of
a crime is substantially related to the qualifications, functions, or
duties of a registered or certified AOD counselor.

begin insert

(3) The department shall not deny or revoke a registration or
certification pursuant to this subdivision solely on the basis of
convictions stemming from prior use of drugs or alcohol, provided
the individual meets the terms of rehabilitation established in
regulations developed pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section
11999.42.

end insert

(h) An applicant or AOD counselor whose application is denied
or whose registration or certification is revoked pursuant to
subdivision (g) shall have the right to appeal the denial or
revocation in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with Section
11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

(i) The department begin delete may end delete begin insert shall end insert establish a reasonable application
fee to be charged to the certifying organization for each applicant
or AOD counselor requesting a background check pursuant to this
begin delete section, not to exceed the reasonable costs to the department of
implementing this division. end delete begin insert section. The department shall set the
fee at an amount that is sufficient to cover, but shall not exceed,
the actual reasonable costs of administering this division. end insert

begin insert

(j) The Alcohol and Other Drug Counselor Professions Fund
is hereby created in the State Treasury, to be administered by the
department. The fund shall consist of the fees specified in
subdivision (i). Moneys in the fund shall be available, upon
appropriation, for the purposes specified in subdivision (i).

end insert

11999.42.  

(a) By September 1, 2014, the department shall
adopt regulations to implement this division, which begin delete may end delete begin insert shall end insert
include, but are not limited to, begin insert individualized assessment end insert standards,
exemptions, and terms of rehabilitation for eligibility to become
or to continue to be registered or certified as an AOD counselor,
including rebuttable presumptions with respect to the acceptance
or rejection of an applicant or an AOD counselor with a prior
criminal conviction.

(b) In adopting regulations pursuant to this section, the
department shall convene and consult a stakeholder’s group and
consult the Director’s Advisory Panel established under Section
11999.43.

(c) The regulations described in subdivision (a) may be adopted
as emergency regulations. The adoption of these regulations is
deemed to address an emergency and to be necessary for the
immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or
general welfare. Emergency regulations authorized by this
subdivision shall be exempt from review by the Office of
Administrative Law. However, the department shall transmit those
regulations to the Office of Administrative Law for filing with the
Secretary of State and publication in the California Code of
Regulations. Notwithstanding any other law, for purposes of
subdivision (e) of Section 11346.1 of the Government Code, the
180-day period, as applicable to the effective period of an
emergency regulatory action and submission of specified materials
to the Office of Administrative Law, is hereby extended to one
year, by which time the department shall have adopted permanent
regulations.

11999.43.  

The department shall establish the Director’s
Advisory Panel.

(a) The director shall select the members of the panel begin insert . The panel
shall consist of subject matter experts end insert in accordance with the
following:

(1)  begin delete Each panel member shall be a certified AOD counselor and
have end delete begin insert No less than 75 percent of the panel shall be comprised of
certified AOD counselors wit end insert begin insert h end insert at least five years of experience in
alcohol and drug treatment begin delete services. end delete

begin delete (2) (A) Each prospective panel member shall submit end delete begin insert services,
who have submitted end insert begin delete end delete fingerprint images via Live Scan for criminal
background begin delete clearance end delete begin insert checks end insert under Section begin delete 11999.41. If a
prospective panel member has already submitted to a criminal
background clearance in his or her capacity as a certified AOD
counselor pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 11999.41, that
criminal background clearance meets the requirement prescribed
by this subparagraph. end delete

begin delete (B) Prior end delete begin insert 11999.41. Prior end insert to selecting each member of the panel,
the director shall review the prospective member’s criminal
background information.

begin insert

(2) Each remaining member of the panel shall be an individual,
not certified as an AOD counselor, whom the director determines
to be a subject matter expert in the area of substance abuse.

end insert

(b) The panel may do both of the following:

(1) Consistent with any applicable regulations established
pursuant to Section 11999.42, advise the department on the
development of criteria for baseline decisions regarding AOD
counselors, as these decisions relate to criminal background checks.
These criteria may include, but are not limited to, the circumstances
that would allow for registration or certification of an applicant or
AOD counselor, notwithstanding an applicant’s or AOD
counselor’s prior criminal conviction.

(2) Make recommendations to the department regarding criteria
for disciplinary guidelines.

11999.44.  

An approved certifying organization shall do all of
the following:

(a) Report complaints made against an AOD counselor to the
department, and assist in documenting these complaints.

(b) Comply with the department’s decisions regarding
disciplinary actions, including initial denial of a registration or
certification.

(c) Report any known criminal convictions of an AOD counselor
to the department.

11999.45.  

The department shall report any complaints made
to the department against an AOD counselor to the approved
certifying organization that conferred the individual’s registration
or certification and assist that organization in documenting the
complaint.