BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
1374 (Levine)
As Amended July 14, 2015
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: | 77-0 | (April 30, |SENATE: | 40-0 | (August 24, |
| | |2015) | | |2015) |
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Original Committee Reference: B. & P.
SUMMARY: Revises the submission process for Verification of
Experience (VOE) forms and permits applicants for a psychology
license to submit VOE directly to the Board of Psychology (BOP);
deletes the requirement that a licensed psychologist may only
practice psychology for a fee; revises terms relative to the
practice of psychology; and, makes other technical and
clarifying amendments. Specifically, this bill:
1)Deletes the requirement that psychological services be
provided for a fee.
2)Revises the application of psychological principals and
methods to instead include assessment and intervention in
order to increase effective functioning of individuals,
groups, and organizations.
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3)Replaces the term "maladjustive" with "maladaptive."
4)Deletes the definition of "fee."
5)Removes the ability for an applicant to submit the VOE to the
BOP directly if the supervising psychologist fails to provide
verification to the BOP.
6)Requires a supervising psychologist to submit VOE to the
trainee in the manner prescribed by the BOP.
7)States that if a supervising psychologist fails to provide VOE
to the trainee in a timely manner, the BOP may establish
alternative procedures for obtaining the necessary
documentation.
8)States that, absent good cause, the failure of a supervising
psychologist to provide VOE to the BOP upon request shall
constitute unprofessional conduct.
9)Deletes the requirement for an applicant to file a proof of
service under penalty of perjury, as specified, and the
supervisor rebuttal procedures.
10)Strikes reference to the BOP reviewing and approving
applicants for a supervising psychologist on a case-by-case
basis.
11)Provides that no reimbursement is required by this bill
pursuant to California Constitution Article XIIB, Section 6
because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency
or school district will be incurred because this act creates a
new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or
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changes the penalty for a crime or infraction.
12)Makes other technical and clarifying changes.
The Senate amendments delete provisions which are in conflict
with AB 705, revise the requirements for submitting verification
of experience hours for supervisors, and make other technical
and clarifying amendments.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS:
Purpose. This bill is sponsored by the BOP. According to the
author, "[This bill] saves [BOP] resources by allowing an
applicant to be [the] sole [provider] of a complete application
for licensure. [This] bill also seeks to remove any apparent
limitation on psychologists providing volunteer service is
contrary to the public good [which] could limit qualified
licensees providing such services."
Background. This bill attempts to address three separate
issues: 1) how VOE forms may be submitted to the BOP; 2)
allowing psychological services to be performed without
collecting a fee; and, 3) revises terms relative to the practice
of psychology.
Psychologists and Fees for Services. The practice of psychology
is defined as rendering or offering to render, for a fee, any
psychological services. Licensed psychologists may practice
independently in any private or public setting using
psychological methods to diagnose, treat, prevent, and
ameliorate emotional and mental disorders of individuals and
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groups. There are currently 20,000 licensed psychologists in
California. According to the BOP, requiring that psychological
services can only be provided for a fee potentially limits a
licensed psychologist's ability to provide voluntary or pro bono
psychology services. By removing the reference to a fee in the
definition of the practice of psychology it will allow
individuals to provide free services of a psychological nature
while under the jurisdiction of the BOP. Settings where free
services may be provided could include non-profits, health
clinics or suicide prevention hotlines.
Licensure Requirements and the Application Process. Licensed
psychologists are required to obtain a doctoral degree from an
accredited institution in psychology, educational psychology, or
in a field specializing in counseling psychology or educational
psychology. Psychologists are required to complete 3,000 hours
(minimum two years) of supervised experience, of which 1,500
hours must be completed after obtaining a doctoral degree. Many
post-doctoral psychologists gain supervision experience
requirements while employed at schools, colleges or universities
and government entities, which provide opportunities to gain the
required supervisory hours needed for licensure.
There are numerous steps in the application process for
licensure. Applicants are required to submit verification of
the completion of education, passage of required examination(s),
along with the proof of the required supervised experience.
While an applicant is generally responsible for submitting the
majority of the required documentation, applicants typically do
not submit the VOE form themselves. Current law requires the
licensed supervisor to submit the documentation directly to the
BOP within 30 days of an applicant's request and provides a
remedy for the applicant if the supervisor does not follow
through. If the VOE is not submitted within the 30 days, an
applicant, under penalty of perjury, can submit the VOE directly
to the BOP and the supervisor will then have 20 days to submit a
rebuttal. According to the BOP, VOE forms are often sent to the
BOP separately from an individual's application by every primary
supervisor verifying a portion of the required hours of
experience meaning that multiple VOE forms could be submitted at
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different times for each applicant separately from the rest of
the licensure application.
According to the BOP, in an effort to eliminate the lengthy
application process and to ensure that VOE forms are submitted
more consistently with applications for licensure, this bill
will revise the existing process and permit applicants to submit
VOE forms directly to the BOP and remove the requirement that a
supervisor must submit the form. This potentially results in
the BOP saving storage space and possibly reducing processing
times for BOP staff to combine the various components of an
individual's application.
Analysis Prepared by: Elissa Silva / B. & P.
/ (916) 319-3301 FN: 0001299