BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  SB 363
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   July 13, 2011

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                   SB 363 (Emmerson) - As Amended:  April 25, 2011 

          Policy Committee:                             Business and 
          Professions  Vote:                            9-0

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program: 
          No     Reimbursable:              No

           SUMMARY  

          This bill revises educational requirements for marriage and 
          family therapists (MFT) licensed by the Board of Behavioral 
          Sciences.  Specifically, this bill:

          1)Authorizes licensed professional clinical counselors (LPCCs) 
            who have met specified additional training and educational 
            requirements to supervise MFT interns. 
          2)Provides exceptions to requirements in current law that limit 
            the ability of MFT trainees to gain hours of experience while 
            not enrolled in a practicum, provided the period of lapsed 
            enrollment does not exceed 90 days.  
          3)Revises experience requirements for MFT licensure by limiting 
            the number of hours associated with certain activities, 
            including client-centered advocacy. 

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Negligible state fiscal effect.  

           COMMENTS  

           Rationale  .   According to the author and the bill's sponsor, the 
          Board of Behavioral Sciences, this bill is needed to clarify and 
          amend supervision and experience requirements for Californians 
          seeking licensure as a MFT.  This bill addresses three primary 
          concerns. First, the author states the majority of the MFT 
          experience hours should be gained through a variety of training 
          activities other than client-centered advocacy.  This bill 
          limits the number of hours a MFT trainee can gain on 
          client-centered advocacy to 500 hours. 








                                                                  SB 363
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          Second, the bill provides a window of 90 days where MFT trainees 
          will be allowed to counsel clients without being concurrently 
          enrolled in a practicum, in order to accommodate the training 
          needs of students during a school's summer recess.  

          Finally, the bill authorizes LPCCs to supervise MFTs, provided 
          the LPCC has gained additional training and experience related 
          to marriage and family therapy.  As LPCC licensure will be newly 
          implemented on January 1, 2012, there is no provision in current 
          law allowing LPCCs to supervise MFT interns.  


           Analysis Prepared by  :    Lisa Murawski / APPR. / (916) 319-2081