REPORT TITLE:
Licensing


DESCRIPTION:
Enacts licensing laws for professional mental health counselors
and professional rehabilitation counselors.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           859
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT
RELATING TO PROFESSIONAL MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS AND
   PROFESSIONAL REHABILITATION COUNSELORS.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that the profession of
 
 2 mental health counseling and rehabilitation counseling are
 
 3 critical in today's society, where due to intensified violence
 
 4 and increased substance abuse, individuals in society are having
 
 5 many more problems with limited resources to access.  In general,
 
 6 people who seek out mental health and rehabilitation counseling
 
 7 are at a vulnerable time in their lives and need protection from
 
 8 unskilled, untrained, and ill-prepared individuals.  At present,
 
 9 masters level mental health and rehabilitation counselors are
 
10 unregulated in the State and there are no special safeguards in
 
11 place to assure consumers of the quality of service they are
 
12 receiving.  Being in a vulnerable state, persons that receive
 
13 services that may revictimize them or, in other ways, harm them
 
14 are unlikely to share this with anyone.  Those that are
 
15 revictimized are not empowered to come forward.  To do so would
 
16 entail shame and further aggravate the situation.  Those few who
 
17 may wish to make a formal complaint often do not know where to
 
18 go, as they would not be likely to receive a client grievance
 
19 procedure which would outline the steps they need to take.
 

 
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 1      The department of commerce and consumer affairs has
 
 2 concluded that it has no jurisdiction, since counselors are not
 
 3 regulated by licensure.  Not many people have even heard of or
 
 4 would think of approaching the regulated industries complaints
 
 5 office of the department of commerce and consumer affairs.
 
 6      There are approximately four hundred mental health
 
 7 counselors in the State that would be eligible for licensure.
 
 8 There are nationally established criteria for education,
 
 9 training, and practice of mental health counselors; however,
 
10 there is no regulation in Hawaii.
 
11      Furthermore, there are approximately one hundred fifty
 
12 providers of rehabilitation services in the State of Hawaii with
 
13 job titles including, but not limited to, "rehabilitation
 
14 counselor", "rehabilitation specialist", and "vocational
 
15 consultant".  They are employed in the public, non-profit
 
16 private, and for-profit private sectors.  In all sectors they
 
17 provide adjustment-to-disability counseling, vocational
 
18 counseling, job placement, and case coordination services to the
 
19 physically, mentally, and emotionally disabled.  In the private,
 
20 for-profit sector, they additionally provide consultative
 
21 services to employers and the insurance industry and expert
 
22 witness testimony in legal proceedings.  Although there are
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 recognized, nationally established criteria for the education and
 
 2 training of rehabilitation counselors, and practitioners are
 
 3 licensed, along with other counseling specialties, in many of the
 
 4 fifty states, they are not currently regulated in Hawaii.  The
 
 5 department of labor and industrial relations, which credentials
 
 6 rehabilitation service providers who work with workers'
 
 7 compensation claimants, has recently reduced its staff in the
 
 8 oversight unit from twelve to one and, therefore, is unable to
 
 9 furnish the level of service monitoring previously provided.
 
10 With the exception of the State's workers' compensation program,
 
11 there is no way that disabled individuals, insurers, employers,
 
12 and other consumers of service can be assured of the credentials
 
13 of providers professing to be "professional".  Licensure is
 
14 sorely needed to assure quality service.
 
15      With the concept of managed care becoming a reality, the
 
16 lack of licensed professionals in the mental health and
 
17 rehabilitation counseling area will severely limit the public's
 
18 choice of providers.  Due to a limited number of licensed
 
19 professionals, fewer people will be able to have access to
 
20 services.
 
21      The legislature finds that masters level mental health
 
22 counselors are licensed and regulated in forty-five states and
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 the District of Columbia.  Rehabilitation counselors are licensed
 
 2 and regulated along with mental health counselors in most of
 
 3 these states and separately licensed in five:  Massachusetts, New
 
 4 Jersey, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Illinois.
 
 5      The purpose of this Act is to set standards of
 
 6 qualifications regarding education and experience and require
 
 7 licenses for those persons who seek to represent themselves to
 
 8 the public as licensed professional mental health counselors or
 
 9 licensed professional rehabilitation counselors.
 
10      SECTION 2.  The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding
 
11 a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as
 
12 follows:
 
13                           "CHAPTER  
 
14             PROFESSIONAL MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS AND
 
15              PROFESSIONAL REHABILITATION COUNSELORS
 
16      § -1 Definitions.  As used in this chapter, unless the
 
17 context clearly requires a different meaning:
 
18      "Accredited institution" means a university or college,
 
19 accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency of
 
20 institutions of higher education, or an approved institution or
 
21 program as determined by the board.
 
22      "Advertise" means the issuing of or causing to be
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 distributed any card, sign, or device to any person, or the
 
 2 causing, permitting, or allowing of any sign or marking on or in
 
 3 any building, on radio or television, or by advertising by any
 
 4 other means designed to secure public attention.
 
 5      "Appraisal" means selecting, administering, scoring, and
 
 6 interpreting instruments designed to assess an individual's
 
 7 aptitudes, attitudes, abilities, achievements, interests,
 
 8 personal characteristics, and current emotional or mental state
 
 9 by appropriately educated, trained, and experienced clinicians
 
10 and the use of nonstandardized methods and techniques for
 
11 understanding human behavior in relation to coping with, adapting
 
12 to, or changing life situations of a physical, mental, or
 
13 emotional nature.
 
14      "Clinical supervision" includes, but is not limited to, case
 
15 consultation of the assessment and diagnosis of presenting
 
16 problems, development, and implementation of treatment plans, and
 
17 the evaluation of the course of treatment.  Clinical supervision
 
18 may also include direct observation by the qualified supervisor
 
19 of the provision of mental health counseling and rehabilitation
 
20 counseling.
 
21      "Consulting" means the application of scientific principles
 
22 and procedures in psychotherapeutic counseling, guidance, and
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 human development to provide assistance in understanding and
 
 2 solving a problem that the consultee may have in relation to a
 
 3 third party.
 
 4      "Counseling" means the application of scientific principles
 
 5 and procedures in therapeutic counseling, guidance, and human
 
 6 development to provide assistance in understanding and solving a
 
 7 mental, emotional, physical, social, moral, educational,
 
 8 spiritual, or career development and adjustment problem that a
 
 9 client may have.
 
10      "Department" means the department of commerce and consumer
 
11 affairs.
 
12      "Director" means the director of commerce and consumer
 
13 affairs.
 
14      "Licensed professional mental health counselor" means a
 
15 person who uses the title of licensed professional mental health
 
16 counselor and who has been issued a license under this chapter,
 
17 whose license is in effect and not revoked or suspended.
 
18      "Licensed professional rehabilitation counselor" means a
 
19 person who uses the tile of licensed professional rehabilitation
 
20 counselor and who has been issued a license under this chapter,
 
21 whose license is in effect and not revoked or suspended.
 
22      "Mental health counseling" is the use of individual and
 

 
 
 
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 1 group techniques within a developmental, wellness, and
 
 2 multicultural model of human behavior to assist persons in
 
 3 developing greater self-awareness, critical judgement, and
 
 4 effectiveness in their inter-personal relationships, education,
 
 5 and careers.  In addition to the clinical session, it may include
 
 6 administration and interpretation of appraisal instruments and
 
 7 referral to other professionals for ancillary services to benefit
 
 8 the counselee.
 
 9      "Referral" means the evaluation of information to identify
 
10 needs of the person being counseled to determine the advisability
 
11 of sending the person being counseled to other specialists,
 
12 informing the person being counseled of such judgment, and
 
13 communicating the information to other counseling services as
 
14 deemed appropriate.
 
15      "Rehabilitation counseling" means a systematic process,
 
16 utilizing the counselling model, to assist the physically,
 
17 mentally, developmentally, cognitively, and emotionally disabled
 
18 to set and realize realistic vocational goals.  The process
 
19 includes evaluation of medical, psychological, educational, and
 
20 vocational data together with interview behavior to determine
 
21 skills, abilities, and potential opportunities; utilization of
 
22 individual group and behavioral techniques to foster adjustment
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 to disability and achievement of greater self-awareness,
 
 2 knowledge of environment and judgment; and coordination of multi-
 
 3 disciplinary community resources and job placement.
 
 4      "Use a title or description of" means to hold oneself out to
 
 5 the public as having a particular status by stating the status on
 
 6 signs, mailboxes, address plates, stationery, announcements,
 
 7 telephone directory advertising, business cards, or other
 
 8 instruments of professional identification.
 
 9      §   -2  Professional mental health counselors and
 
10 professional rehabilitation counselors licensing program.  There
 
11 is established a professional mental health counselors and
 
12 professional rehabilitation counselors licensing program within
 
13 the department to be administered by the director.
 
14      §   -3 Powers and duties of the director.  In addition to
 
15 any other powers and duties authorized by law, the director shall
 
16 have the following powers and duties:
 
17      (1)  Examine and approve the qualifications of all
 
18           applicants under this chapter, and issue a license to
 
19           each successful applicant, granting permission to use
 
20           the title or description of licensed professional
 
21           mental health counselor and professional rehabilitation
 
22           counselor in this State pursuant to this chapter and
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1           the rules adopted pursuant thereto;
 
 2      (2)  Adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91;
 
 3      (3)  Administer, coordinate, and enforce this chapter and
 
 4           rules adopted pursuant thereto;
 
 5      (4)  Discipline a licensed professional mental health
 
 6           counselor and licensed professional rehabilitation
 
 7           counselor for any cause described by this chapter or
 
 8           for any violation of the rules, or refuse to license a
 
 9           person for failure to meet licensing requirements or
 
10           for any cause that would be grounds for disciplining a
 
11           licensed professional mental health counselor or
 
12           licensed professional rehabilitation counselor; and
 
13      (5)  Appoint an advisory committee consisting of licensed
 
14           professional mental health counselors and licensed
 
15           professional rehabilitation counselors and members of
 
16           the public, to assist with the implementation of this
 
17           chapter and the rules adopted pursuant thereto.
 
18      §   -4 Fees; disposition.(a)  Application, examination,
 
19 reexamination, license, renewal, restoration, penalty, and any
 
20 other fees relating to administration of this chapter, none of
 
21 which are refundable, shall be as provided in rules adopted by
 
22 the director pursuant to chapter 91.
 

 
 
 
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 1      (b)  Fees assessed shall defray costs incurred by the
 
 2 director to support the operation of the professional mental
 
 3 health counselor and professional rehabilitation counselor
 
 4 licensing program.  Fees collected shall be managed in accordance
 
 5 with section 26-9.
 
 6      §   -5 Prohibited acts.  Except as specifically provided in
 
 7 this chapter, no person shall use the title licensed professional
 
 8 mental health counselor or licensed professional rehabilitation
 
 9 counselor or describe oneself as a licensed professional mental
 
10 health counselor or licensed professional rehabilitation
 
11 counselor without first having secured a license under this
 
12 chapter.  The department shall investigate and prosecute any
 
13 individual using the title or description of licensed
 
14 professional mental health counselor or licensed professional
 
15 rehabilitation counselor without the proper license as a
 
16 professional mental health counselor or professional
 
17 rehabilitation counselor.  Any person who violates this section
 
18 shall be subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 and each day's
 
19 violation shall be deemed a separate offense.  Any action taken
 
20 to impose or collect the fine imposed under this section shall be
 
21 a civil action.
 
22      §   -6 Exemptions.(a)  Licensure shall not be required
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 of:
 
 2      (1)  A person doing work within the scope of practice or
 
 3           duties of the person's profession that overlaps with
 
 4           the practice of mental health counseling (for example,
 
 5           the clergy) or rehabilitation counselling; provided the
 
 6           person does not purport to be a professional mental
 
 7           health counselor or professional rehabilitation
 
 8           counselor;
 
 9      (2)  Any student enrolled in an accredited educational
 
10           institution in a recognized program of study leading
 
11           toward attainment of a graduate degree in mental health
 
12           or rehabilitation counseling or other professional
 
13           field; provided that the student's activities and
 
14           services are part of a prescribed course of study
 
15           supervised by the educational institution and the
 
16           student is identified by an appropriate title including
 
17           but not limited to "mental health counseling or
 
18           rehabilitation counseling student" or "trainee", or
 
19           "clinical psychology student" or "trainee", or
 
20           "clinical social work student" or "trainee", or any
 
21           title which clearly indicates training status; or
 
22      (3)  Any individual who uses the title "mental health
 

 
 
 
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 1           counselor or rehabilitation counselor intern" for the
 
 2           purpose of obtaining clinical experience in accordance
 
 3           with section    -7(a)(3).
 
 4      (b)  Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prevent
 
 5 qualified members of other licensed professions as defined by any
 
 6 law or rules of the department, including but not limited to
 
 7 social workers, registered nurses, psychologists, or physicians,
 
 8 from doing or advertising that they assist or treat individuals,
 
 9 couples, or families consistent with the accepted standards of
 
10 their respective licensed professions; provided that no such
 
11 persons shall use a title or description stating or implying that
 
12 they are a professional mental health counselor or professional
 
13 rehabilitation counselor.
 
14      §   -7 Application for licensure as a professional mental
 
15 health counselor.(a)  Any person who applies to the department
 
16 after July 1, 2000, shall be issued a license by the department
 
17 if the applicant provides satisfactory evidence to the department
 
18 that the applicant is qualified for licensure pursuant to the
 
19 requirements of this chapter and meets the following
 
20 qualifications:
 
21      (1)  Has a master's degree or doctoral degree from an
 
22           accredited institution in counseling or in an allied
 

 
 
 
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 1           field related to the practice of mental health
 
 2           counseling which includes or is supplemented by
 
 3           graduate level course work comprising a minimum of
 
 4           forty-eight semester or seventy-two quarter hours in
 
 5           the following course areas:
 
 6           (A)  Human growth and development;
 
 7           (B)  Social and cultural foundations;
 
 8           (C)  Helping relationships;
 
 9           (D)  Group work;
 
10           (E)  Career and lifestyle development;
 
11           (F)  Appraisal;
 
12           (G)  Research and program evaluation; and
 
13           (H)  Professional orientation and ethics.
 
14      (2)  Has at least two academic terms of practicum experience
 
15           in a counseling setting with three hundred hours of
 
16           supervised client contact;
 
17      (3)  Completes one thousand hours of direct counseling work
 
18           with one hundred hours of clinical supervision; and
 
19      (4)  Has passed the National Counselor Examination for
 
20           Licensure and Certification.
 
21      (b)  An individual who is a professional member of the
 
22 American Counseling Association or who is a national certified
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 counselor prior to the effective date of this chapter shall be
 
 2 deemed to have met the educational and clinical experience
 
 3 requirements of this section.
 
 4      §   -8 Application for licensure as a professional
 
 5 rehabilitation counselor.(a)  Any person who applies to the
 
 6 department after July 1, 2000, shall be issued a license by the
 
 7 department if the applicant provides satisfactory evidence to the
 
 8 department that the applicant is qualified for licensure pursuant
 
 9 to the requirements of this chapter and meets the following
 
10 qualifications:
 
11      (1)  Has completed a master's degree in rehabilitation
 
12           counseling from a program fully accredited by the
 
13           Council on Rehabilitation Education at the time the
 
14           applicant's degree was granted, a six hundred hour
 
15           (semester system) or four hundred eighty hour (quarter
 
16           system) internship supervised by an on-site certified
 
17           rehabilitation counselor or a faculty member who is a
 
18           certified rehabilitation counselor; or
 
19      (2)  Has a master's degree in counseling from a college or
 
20           university accredited by a recognized regional
 
21           accrediting body at the time the degree was granted, a
 
22           transcript reflecting at least one course with a
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1           primary focus on the theories and techniques of
 
 2           counseling, and sixty months of employment experience
 
 3           in rehabilitation counseling at least twelve of which
 
 4           were under the supervision of a certified
 
 5           rehabilitation counselor; and
 
 6      (3)  Has passed the Certified Rehabilitation Counselor
 
 7           examination for professional rehabilitation counselors.
 
 8      (b)  An individual who is a certified rehabilitation
 
 9 counselor prior to the effective date of this chapter shall be
 
10 deemed to have met the educational and clinical experience
 
11 requirements of this section.
 
12      §   -9 Examination.  (a)  Beginning on July 1, 2000, the
 
13 department shall conduct a licensing examination of applicants at
 
14 least once a year at a time and place designated by the
 
15 department.
 
16      (b)  The department shall administer the National Counselor
 
17 Examination for Professional Mental Health Counselors and the
 
18 Certified Rehabilitation Counselor examination for Professional
 
19 Rehabilitation Counselors in compliance with each regulatory
 
20 board's standards.
 
21      (c)  An applicant shall be held to have passed an
 
22 examination by obtaining a passing score as determined by the
 

 
 
 
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 1 director.
 
 2      (d)  Application and examination fees shall be determined by
 
 3 the director.
 
 4      §   -10  Licensure fees.  Licenses shall be valid for three
 
 5 years and shall be renewed triennially, with the renewal fee
 
 6 being determined by the department.  Any applicant for renewal of
 
 7 a license that has expired within one year of the renewal
 
 8 deadline shall be required to pay a restoration fee in addition
 
 9 to all renewal fees determined by the department.
 
10      §   -11  Renewal of license.  Licenses shall be renewed
 
11 triennially not earlier than ninety days before June 30, with the
 
12 first renewal deadline occurring on June 30, 2003.  Failure to
 
13 renew a license shall result in a forfeiture of the license.
 
14 Licenses which have been so forfeited may be restored within one
 
15 year of the expiration date upon payment of renewal and
 
16 restoration fees.  Failure to restore a forfeited license within
 
17 one year of the date of its expiration shall result in the
 
18 automatic termination of the license and the person may be
 
19 required to reapply for licensure as a new applicant.
 
20      §   -12  Denial, revocation, or suspension of license.(a)
 
21 The department shall deny, revoke, condition, or suspend a
 
22 license granted pursuant to this chapter on the following
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 grounds:
 
 2      (1)  Conviction by a court of competent jurisdiction of a
 
 3           crime which the department has determined by rules
 
 4           adopted pursuant to chapter 91 to be of such nature as
 
 5           to render the person convicted unfit to practice
 
 6           professional mental health counseling or professional
 
 7           rehabilitation counseling;
 
 8      (2)  Failure to report in writing to the director any
 
 9           disciplinary decision related to the provision of
 
10           mental health services issued against the licensee or
 
11           the applicant in another jurisdiction within thirty
 
12           days of the disciplinary decision or within thirty days
 
13           of licensure;
 
14      (3)  Violation of recognized ethical standards for
 
15           professional mental health and rehabilitation
 
16           counselors as set by each discipline's association;
 
17      (4)  Fraud or misrepresentation in obtaining a license;
 
18      (5)  Revocation, suspension, or other disciplinary action by
 
19           another state or federal agency against a licensee or
 
20           applicant for any reason provided by this section; or
 
21      (6)  Other just and sufficient cause which renders a person
 
22           unfit to practice professional mental health or
 

 
 
 
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                                     S.B. NO.           859
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1           rehabilitation counseling.
 
 2      (b)  Any licensee who violates this section may also be
 
 3 fined not more than $1,000 per violation."
 
 4      SECTION 3.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 1999.
 
 5 
 
 6                           INTRODUCED BY:  _______________________
 
 7