STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1817

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2007

RE:   S.B. No. 667

      S.D. 3

      H.D. 2

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce, to which was referred S.B. No. 667, S.D. 3, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to provide for the licensing of qualified mental health services providers by:

(1)  Allowing substitute experience for the practicum intern and post-graduate experience required for mental health counselor licensure, for applicants who graduated from an accredited educational institution before July 1, 2007; and

(2)  Making the mental health counselor licensing program immediately permanent by repealing its sunset date of December 31, 2008.

     Kaiser Permanente, Hawaii Rehabilitation Counseling Association, Rehabilitation Association of Hawaii, Case Management Works, Inc., Lokahi Treatment Centers, Sestak Rehabilitation Services, and numerous concerned individuals testified in support of this bill.  The Alliance for Professional Counselor Licensure and numerous concerned individuals supported this measure with amendments.  The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs opposed this bill.

     Concerns were raised regarding the repeal of the sunset date for the mental health counselors licensing program, which would remove the program from the Auditor's sunset review process under Chapter 26H, Hawaii Revised Statutes, and immediately make the program permanent only about a year after this program was fully enacted with subsequent amendments.  Your Committee received testimony noting that this provision contravenes the usual process of having new regulatory programs undergo the sunset review process three years after enactment to determine whether the program should be continued, modified, or allowed to expire.

     Additionally, your Committee notes the concerns regarding the allowance of substitute experience for mental health counselor licensure.  This provision is intended to provide for the licensure of applicants who were already in the process of fulfilling the licensure requirements when Act 14, Session Laws of Hawaii 2006, changed the requirements to mandate that practicum intern and post-graduate experience be supervised by certain licensed professionals.

     Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1)  Restoring the sunset date of December 31, 2008, for the mental health counselor licensing program, to allow the program to undergo the sunset review process;

(2)  Clarifying that the requirement that clinical supervisors hold certain licenses does not apply to the practicum intern and post-graduate experience supervision requirements for applicants graduating from an accredited educational institution prior to July 1, 2007; and

(3)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for clarity and style.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 667, S.D. 3, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 667, S.D. 3, H.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce,

____________________________

ROBERT N. HERKES, Chair