BBS Update

January/February 2007

By Mary Riemersma, Executive Director

The BBS met in mid-November 2006. Following are some of the items of interest and items of discussion that occurred at the meeting.

Governor’s Veto on the Continuation of the Bureau on Private Post Secondary and Vocational Education
Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed legislation that would have continued the Bureau on Private Post Secondary and Vocational Education beyond July 2007. Thus this Bureau will sunset in July. According to the BBS, there are approximately 24 MFT programs in Bureau approved schools. Urgency legislation is being considered to attempt to continue this Bureau, but such legislation would require a 2/3rds vote from the legislature, which may not be possible. The BBS will be discussing this matter further at their February meeting. This sunset raises many questions including, but not limited to: What will happen to approved school degree programs? What will happen to those in the pipeline? What will happen to the approvals of programs that have been approved for a three year period—in most cases approvals will extend beyond the July 2007?

This issue will have the greatest impact on those soon to be graduating and seeking intern registration after sunset. It will have no affect on anyone who has already been granted a degree from an approved school or who is already licensed.

Jan Lee Wong, Executive Director for NASW, California, recommended to the Board that it should look at the accreditation process for MFT programs, contrasting it to the CSW programs that are required to be accredited by a national social work body. CAMFT does not share this view and recognizes that MFT education is extensively defined in the licensing law and the BBS verifies that applicants for the license have acquired the requisite coursework within their degree programs.

Custody Evaluations
The BBS engaged in a discussion about the handling of complaints against therapists who do child custody evaluations. The Board was of the opinion that the courts should be the first line of action for complaints regarding child custody evaluators. Often such cases are the result of sparring between the parents and involve no wrongdoing on the part of the professional. The Board is, of course, open to receiving complaints regarding child custody evaluators who have operated beyond their scope of competence or who have acted unprofessionally in the completion of evaluations.

Continuing Education
The Consumer Protection Committee of the BBS had recommended to the full Board that the continuing education requirements be modified to permit all hours of CE to be gained by self-study. The Board as a whole did not accept the Committee’s recommendation, however. In spite of the fact that we and both social work organizations spoke in support of permitting more hours of selfstudy, in fact we all recommended that all hours should be permitted by self-study, the Board nevertheless voted to permit only up to 18 hours to be completed by self-study. It would leave existing law intact with regard to any other hours. In the case of the new licensee who is required to complete only 18 hours of CE at his/her first renewal, he/she would be able to complete up to nine hours by self-study. The Board was concerned about fraud and misrepresentation when too many hours are permitted to be gained by self-study. It is our belief that if one is going to “cheat†in the gaining of CE, he/she will do so regardless of the means by which one completes the CE.

Marketing and Public Relations
The BBS is embarking on a marketing and public relations program to improve the branding and image of the BBS. They are attempting to convey an attitude of “connectivity.†As a part of the image, they desire to demonstrate that they are partners and resources in the mental health process and that they are a meaningful participant in connecting partners in mental health. A BBS logo was presented for the Board’s review, with the proposal attempting to convey the concept of connection. The Board did not accept any of the proposed logos and suggested that the firm, with whom the BBS has contracted, return to the Board with other recommendations. Board Members, as well as legal counsel to the Board, expressed concern that the BBS may be attempting to extend beyond is legal charge, which is to protect consumers, first and foremost, and secondly to test and license professionals who meet the requisite qualifications.

Election of Vice Chair
Ian Russ, Ph.D., LMFT, was elected Vice Chair of the BBS.

Public Hearings
Public hearings were held on a number of proposed regulatory changes. These hearings are a part of the formal process required to move forward proposed changes in regulations. The proposed regulations will next go to the California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for final approval, and they will become effective if accepted by OAL. CAMFT submitted a variety of recommended changes to the proposed regulations. Hearings were held on the following issues:

Supervisor requirements are to be changed for MFTs and CSWs, that amongst other things, supervisors will not be required to have seen an average of five clients per week out of two of the prior five years in order to provide supervision. This requirement will be modified to require supervisors to have had recent experience (in two of the prior five years) in either providing psychotherapy and/or supervision, with no requirement for five hours per week. CAMFT, amongst other things, also requested that the six hours of required supervision training or coursework follow the two year license renewal cycle rather than every two years, which the BBS agreed to.

Amongst other changes with regard to mandatory continuing education providers, the Board would establish in regulation that delinquency fees of $100 would be collected from delinquent CE providers, with the proviso that the approval status had not lapsed for more than one year. Along this line, CAMFT expressed that continuing education hours should not be disallowed merely because a provider has failed to renew its provider status. The BBS modified its proposal by permitting CE credit to be granted to a participant if the provider renews its approval status within one year of its expiration.

The BBS proposed a mandatory 180-day waiting period between examinations. CAMFT took exception with this proposal, which the Board has now agreed to modify, on the premise that there are often conditions beyond the applicants’ control in taking examinations and such persons should not be forced, by regulation, to wait 180 days before being able to take an exam. Case in point, the applicant runs into difficulty taking the exam due to faulty functioning of the equipment. That person should not be forced to wait 180 days until a new version of the exam is available if that new version is available in a lesser amount of time. The BBS and a number of applicants experienced this situation first-hand during the recent examination cycle. The BBS is aware that contingency planning is necessary to have an alternative to suspending examinations when complications in the exam procedures arise.

A number of non-substantive changes were made in regulations that address licentiate and registrant renewal fees.

With regard to the delegation of authority to Executive Officer to C

BBS Update January/February 2007