AB427 - Social workers: interstate compact.

Amended IN Assembly April 09, 2025 Amended IN Assembly March 24, 2025 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 427 Introduced by Assembly Member Jackson February 05, 2025 An act to amend Section 4996 of, and to add Article 6 (commencing with Section 4998.10) to Chapter 14 of Division 2 of, the Business and Professions Code, relating to healing arts. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 427, as amended, Jackson. Social workers: interstate compact. Existing law, the Clinical Social Worker Practice Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of clinical social workers by the Board of Behavioral Sciences. Existing law requires the board to issue a clinical social worker license to each applicant who qualifies pursuant to the act and who successfully passes a California law and ethics examination and a clinical examination. This bill would ratify and approve the Social Work Licensure Compact, which authorizes member states to issue multistate licenses to applicants meeting specified education and experience requirements. Under the compact, a multistate license grants the holder an authorization to practice in other member states. The compact provides for the creation of a commission and requires the board to select a delegate to serve on the commission. This bill would require the board to comply with the requirements of the compact and to adopt regulations necessary to implement that compact. Existing law prohibits an individual from styling themselves, or holding themselves out to be, a “licensed clinical social worker,” and makes it unlawful to engage in the practice of clinical social work unless they hold a license under the Clinical Social Worker Practice Act. This bill would instead prohibit those acts unless they hold a license under the act or under the above-described compact. This bill would become operative only upon certification by the Director of Consumer Affairs that a majority of the board has voted in favor of joining the compact and would require the director to notify the Secretary of State and the Legislative Counsel Bureau of the date of that certification. Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO Bill Text The people of the State of California do enact as follows: SECTION 1. Section 4996 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read: 4996. (a) Only individuals who have received a license under this chapter may style themselves as “Licensed Clinical Social Workers.” Every individual who styles themselves or who holds themselves out to be a licensed clinical social worker, or who uses any words or symbols indicating or tending to indicate that they are a licensed clinical social worker, without holding their license in good standing under this article, is guilty of a misdemeanor. (b) It is unlawful for any person to engage in the practice of clinical social work unless at the time of so doing such person holds a valid, unexpired, and unrevoked license under this chapter. (c) A clinical social worker licensed under this chapter is a licentiate for purposes of paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 805, and thus is a health care practitioner subject to the provisions of Section 2290.5 pursuant to subdivision (b) of that section. (d) (1) A person holds a license under this chapter if they hold satisfy either of the following requirements: (A) The person holds a license under this article or hold a article. (B) The person holds a multistate license or multistate authorization to practice under the Social Work Licensure Compact as set forth in Article 6 (commencing with Section 4998.10). (2) This subdivision shall become operative only upon certification by the Director of Consumer Affairs as set forth in subdivision (b) of Section 4998.20. SEC. 2. Article 6 (commencing with Section 4998.10) is added to Chapter 14 of Division 2 of the Business and Professions Code, to read: Article 6. Social Work Licensure Compact 4998.10. The Social Work Licensure Compact, as set forth in Section 4998.15, is hereby ratified and approved. 4998.15. The provisions of the Social Work Licensure Compact between the State of California and other states that are party to the compact are as follows: Section 1: Purpose The purpose of this compact is to facilitate interstate practice of regulated social workers by improving public access to competent social work services. The compact preserves the regulatory authority of states to protect public health and safety through the current system of state licensure. This compact is designed to achieve the following objectives: (a) Increase public access to social work services. (b) Reduce overly burdensome and duplicative requirements associated with holding multiple licenses. (c) Enhance the member states’ ability to protect the public health and safety. (d) Encourage the cooperation of member states in regulating multistate practice. (e) Promote mobility and address workforce shortages by eliminating the necessity for licenses in multiple states by providing for the mutual recognition of other member state licenses. (f) Support military families. (g) Facilitate the exchange of licensure and disciplinary information among member states. (h) Authorize all member states to hold a regulated social worker accountable for abiding by a member state’s laws, regulations, and applicable professional standards in the member state in which the client is located at the time care is rendered. (i) Allow for the use of telehealth to facilitate increased access to regulated social work services. Section 2: Definitions As used in this compact, and except as otherwise provided, the following definitions shall apply: (a) “Active military member” means any individual with full-time duty status in the active armed forces of the United States including members of the National Guard and Reserve. (b) “Adverse action” means any administrative, civil, equitable, or criminal action permitted by a state’s laws which is imposed by a licensing authority or other authority against a regulated social worker, including actions against an individual’s license or multistate authorization to practice such as revocation, suspension, probation, monitoring of the licensee, limitation on the licensee’s practice, or any other encumbrance on licensure affecting a regulated social worker’s authorization to practice, including issuance of a cease and desist action. (c) “Alternative program” means a nondisciplinary monitoring or practice remediation process approved by a licensing authority to address practitioners with an impairment. (d) “Charter member states” means member states who have enacted legislation to adopt this compact where such legislation predates the effective date of this compact as described in Section 14. (e) “Compact commission” or “commission” means the government agency whose membership consists of all states that have enacted this compact, which is known as the Social Work Licensure Compact Commission, as described in Section 10, and which shall operate as an instrumentality of the member states. (f) “Current significant investigative information” means either of the following: (1) Investigative information that a licensing authority, after a preliminary inquiry that includes notification and an opportunity for the regulated social worker to respond has reason to believe is not groundless and, if proved true, would indicate more than a minor infraction as may be defined by the commission. (2) Investigative information that indicates that the regulated social worker represents an immediate threat to public health and safety, as may be defined by the commission, regardless of whether the regulated social worker has been notified and has had an opportunity to respond. (g) “Data system” means a repository of information about licensees, including continuing education, examination, licensure, current significant investigative information, disqualifying event, multistate license, and adverse action information, or other information as required by the commission. (h) “Disqualifying event” means any adverse action or incident which results in an encumbrance that disqualifies or makes the licensee ineligible to either obtain, retain, or renew a multistate license. (i) “Domicile” means the jurisdiction in which the licensee resides and intends to remain indefinitely. (j) “Encumbrance” means a revocation or suspension of, or any limitation on, the full and unrestricted practice of social work licensed and regulated by a licensing authority. (k) “Executive committee” means a group of delegates elected or appointed to act on behalf of, and within the powers granted to them by, the compact and commission. (l) “Home state” means the member state that is the licensee’s primary domicile. (m) “Impairment” means a condition or conditions that may impair a practitioner’s ability to engage in full and unrestricted practice as a regulated social worker without some type of intervention and may include alcohol and drug dependence, mental health impairment, and neurological or physical impairments. (n) “Licensee” means an individual who currently holds a license from a state to practice as a regulated social worker. (o) “Licensing authority” means the board or agency of a member state, or equivalent, that is responsible for the licensing and regulation of regulated social workers. (p) “Member state” means a state, commonwealth, district, or territory of the United States of America that has enacted this compact. (q) “Multistate authorization to practice” means a legally authorized privilege to practice, which is equivalent to a license, associated with a multistate license permitting the practice of social work in a remote state. (r) “Multistate license” means a license to practice as a regulated social worker issued by a home state licensing authority that authorizes the regulated social worker to practice in all member states under multistate authorization to practice. (s) “Qualifying national exam” means a national licensing examination approved by the commission. (t) “Regulated social worker” means any clinical, master’s, or bachelor’s social worker licensed by a member state regardless of the title used by that member state. (u) “Remote state” means a member state other than the licensee’s home state. (v) “Rule” or “rule of the commission” means a regulation duly promulgated by the commission, as authorized by the compact, that has the force of law. (w) “Single state license” means a social work license issued by any state that authorizes practice only within the issuing state and does not include multistate authorization to practice in any member state. (x) “Social work” or “social work services” means the application of social work theory, knowledge, methods, ethics, and the professional use of self to restore or enhance social, psychosocial, or biopsychosocial functioning of individuals, couples, families, groups, organizations, and communities through the care and services provided by a regulated social worker as set forth in the member state’s statutes and regulations in the state where the services are being provided. (y) “State” means any state, commonwealth, district, or territory of the United States of America that regulates the practice of social work. (z) “Unencumbered license” means a license that authorizes a regulated social worker to engage in the full and unrestricted practice of social work. Section 3: State Participation in the Compact (a) To be eligible to participate in the compact, a potential member state must currently meet all of the following criteria: (1) License and regulate the practice of social work at either the clinical, master’s, or bachelor’s category. (2) Require applicants for licensure to graduate from a program that meets all of the following: (A) Operated by a college or university recognized by the licensing authority. (B) Accredited, or in candidacy by an institution that subsequently becomes accredited, by an accredited agency recognized by either of the following: (i) The Council for Higher Education Accreditation or its successor. (ii) The United States Department of Education. (C) Corresponds to the licensure sought as outlined in Section 4. (3) Require applicants for clinical licensure to complete a period of supervised practice. (4) Have a mechanism in place for receiving, investigating, and adjudicating complaints about licensees. (b) To maintain membership in the compact, a member state shall meet all of the following criteria: (1) Require that applicants for a multistate license pass a qualifying national exam for the corresponding category of multistate license sought as outlined in Section 4. (2) Participate fully in the commission’s data system, including using the commission’s unique identifier as defined in rules. (3) Notify the commission, in compliance with the terms of the compact and rules, of any adverse action or the availability of current significant investigative information regarding a licensee. (4) Implement procedures for considering the criminal history records of applicants for a multistate license. Such procedures shall include the submission of fingerprints or other biometric-based information by applicants for the purpose of obtaining an applicant’s criminal history record information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the agency responsible for retaining that state’s criminal records. (5) Comply with the rules of the commission. (6) Require an applicant to obtain or retain a license in the home state and meet the home state’s qualifications for licensure or renewal of licensure, as well as other applicable home state laws. (7) Authorize a licensee holding a multistate license in any member state to practice in accordance with the terms of the compact and rules of the commission. (8) Designate a delegate to participate in the commission meetings. (c) A member state meeting the requirements of subdivisions (a) and (b) of this section shall designate the categories of social work licensure that are eligible for issuance of a multistate license for applicants in such member state. To the extent that any member state does not meet the requirements for participation in the compact at any particular category of social work licensure, such member state may choose, but is not obligated, to issue a multistate license to applicants that otherwise meet the requirements of Section 4 for issuance of a multistate license in such category or categories of licensure. (d) The home state may charge a fee for granting the multistate license. Section 4: Social Worker Participation in the Compact (a) To be eligible for a multistate license under the terms and provisions of the compact, an applicant, regardless of category, shall meet all of the following criteria: (1) Hold or be eligible for an active, unencumbered license in the home state. (2) Pay any applicable fees, including [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]