Bill Text: FL S0782 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Clinical Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists, and Mental Health Counselors
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2020-03-14 - Died in Health Policy [S0782 Detail]
Download: Florida-2020-S0782-Introduced.html
Florida Senate - 2020 SB 782 By Senator Baxley 12-01057-20 2020782__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to clinical social workers, marriage 3 and family therapists, and mental health counselors; 4 amending s. 491.003, F.S.; defining the terms 5 “certified master social worker,” “practice of 6 generalist social work,” and “professional use of 7 self”; amending s. 491.004, F.S.; deleting an obsolete 8 provision; amending s. 491.0145, F.S.; requiring, 9 rather than authorizing, the Department of Health to 10 certify an applicant for designation as a certified 11 master social worker if the applicant meets certain 12 criteria; deleting a provision relating to an 13 application requirement; revising requirements for 14 licensure; authorizing the department to adopt rules; 15 amending s. 491.0149, F.S.; requiring licensees, 16 certificateholders, provisional licensees, and 17 registrants to include their applicable professional 18 titles on social media and other specified materials; 19 amending s. 414.065, F.S.; conforming a provision to 20 changes made by the act; providing an effective date. 21 22 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 23 24 Section 1. Present subsections (2) through (7) of section 25 491.003, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (3) 26 through (8), respectively, present subsections (8) and (9) are 27 redesignated as subsections (10) and (11), respectively, present 28 subsections (10) through (17) are redesignated as subsections 29 (13) through (20), respectively, and new subsections (2), (9), 30 and (12) are added to that section, to read: 31 491.003 Definitions.—As used in this chapter: 32 (2) “Certified master social worker” means a person 33 certified by the department under this chapter to practice 34 generalist social work. 35 (9) The term “practice of generalist social work” means the 36 application of social work theory, knowledge, and methods and 37 ethics to and the professional use of self to restore or enhance 38 social, psychosocial, or biopsychosocial functioning of 39 individuals, couples, families, groups, organizations, or 40 communities. The term includes the application of specialized 41 knowledge and advanced practice skills to nondiagnostic 42 assessment, treatment planning, implementation and evaluation, 43 case management, information and referral, supervision, and 44 consultation; education, research, advocacy, and community 45 organization; and the development, implementation, and 46 administration of policies, programs, and activities. 47 (12) The term “professional use of self” means combining 48 one’s knowledge, values, and skills gained in social work 49 education with aspects of one’s personal self, including 50 personality traits, belief systems, life experiences, and 51 cultural heritage, and applying them to one’s practice of social 52 work for the benefit of a client. 53 Section 2. Subsection (3) of s. 491.004, Florida Statutes, 54 is amended, to read: 55 491.004 Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family 56 Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling.— 57(3)No later than January 1, 1988, the Governor shall58appoint nine members of the board as follows:59(a)Three members for terms of 2 years each.60(b)Three members for terms of 3 years each.61(c)Three members for terms of 4 years each.62 Section 3. Section 491.0145, Florida Statutes, is amended 63 to read: 64 491.0145 Certified master social worker.—The department 65 shallmaycertify an applicant for a designation as a certified 66 master social worker who, upon applying to the department and 67 remitting the appropriate fee, demonstrates to the department 68 that he or she has met all of the following conditions: 69 (1) The applicant has submittedThe applicant completesan 70 application and has paidto be provided by the department and71paysa nonrefundable fee not to exceed $250 to be established by 72 rule of the department.The completed application must be73received by the department at least 60 days before the date of74the examination in order for the applicant to qualify to take75the scheduled exam.76 (2) The applicant has submittedsubmitsproof satisfactory 77 to the department that the applicant has received a doctoral 78 degree in social work, or a master’s degree in social work with 79 a major emphasis or specialty inclinical practice or80administration, including, but not limited to, agency81 administration and supervision, program planning and evaluation, 82 staff development, research, community organization, community 83 services, social planning, orandhuman service advocacy. 84 Doctoral degrees must have been received from a graduate school 85 of social work which at the time the applicant was enrolled and 86 graduated was accredited by an accrediting agency approved by 87 the United States Department of Education. Master’s degrees must 88 have been received from a graduate school of social work which 89 at the time the applicant was enrolled and graduated was 90 accredited by the Council on Social Work Education or the 91 Canadian Association of Schools forofSocial Work Education or 92 by one that meets comparable standards. 93 (3) The applicant has had at least 23years’ experience, 94 as defined by rule, including, but not limited to, clinical 95 services or administrative activities as defined in subsection 96 (2),2 years ofwhich must be at the post-master’s level under 97 the supervision of a person who meets the education and 98 experience requirements for certification as a certified master 99 social worker, as defined by rule, or licensure as a clinical 100 social worker under this chapter. A doctoral internship may be 101 applied toward the supervision requirement. 102 (4) Any person who holds a master’s degree in social work 103 from an institutioninstitutionsoutside the United States may 104 apply to the department for certification if the academic 105 training in social work has been evaluated as equivalent to a 106 degree from a school accredited by the Council on Social Work 107 Education. Any such person shall submit a copy of the academic 108 training from the Foreign Equivalency Determination Service of 109 the Council on Social Work Education. 110 (5) The applicant has passed an examination required by the 111 department for this purpose.The nonrefundable fee for such112examination may not exceed $250 as set by department rule.113 (6)Nothing inThis chapter does notshall be construed to114 authorize a certified master social worker to provide clinical 115 social work services. 116 (7) The department may adopt rules to implement this 117 section. 118 Section 4. Section 491.0149, Florida Statutes, is amended 119 to read: 120 491.0149 Display of license; use of professional title on 121 promotional materials.— 122 (1)(a) A person licensed under this chapter as a clinical 123 social worker, marriage and family therapist, or mental health 124 counselor,or certified as a master social worker shall 125 conspicuously display the valid license or certificate issued by 126 the department or a true copy thereof at each location at which 127 the licensee practices his or her profession. 128 (b)1. A licensed clinical social worker shall include the 129 words “licensed clinical social worker” or the letters “LCSW” on 130 all promotional materials, including cards, brochures, 131 stationery, advertisements, social media, and signs, naming the 132 licensee. 133 2. A licensed marriage and family therapist shall include 134 the words “licensed marriage and family therapist” or the 135 letters “LMFT” on all promotional materials, including cards, 136 brochures, stationery, advertisements, social media, and signs, 137 naming the licensee. 138 3. A licensed mental health counselor shall include the 139 words “licensed mental health counselor” or the letters “LMHC” 140 on all promotional materials, including cards, brochures, 141 stationery, advertisements, social media, and signs, naming the 142 licensee. 143 (c) A generalist social worker shall include the words 144 “certified master social worker” or the letters “CMSW” on all 145 promotional materials, including cards, brochures, stationery, 146 advertisements, social media, and signs, naming the licensee. 147 (2)(a) A person registered under this chapter as a clinical 148 social worker intern, marriage and family therapist intern, or 149 mental health counselor intern shall conspicuously display the 150 valid registration issued by the department or a true copy 151 thereof at each location at which the registered intern is 152 completing the experience requirements. 153 (b) A registered clinical social worker intern shall 154 include the words “registered clinical social worker intern,” a 155 registered marriage and family therapist intern shall include 156 the words “registered marriage and family therapist intern,” and 157 a registered mental health counselor intern shall include the 158 words “registered mental health counselor intern” on all 159 promotional materials, including cards, brochures, stationery, 160 advertisements, social media, and signs, naming the registered 161 intern. 162 (3)(a) A person provisionally licensed under this chapter 163 as a provisional clinical social worker licensee, provisional 164 marriage and family therapist licensee, or provisional mental 165 health counselor licensee shall conspicuously display the valid 166 provisional license issued by the department or a true copy 167 thereof at each location at which the provisional licensee is 168 providing services. 169 (b) A provisional clinical social worker licensee shall 170 include the words “provisional clinical social worker licensee,” 171 a provisional marriage and family therapist licensee shall 172 include the words “provisional marriage and family therapist 173 licensee,” and a provisional mental health counselor licensee 174 shall include the words “provisional mental health counselor 175 licensee” on all promotional materials, including cards, 176 brochures, stationery, advertisements, social media, and signs, 177 naming the provisional licensee. 178 Section 5. Paragraph (c) of subsection (4) of section 179 414.065, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 180 414.065 Noncompliance with work requirements.— 181 (4) EXCEPTIONS TO NONCOMPLIANCE PENALTIES.—Unless otherwise 182 provided, the situations listed in this subsection shall 183 constitute exceptions to the penalties for noncompliance with 184 participation requirements, except that these situations do not 185 constitute exceptions to the applicable time limit for receipt 186 of temporary cash assistance: 187 (c) Noncompliance related to treatment or remediation of 188 past effects of domestic violence.—An individual who is 189 determined to be unable to comply with the work requirements 190 under this section due to mental or physical impairment related 191 to past incidents of domestic violence may be exempt from work 192 requirements, except that such individual shall comply with a 193 plan that specifies alternative requirements that prepare the 194 individual for self-sufficiency while providing for the safety 195 of the individual and the individual’s dependents. A participant 196 who is determined to be out of compliance with the alternative 197 requirement plan shall be subject to the penalties under 198 subsection (1). The plan must include counseling or a course of 199 treatment necessary for the individual to resume participation. 200 The need for treatment and the expected duration of such 201 treatment must be verified by a physician licensed under chapter 202 458 or chapter 459; a psychologist licensed under s. 490.005(1), 203 s. 490.006, or the provision identified as s. 490.013(2) in s. 204 1, chapter 81-235, Laws of Florida; a therapist as defined in s. 205 491.003(3) or (7)s. 491.003(2) or (6); or a treatment 206 professional who is registered under s. 39.905(1)(g), is 207 authorized to maintain confidentiality under s. 90.5036(1)(d), 208 and has a minimum of 2 years'yearsexperience at a certified 209 domestic violence center. An exception granted under this 210 paragraph does not automatically constitute an exception from 211 the time limitations on benefits specified under s. 414.105. 212 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.