Bill Text: MS HB1196 | 2022 | Regular Session | Engrossed
Bill Title: Barbers, nurses and social workers; revise certain qualifications for the purpose of licensing of.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Failed) 2022-03-01 - Died In Committee [HB1196 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2022-HB1196-Engrossed.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2022 Regular Session
To: Judiciary B
By: Representatives Bain, Mickens
House Bill 1196
(As Passed the House)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 73-5-1, 73-5-8, 73-5-11, 73-5-21 AND 73-5-25, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CLARIFY THE QUALIFICATIONS OF BARBERS TO ENSURE THAT NO LICENSE SHALL BE DENIED SOLELY FOR LACK OF GOOD MORAL CHARACTER OR CONVICTION OF A NONVIOLENT FELONY OR CRIME OF MORAL TURPITUDE; TO AMEND SECTIONS 73-53-8, 73-53-13 AND 73-53-17, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CLARIFY THE QUALIFICATIONS OF SOCIAL WORKERS TO ENSURE THAT NO LICENSE SHALL BE DENIED SOLELY FOR LACK OF GOOD MORAL CHARACTER OR CONVICTION OF A NONVIOLENT FELONY OR CRIME OF MORAL TURPITUDE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 73-5-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-5-1. The State Board of
Barber Examiners is continued and reconstituted as follows: The Board of
Barber Examiners shall consist of five (5) members, to be appointed by the
Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate, one (1) member to be
appointed from each of the congressional districts as existing on January 1,
1991. Each member shall be a practical barber and a qualified elector of this
state. He shall have been engaged in the practice of barbering in the State of
Mississippi for at least five (5) years immediately before the time of his
appointment * * *. From and after July 1, 1983,
the appointments to the board shall be made in the manner hereinafter provided,
and the present members of the State Board of Barber Examiners whose terms have
not expired by July 1, 1983, shall continue to serve until their successors
have been appointed and qualified. The Governor shall appoint, with the advice
and consent of the Senate, five (5) members from the congressional districts as
follows: The member from the First Congressional District shall be appointed
for a term of two (2) years to commence on July 1, 1983; the member from the
Second Congressional District shall be appointed for a term of four (4) years
to commence on July 1, 1984; the member from the Third Congressional District
shall be appointed for a term of two (2) years to commence on July 1, 1983; the
member from the Fourth Congressional District shall be appointed for a term of
four (4) years to commence on July 1, 1984; and the member from the Fifth
Congressional District shall be appointed for a term of one (1) year to
commence on July 1, 1983. The members of the board as constituted on July 1,
2002, whose terms have not expired shall serve the balance of their terms,
after which time the membership of the board shall be appointed as follows:
There shall be appointed one (1) member of the board from each of the four (4)
Mississippi congressional districts as they currently exist, and one (1) from
the state at large, and the Governor shall make appointments from the
congressional district having the smallest number of board members until the
membership includes one (1) member from each district as required. From and
after July 1, 2002, no member of the board who is connected in any way with any
barbering school shall participate in the administration of examinations of
barber applicants. From and after July 1, 2004, no member of the board shall
be connected in any way with any school in which barbering is taught.
All members of the board shall be appointed by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate, for terms of four (4) years each from the expiration date of the previous term, until their successors have been appointed and qualified. No member of the board shall hold any elected office. Appointments made to fill a vacancy of a term shall be made by the Governor within sixty (60) days after the vacancy occurs.
The Governor may remove any one or more members of the board for just cause. Members appointed to fill vacancies caused by death, resignation or removal of any member or members shall serve only for the unexpired term of their predecessors. Any member who does not attend two (2) consecutive meetings of the board for reasons other than illness of the member shall be subject to removal by the Governor. The president of the board shall notify the Governor in writing when any such member has failed to attend two (2) consecutive regular meetings.
SECTION 2. Section 73-5-8, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-5-8. Any person is qualified to receive a certificate of registration as a barber instructor who:
(a) Is eighteen (18) years of age or older;
(b) Is of * * * temperate habits;
(c) Is able to read, write and speak English;
(d) Possesses a high school education or its equivalent;
(e) Has successfully completed not less than fifteen hundred (1500) hours at a barbering school approved by the State Board of Barber Examiners and holds a valid certificate of registration to practice barbering;
(f) Has (i) not less than two (2) years of active experience as a registered barber and has successfully completed not less than six hundred (600) hours of barber instructor training at a school approved by the board, or (ii) less than two (2) years of active experience as a registered barber and has successfully completed not less than one thousand (1,000) hours of barber instructor training at a school approved by the board; and
(g) Has passed a satisfactory examination conducted by the board to determine his fitness to practice as a barber instructor.
All persons who have received a certificate of registration as a barber instructor from the board before July 1, 2002, shall be considered to have met the requirements of this section, and all those certificates of registration shall be renewable as otherwise provided in this chapter.
The board will implement an active and inactive instructor license. In order to renew an active license, instructors holding an active license shall be required to submit proof of twelve (12) hours of continuing education each year to the Board of Barber Examiners. That education shall be acquired in classes or trade shows teaching materials that are approved by the board. Instructors holding an inactive license shall be required to submit proof of twelve (12) hours continuing education before upgrading to an active status.
SECTION 3. Section 73-5-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-5-11. (1) To be eligible for enrollment at a barbering school approved by the Board of Barber Examiners, a person shall have a high school education or its equivalent, and/or shall have satisfactorily passed the ability-to-benefit examinations approved by the U.S. Department of Education.
(2) Any person is qualified to receive a certificate of registration to practice barbering:
(a) Who is qualified under the provisions of this chapter;
(b) Who is of * * * temperate habits;
(c) Who has completed not less than fifteen hundred (1500) hours at a barbering school approved by the State Board of Barber Examiners; and
(d) Who has passed a satisfactory examination conducted by the board of examiners to determine his fitness to practice barbering.
(3) A temporary permit to practice barbering until the next examination is given may be issued to a student who has completed not less than fifteen hundred (1500) hours at a barbering school approved by the Board of Barber Examiners. In no event shall a person be allowed to practice barbering on a temporary permit beyond the date the next examination is given, except because of personal illness.
SECTION 4. Section 73-5-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-5-21. Any person possessed of the following qualifications shall, upon payment of the required fee, receive a certificate of registration as a registered barber:
(a) Is at least eighteen (18) years old;
(b) Is of * * * temperate habits; and
(c) Either has a license or certificate of registration as a practicing barber in another state or country that has substantially the same requirements for licensing or registration of barbers as are contained in this chapter, or can prove by sworn affidavits that he has lawfully practiced as a barber in another state or country for at least five (5) years immediately before making application in this state, or can show to the satisfaction of the board that he had held a rating in a branch of the military service for two (2) or more years that required him to perform the duties of a barber. The issuance of a certificate of registration by reciprocity to a military-trained applicant, military spouse or person who establishes residence in this state shall be subject to the provisions of Section 73-50-1 or 73-50-2, as applicable.
In addition to the above, the board may require the applicant to successfully demonstrate sufficient knowledge of the Barber Law of the State of Mississippi, as well as sufficient practical skill by requiring the applicant to take a practical examination approved by the board.
SECTION 5. Section 73-5-25, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-5-25. (1) The Board of Barber Examiners may refuse to issue, or may suspend definitely or indefinitely, or revoke any certificate of registration or license for any one (1) or a combination of the following causes:
(a) Conviction of a * * * disqualifying crime as provided in
the Fresh Start Act of 2019 or a crime of violence as defined in Section
97-3-2 shown by a certified copy of the judgment of court in which such
conviction is had, unless upon a full and unconditional pardon of such convict,
and upon satisfactory showing that such convict will in the future conduct
himself in a law-abiding way.
(b) Gross malpractice or gross incompetency.
(c) Continued practice by a person knowingly having an infectious or contagious disease.
(d) Advertising, practicing or attempting to practice under a trade name or name other than one's own.
(e) Habitual drunkenness or habitual addiction to the use of morphine, cocaine or habit-forming drug, or any other illegal controlled substances.
(f) Immoral or unprofessional conduct.
(g) Violation of regulations that may be prescribed as provided for in Sections 73-5-7 through 73-5-43.
(2) In addition to the causes specified in subsection (1) of this section, the board shall be authorized to suspend the certificate of registration of any person for being out of compliance with an order for support, as defined in Section 93-11-153. The procedure for suspension of a certificate for being out of compliance with an order for support, and the procedure for the reissuance or reinstatement of a certificate suspended for that purpose, and the payment of any fees for the reissuance or reinstatement of a certificate suspended for that purpose, shall be governed by Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163. If there is any conflict between any provision of Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163 and any provision of this chapter, the provisions of Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be, shall control.
SECTION 6. Section 73-53-8, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-53-8. (1) There is created the Board of Examiners for Social Workers and Marriage and Family Therapists to license and regulate social workers and marriage and family therapists. The board shall be composed of ten (10) members, six (6) of which shall be social workers and four (4) of which shall be marriage and family therapists.
(2) Of the social worker members of the board, two (2) must be licensed social workers, and four (4) must be licensed master social workers or licensed certified social workers or a combination thereof. The marriage and family therapist members of the board must be licensed marriage and family therapists. For at least two (2) years immediately preceding his or her appointment, each marriage and family therapist appointee must have been actively engaged as a marriage and family therapist in rendering professional services in marriage and family therapy, or in the education and training of master's, doctoral or post-doctoral students of marriage and family therapy, or in marriage and family therapy research, and during the two (2) years preceding his or her appointment, must have spent the majority of the time devoted to that activity in this state. The initial marriage and family therapist appointees shall be deemed to be and shall become licensed practicing marriage and family therapists immediately upon their appointment and qualification as members of the board. All subsequent marriage and family therapist appointees to the board must be licensed marriage and family therapists before their appointment.
(3) The Governor shall appoint six (6) members of the board, four (4) of which shall be social workers and two (2) of which shall be marriage and family therapists, and the Lieutenant Governor shall appoint four (4) members of the board, two (2) of which shall be social workers and two (2) of which shall be marriage and family therapists. Social worker members of the board shall be appointed from nominations submitted by the Mississippi Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, and marriage and family therapist members of the board shall be appointed from nominations submitted by the Mississippi Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. All appointments shall be made with the advice and consent of the Senate.
(4) The initial appointments to the board shall be made as follows: The Governor shall appoint one (1) social worker member for a term that expires on June 30, 1999, one (1) social worker member for a term that expires on June 30, 2001, two (2) social worker members for terms that expire on June 30, 2002, one (1) marriage and family therapist member for a term that expires on June 30, 1998, and one (1) marriage and family therapist member for a term that expires on June 30, 2000. The Lieutenant Governor shall appoint one (1) social worker member for a term that expires on June 30, 1998, one (1) social worker member for a term that expires on June 30, 2000, one (1) marriage and family therapist member for a term that expires on June 30, 1999, and one (1) marriage and family therapist member of the board for a term that expires on June 30, 2001. After the expiration of the initial terms, all subsequent appointments shall be made by the original appointing authorities for terms of four (4) years from the expiration date of the previous term. Upon the expiration of his or her term of office, a board member shall continue to serve until his or her successor has been appointed and has qualified. No person may be appointed more than once to fill an unexpired term or more than two (2) consecutive full terms.
(5) Any vacancy on the board before the expiration of a term shall be filled by appointment of the original appointing authority for the remainder of the unexpired term. Appointments to fill vacancies shall be made from nominations submitted by the appropriate organization as specified in subsection (2) of this section for the position being filled.
(6) The appointing authorities shall give due regard to geographic distribution, race and sex in making all appointments to the board.
(7) The board shall select
one (1) of its members to serve as chairman during the term of his or her
appointment to the board. No person may serve as chairman for more than four
(4) years. The board may remove any member of the board or the chairman from
his or her position as chairman for (a) malfeasance in office, or (b)
conviction of * * * disqualifying crime as provided in
the Fresh Start Act of 2019 or a crime of violence as defined in Section
97-3-2 while in office, or (c) failure to attend three (3) consecutive board
meetings. However, no member may be removed until after a public hearing of
the charges against him or her, and at least thirty (30) days' prior written
notice to the accused member of the charges against him or her and of the date
fixed for such hearing. No board member shall participate in any matter before
the board in which he has a pecuniary interest, personal bias or other similar
conflict of interest.
(8) Board members shall receive no compensation for their services, but shall be reimbursed for their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of official board business as provided in Section 25-3-41.
(9) Four (4) social worker members and three (3) marriage and family therapist members of the board shall constitute a quorum of the board. In making its decisions and taking actions affecting the members of one (1) of the professions regulated by the board, the board shall consider the recommendations of the board members who are members of that profession. If the board is unable to have a quorum present at a regularly scheduled meeting location, the board may allow other members to participate in the meeting by telephone or other electronic means. In the case of an administrative hearing, when recusals from the process are necessary, a quorum may consist of a simple majority of six (6) members.
(10) The principal office of the board shall be in the City of Jackson, but the board may act and exercise all of its powers at any other place. The board shall adopt an official seal, which shall be judicially noticed and which shall be affixed to all licenses issued by the board.
(11) The board is authorized to employ, subject to the approval of the State Personnel Board, an executive director and such attorneys, experts and other employees as it may, from time to time, find necessary for the proper performance of its duties and for which the necessary funds are available, and to set the salary of the executive director, subject to the approval of the State Personnel Board.
(12) The board, by a majority vote, from time to time, may make such provisions as it deems appropriate to authorize the performance by any board member or members, employee or other agent of the board of any function given the board in this chapter or Sections 73-54-1 through 73-54-39.
SECTION 7. Section 73-53-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-53-13. The board shall issue the appropriate license to applicants who meet the qualifications of this section.
(a) A license as a "licensed social worker" shall be issued to an applicant who demonstrates to the satisfaction of the board that he or she meets the following qualifications:
(i) Has a baccalaureate degree in social work from a college or university accredited by the Council on Social Work Education or Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and has satisfactorily completed the Association for Social Work Boards (ASWB) examination for this license; or
(ii) Has a comparable license or registration from another state or territory of the United States of America that imposes qualifications substantially similar to those of this chapter.
(b) A license as a "licensed master's social worker" shall be issued to an applicant who demonstrates to the satisfaction of the board that he or she meets the following qualifications:
(i) Has a doctorate or master's degree from a school of social work accredited by the Council on Social Work Education; and
(ii) Has satisfactorily completed the ASWB examination for this license; or
(iii) Has a comparable license or registration from another state or territory of the United States of America that imposes qualifications substantially similar to those of this chapter.
(c) A license as a "licensed certified social worker" shall be issued to an applicant who demonstrates to the satisfaction of the board that he or she meets the following qualifications:
(i) Is licensed under this section as a "master's social worker"; and
(ii) Has twenty-four (24) months of professional supervision and clinical or macro social work practice experience acceptable to the board, under appropriate supervision; and
(iii) Has satisfactorily completed the ASWB examination for this license; or
(iv) Has a comparable license or registration from another state or territory of the United States of America that imposes qualifications substantially similar to those of this chapter.
(d) In addition to the above qualifications, an applicant for any of the above licenses must prove to the board's satisfaction:
(i) Age of at least twenty-one (21) years, and
* * *
( * * *ii) United States of America
citizenship or status as a legal resident alien, and
( * * *iii) Absence of conviction of a * * * disqualifying
crime as provided in the Fresh Start Act of 2019 or a crime of violence as
defined in Section 97-3-2 for the last ten (10) years. Conviction, as used
in this subparagraph, includes a deferred conviction, deferred prosecution,
deferred sentence, finding or verdict of guilt, an admission of guilty, or a
plea of nolo contendere, and
(v) That the applicant has not been declared mentally incompetent by any court, and if any such decree has ever been rendered, that the decree has since been changed, and
(vi) Freedom from dependency on alcohol or drugs, and
(vii) Complete criminal history records check, including a fingerprint and an acceptable sex offender check, by appropriate governmental authorities as prescribed by the board.
(e) Only individuals licensed as "certified social workers" shall be permitted to call themselves "clinical social workers."
The issuance of a license by reciprocity to a military-trained applicant, military spouse or person who establishes residence in this state shall be subject to the provisions of Section 73-50-1 or 73-50-2, as applicable.
Each application or filing made under this section shall include the social security number(s) of the applicant in accordance with Section 93-11-64.
SECTION 8. Section 73-53-17, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-53-17. (1) Individuals licensed by the board shall conduct their activities, services and practice in accordance with the laws governing their professional practice and any rules promulgated by the board. Licensees and applicants may be subject to the exercise of the sanctions enumerated in Section 73-53-23 if the board finds that a licensee or applicant has committed any of the following:
(a) Negligence in the practice or performance of professional services or activities;
(b) Engaging in dishonorable, unethical or unprofessional conduct of a character likely to deceive, defraud or harm the public in the course of professional services or activities;
(c) Perpetrating or cooperating in fraud or material deception in obtaining or renewing a license or attempting the same;
(d) Violating the rules and regulations established by the board;
(e) Violating the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics or the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Code of Ethics;
(f) Being convicted of any crime which has a substantial relationship to the licensee's activities and services or an essential element of which is misstatement, fraud or dishonesty;
(g) Being convicted of * * * disqualifying crime as
provided in the Fresh Start Act of 2019 or a crime of violence as defined
in Section 97-3-2;
(h) Engaging in or permitting the performance of unacceptable services personally due to the licensee's deliberate or grossly negligent act or acts or failure to act, regardless of whether actual damage or damages to the public is established, or assuming responsibility for another's work by signing documents without personal knowledge of the work as established by board rule;
(i) Continued practice although the licensee has become unfit to practice social work due to: (i) failure to keep abreast of current professional theory or practice; or (ii) physical or mental disability; the entry of an order or judgment by a court of competent jurisdiction that a licensee is in need of mental treatment or is incompetent shall constitute mental disability; or (iii) addiction or severe dependency upon alcohol or other drugs which may endanger the public by impairing the licensee's ability to practice;
(j) Continued practice although the individual failed to renew and has a lapsed license;
(k) Having disciplinary action taken against the licensee's license in another state;
(l) Making differential, detrimental treatment against any person because of race, color, creed, sex, religion or national origin;
(m) Engaging in lewd conduct in connection with professional services or activities;
(n) Engaging in false or misleading advertising;
(o) Contracting, assisting or permitting unlicensed persons to perform services for which a license is required under this chapter;
(p) Violation of any probation requirements placed on a licensee by the board;
(q) Revealing confidential information except as may be required by law;
(r) Failing to inform clients of the fact that the client no longer needs the services or professional assistance of the licensee;
(s) Charging excessive or unreasonable fees or engaging in unreasonable collection practices.
(2) The board may order a licensee to submit to a reasonable physical or mental examination if the licensee's physical or mental capacity to practice safely is at issue in a disciplinary proceeding.
(3) Failure to comply with a board order to submit to a physical or mental examination shall render a licensee subject to the summary suspension procedures described in Section 73-53-23.
(4) In addition to the reasons specified in subsection (1) of this section, the board shall be authorized to suspend the license of any licensee for being out of compliance with an order for support, as defined in Section 93-11-153. The procedure for suspension of a license for being out of compliance with an order for support, and the procedure for the reissuance or reinstatement of a license suspended for that purpose, and the payment of any fees for the reissuance or reinstatement of a license suspended for that purpose, shall be governed by Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be. If there is any conflict between any provision of Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163 and any provision of this chapter, the provisions of Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be, shall control.
SECTION 9. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.
