Bill Text: MS HB1419 | 2026 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Domestic violence education; require for persons licensed to provide mental health services.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Failed) 2026-02-03 - Died In Committee [HB1419 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2026-HB1419-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2026 Regular Session
To: Public Health and Human Services
By: Representative Nelson
House Bill 1419
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 73-30-9, 73-30-29, 73-31-9, 73-31-13, 73-53-11, 73-53-13, 73-54-17 AND 73-54-27, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE LICENSED PROFESSIONAL COUNSELORS, PSYCHOLOGISTS, SOCIAL WORKERS AND MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPISTS TO COMPLETE THREE CREDIT HOURS OF GRADUATE-LEVEL COURSES RELATED TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE BEFORE RECEIVING A LICENSE AND TO COMPLETE TWO HOURS OF CONTINUING EDUCATION RELATING TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AS A CONDITION OF LICENSE RENEWAL; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 73-30-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-30-9. (1) The board shall issue a license as a provisional licensed professional counselor, without regard to race, religion, sex or national origin, to each applicant who furnishes satisfactory evidence of the following:
(a) The applicant has completed an application on a form prescribed by the board accompanied by a nonrefundable application fee of Fifty Dollars ($50.00).
(b) The applicant is at least twenty-one (21) years of age.
(c) The applicant is of good moral character.
(d) The applicant is a citizen of the United States, or has an immigration document to verify legal alien work status in the United States. The immigration document must be current and issued by the United States Immigration Bureau.
(e) The applicant is not in violation of any of the provisions of this article and the rules and regulations adopted hereunder.
(f) (i) The applicant shall have a minimum acceptable graduate semester hour or acceptable quarter-hour master's degree as determined by the board primarily in counseling or a related counseling field from a regionally or nationally accredited college or university program in counselor education or a related counseling program subject to board approval. All applicants shall provide official transcripts of all graduate work.
(ii) The applicant shall have completed three (3) credit hours of graduate-level courses related to domestic violence.
(g) The applicant must pass the examination approved by the board, as set forth in Section 73-30-7(5).
(h) A provisional license issued under this section shall require that the individual confine one's practice to a board-approved site and accrue counseling experience under the supervision of a board-qualified supervisor.
(i) The limited license shall be renewable for not more than four (4) years, with a nonrefundable license fee in the amount provided in Section 73-30-29. Licensees may appeal to the board for an extension of the renewal period.
(j) Each applicant for licensure shall apply to undergo a fingerprint-based criminal history records check of the Mississippi central criminal database and the Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history database. Each applicant shall submit a full set of the applicant's fingerprints in a form and manner prescribed by the board, which shall be forwarded to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Identification Division for this purpose.
(2) The board shall issue a license or the privilege to practice as a licensed professional counselor, without regard to race, religion, sex or national origin, to each applicant who furnishes satisfactory evidence of the following:
(a) The applicant has completed an application on a form prescribed by the board accompanied by a nonrefundable full application fee of Fifty Dollars ($50.00).
(b) The applicant is at least twenty-one (21) years of age.
(c) The applicant is of good moral character.
(d) The applicant is a citizen of the United States, or has an immigration document to verify legal alien work status in the United States. The immigration document must be current and issued by the United States Immigration Bureau.
(e) The applicant is not in violation of any of the provisions of this article and the rules and regulations adopted hereunder.
(f) The applicant shall have a minimum acceptable graduate semester hour or acceptable quarter-hour master's degree as determined by the board primarily in counseling or a related counseling field from a regionally or nationally accredited college or university program in counselor education or a related counseling program subject to board approval. All applicants shall provide official transcripts of all graduate work.
(g) The applicant for licensure must pass the examination approved by the board, as set forth in Section 73-30-7(5).
(h) The applicant has had post graduate supervised experience in professional counseling acceptable to the board. Applicant shall submit verification of supervised experience.
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.
(i) The board shall require each first-time applicant for licensure or the initial privilege to practice and may require applicants for license renewal to undergo a fingerprint-based criminal history records check of the Mississippi central criminal database and the Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history database. Each applicant for licensure and each renewal applicant as required by the board shall apply to undergo a fingerprint-based criminal history records check of the Mississippi central criminal database and the Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history database. Each applicant shall submit a full set of the applicant's fingerprints in a form and manner prescribed by the board, which shall be forwarded to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Identification Division for this purpose.
(3) The board shall administer the privilege to practice in accordance with the Professional Counseling Compact.
SECTION 2. Section 73-30-29, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-30-29. (1) Except as provided in Section 33-1-39, the renewal of license fee or privilege to practice fee for licensed professional counselors under this article shall be Two Hundred Twenty Dollars ($220.00) per biennial licensing renewal period, and the renewal of license fee for provisional licensed professional counselors under this article shall be Fifty Dollars ($50.00) per annual licensing renewal period.
(2) Provisional licensed professional counselor licenses will be renewed annually on or before June 30. The evidence of the following must be received in the office of the board on or before June 30 of the year of renewal by every license holder who intends to continue to practice: Each active provisional licensed professional counselor licensee must accrue six (6) continuing education hours during the preceding license period, two (2) of which must involve topics in professional ethics or legal issues in the delivery of counseling services.
(3) Licensed professional counselor licenses will be renewed biennially on or before June 30 of the applicable year. The evidence of the following must be received in the office of the board on or before June 30 of the year of renewal by every license holder who intends to continue to practice: Each active licensed professional counselor licensee must accrue twenty-four (24) continuing education hours during the preceding license period, six (6) of which must involve topics in professional ethics or legal issues in the delivery of counseling services and two (2) of which must involve topics relating to domestic violence.
SECTION 3. Section 73-31-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-31-9. (1) All fees from applicants seeking licensing under this article and all license renewal fees received under this article shall be nonrefundable. The board may charge a late fee for nonrenewal by June 30 of each year.
(2) The board shall charge an application fee to be determined by the board, but not to exceed Seven Hundred Dollars ($700.00), to applicants for licensing, and shall charge the applicant for the expenses incurred by the board for examination of the applicant. The board may increase the application fee as necessary, but may not increase the fee by more than Fifty Dollars ($50.00) above the amount of the previous year's fee.
(3) Except as provided in Section 33-1-39, every licensed psychologist in this state shall annually pay to the board a fee determined by the board, but not to exceed Seven Hundred Dollars ($700.00); and the credentialing coordinator shall thereupon issue a renewal of the license for a term of one (1) year. The board may increase the license renewal fee as necessary, but may not increase the fee by more than Fifty Dollars ($50.00) above the amount of the previous year's fee. The license of any psychologist who fails to renew during the month of June in each and every year shall lapse; the failure to renew the license, however, shall not deprive the psychologist of the right of renewal thereafter. The lapsed license may be renewed within a period of two (2) years after the lapse upon payment of all fees in arrears. A psychologist wishing to renew a license that has been lapsed for more than two (2) years shall be required to reapply for licensure.
(4) Every odd-numbered year, no psychologist license shall be renewed unless the psychologist shows evidence of a minimum of twenty (20) clock hours of continuing education activities approved by the board and a minimum of two (2) hours of continuing education credits relating to domestic violence.
(5) All fees and any other monies received by the board shall be deposited in a special fund that is created in the State Treasury and shall be used for the implementation and administration of this article when appropriated by the Legislature for that purpose. The monies in the special fund shall be subject to all provisions of the state budget laws that are applicable to special fund agencies, and disbursements from the special fund shall be made by the State Treasurer only upon warrants issued by the State Fiscal Officer upon requisitions signed by the chairman or executive secretary of the board. Any interest earned on this special fund shall be credited by the State Treasurer to the fund and shall not be paid into the State General Fund. Any unexpended monies remaining in the special fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General Fund. The State Auditor shall audit the financial affairs of the board and the transactions involving the special fund at least once a year in the same manner as for other special fund agencies.
SECTION 4. Section 73-31-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-31-13. The board shall issue a license as a psychologist to each applicant who files an application upon a form and in the manner as the board prescribes, accompanied by the fee as is required by this article; and who furnishes evidence satisfactory to the board that he or she:
(a) Is at least twenty-one (21) years of age; and
(b) Is of good moral character. The applicant must have successfully been cleared for licensure through an investigation that consists of a determination as to good moral character and verification that the prospective licensee is not guilty of or in violation of any statutory ground for denial of licensure. For the purposes of this article, good moral character includes an absence of felony convictions or misdemeanor convictions involving moral turpitude as established by a criminal background check. Applicants shall undergo a fingerprint-based criminal history records check of the Mississippi central criminal database and the Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history database. Each applicant shall submit a full set of the applicant's fingerprints in a form and manner prescribed by the board, which shall be forwarded to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety (department) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Identification Division for this purpose; and
(c) Is not in violation of any of the provisions of this article and the rules and regulations adopted under this article, and is not currently under investigation by another licensure board; and
(d) Holds a doctoral degree in psychology from an institution of higher education that is: regionally accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the United States Department of Education, or authorized by Provincial statute or Royal Charter to grant doctoral degrees. From a program accredited by the American Psychological Association, or the Canadian Psychological Association, and from a program that requires at least one (1) year of continuous, full-time residence at the educational institution granting the doctoral degree. For graduates from newly established programs seeking accreditation or in areas where no accreditation exists, applicants for licensure shall have completed a doctoral program in psychology that meets recognized acceptable professional standards as determined by the board. For applicants graduating from doctoral level psychology training programs outside of the United States of America or Canada, applicants for licensure shall have completed a doctoral program in psychology that meets recognized acceptable professional standards as determined by the board; and
(e) Has completed three (3) credit hours of graduate-level courses related to domestic violence;
( * * *f) Has completed a supervised
internship from a program accredited by the American Psychological Association
or the Canadian Psychological Association that meet the standards of training
as defined by the board. The internship shall be comprised of at least one
thousand eight hundred (1,800) hours of actual work, to include direct service,
training and supervisory time; and
( * * *g) Demonstrates professional knowledge
by passing written (as used in this paragraph, the term "written"
means either paper and pencil or computer-administered or computerized testing)
and oral examinations in psychology prescribed by the board; except that upon
examination of credentials, the board may, by unanimous consent, consider these
credentials adequate evidence of professional knowledge.
Upon investigation of the application and other evidence submitted, the board shall, not less than thirty (30) days before the examination, notify each applicant that the application and evidence submitted is satisfactory and accepted or unsatisfactory and rejected; if rejected, the notice shall state the reasons for the rejection.
The place of examination shall be designated in advance by the board, and the examination shall be given at such time and place and under such supervision as the board may determine. The examination used by the board shall consist of written tests and oral tests, and shall fairly test the applicant's knowledge and application thereof in those areas deemed relevant by the
board. All examinations serve the purpose of verifying that a candidate for licensure has acquired a basic core of knowledge in the discipline of psychology and can apply that knowledge to the problems confronted in the practice of psychology within the applicant's area of practice.
The board shall evaluate the results from both the written and oral examinations. The passing scores for the written and oral examinations shall be established by the board in its rules and regulations. If an applicant fails to receive a passing score on the entire examination, he or she may reapply and shall be allowed to take a later examination. An applicant who has failed two (2) successive examinations by the board may not reapply until after two (2) years from the date of the last examination failed. The board shall keep the written examination scores, and an accurate transcript of the questions and answers relating to the oral examinations, and the grade assigned to each answer thereof, as part of its records for at least two (2) years after the date of examination.
Persons licensed in another state or jurisdiction applying for the authority to practice interjurisdictional telepsychology must meet the requirements set out in the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact provided for in Section 73-31-51.
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 5. Section 73-53-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-53-11. (1) In addition to the duties set forth elsewhere in this article and in Sections 73-54-1 through 73-54-39, the board is authorized to:
(a) Review the quality and availability of social work services provided in this state and make recommendations for change to the Legislature;
(b) Recommend to the appropriate law enforcement official the bringing of civil actions to seek injunctions and other relief against individuals engaged in the unlicensed practice of social work or marriage and family therapy for violations of this article or Sections 73-54-1 through 73-54-39;
(c) Adopt, amend or repeal any rules or regulations necessary to carry out the purposes of this article and Sections 73-54-1 through 73-54-39 and the duties and responsibilities of the board;
(d) Examine and determine the qualifications and fitness of applicants for licenses to practice social work and marriage and family therapy in this state and prepare or approve and conduct all examinations of applicants for licensure;
(e) Issue, renew, deny, suspend or revoke licenses to practice social work and marriage and family therapy in this state or otherwise discipline individuals licensed by the board;
(f) Investigate alleged or suspected violations of the provisions of this article and Sections 73-54-1 through 73-54-39 or other laws of this state pertaining to social work and marriage and family therapy and any rules and regulations adopted by the board;
(g) Establish reasonable fees for application for examination, certificates of licensure and renewal, and other services provided by the board, not to exceed the amounts specified in Section 73-53-15;
(h) Issue subpoenas for the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of papers, records or other documentary evidence. Any member of the board may administer oaths or affirmations to witnesses appearing before the board. If in any proceeding before the board any witness fails or refuses to attend upon subpoena issued by the board, refuses to testify, or refuses to produce any books and papers the production of which is called for by the subpoena, the attendance of that witness and the giving of his testimony and the production of the books and papers shall be enforced by any court of competent jurisdiction of this state in the manner provided for the enforcement of attendance and testimony of witnesses in civil cases in the courts of this state;
(i) Maintain an office and employ or retain appropriate personnel to carry out the powers and duties of the board;
(j) Adopt a code of
ethics for licensed social workers that includes the current National
Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics, and a code of ethics for licensed
marriage and family therapists that includes the American Association for
Marriage and Family Therapy Code of Ethics * * *;
(k) Regulate the practice of social work and marriage and family therapy by interpreting and enforcing this article and Sections 73-54-1 through 73-54-39;
(l) Provide for the examination and supervision requirements for social workers and marriage and family therapists;
(m) Establish mechanisms for assessing the continuing professional competence of social workers and marriage and family therapists;
(n) Set criteria for continuing education, which must include two (2) hours of continuing education credits relating to domestic violence as a condition of license renewal;
(o) Establish and collect fees for sustaining the necessary operation and expenses of the board;
(p) Publish, at least annually, final disciplinary actions against licensees;
(q) Report final disciplinary action taken against a licensee to other state or federal regulatory agencies and to a national disciplinary database recognized by the board or as required by law;
(r) Share documents, materials, or other information, including confidential and privileged documents, materials, or information, received or maintained by the board with other state or federal agencies and with a national disciplinary database recognized by the board or as required by law, provided that the recipient agrees to maintain the confidentiality and privileged status of the document, material, or other information;
(s) Participate in or conduct performance audits;
(t) Through its employees and/or representatives, enter and make inspections of any workplace or practice of a social worker or marriage and family therapist who is subject to investigation by the board in order to inspect and/or copy any record pertaining to clients or the practice of social work or marriage and family therapy under this article and/or Sections 73-54-1 through 73-54-39; and
(u) Conduct a criminal history records check on licensees whose licensure is subject to investigation by the board and on applicants for licensure. In order to determine the applicant's or licensee's suitability for licensing, the applicant or licensee shall undergo a fingerprint-based criminal history records check of the Mississippi central criminal database and the Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history database. Each applicant or licensee, as applicable, shall submit a full set of the applicant's fingerprints in a form and manner prescribed by the board, which shall be forwarded to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety (department) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Identification Division for this purpose. The department shall disseminate the results of the state check and the national check to the board for a suitability determination. The board shall be authorized to charge and collect from the applicant or licensee, in addition to all other applicable fees and costs, any amount as may be incurred by the board in requesting and obtaining state and national criminal history records information on the applicant or licensee.
Any and all state or national criminal history records information obtained by the board that is not already a matter of public record shall be deemed nonpublic and confidential information restricted to the exclusive use of the board, its members, officers, investigators, agents and attorneys in evaluating the applicant's or licensee's eligibility or disqualification for licensure, and shall be exempt from the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983. Except when introduced into evidence in a hearing before the board to determine licensure, no such information or records related thereto shall, without the written consent of the applicant or licensee or by order of a court of competent jurisdiction, be released or otherwise disclosed by the board to any other person or agency.
(2) The board shall have such other powers as may be required to carry out the provisions of this article.
(3) The powers and duties enumerated in this section are granted for the purpose of enabling the board to safeguard the public health, safety and welfare against unqualified or incompetent practitioners of social work or marriage and family therapy, and are to be liberally construed to accomplish this objective.
SECTION 6. 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 article.
(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 article.
(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 completed three (3) credit hours of graduate-level courses related to domestic violence and 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 article.
(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) Good moral character, which is a continuing requirement for licensure, and
(iii) United States of America citizenship or status as a legal resident alien, and
(iv) Absence of conviction of a felony related to the practice of social work 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 7. Section 73-54-17, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-54-17. (1) Any person who applies for a marriage and family therapy license after September 1, 2000, shall be issued that license by the board if he or she meets the qualifications set forth in Section 73-54-13, and submits the required application fees, and provides satisfactory evidence to the board that he or she:
(a) Meets educational and experience qualifications as follows:
(i) Holds a master's degree or doctoral degree in marriage and family therapy from an institution of higher education in a program that is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE), or that was in COAMFTE candidacy status at the time of graduation and subsequently received COAMFTE accreditation, or holds a master's degree or doctoral degree in marriage, couple and family counseling from an institution of higher education that is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), and has completed three (3) credit hours of graduate-level courses related to domestic violence;
(ii) Following the receipt of the first qualifying degree, has at least two (2) years of supervised experience in marriage and family therapy, or its equivalent, acceptable to the board;
(iii) Has completed at least one hundred (100) hours of marriage and family therapy supervision following receipt of the first qualifying degree, as defined by the board;
(iv) Has completed one hundred (100) hours of clinical supervision before receipt of the qualifying degree; and
(v) Has completed a clinical practicum that meets the accreditation requirements of COAMFTE or CACREP programs;
(b) Passes the national Examination in Marital and Family Therapy prescribed by the Association for Marital and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards; and
(c) Has been successfully cleared through a criminal history records check, including a fingerprint and an acceptable sex offender check, by appropriate governmental authorities as prescribed by the board.
(2) Any person who applies for a marriage and family therapy associate license after September 1, 2011, shall be issued that license by the board for a period of twenty-four (24) months, which may be renewed biennially for a period not to exceed a total of forty-eight (48) months, if the applicant meets the qualifications set forth in Section 73-54-13, submits the required application fees, and provides satisfactory evidence to the board that he or she:
(a) Holds a master's degree or doctoral degree in marriage and family therapy from an institution of higher education in a program that is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE), or that was in COAMFTE candidacy status at the time of graduation and subsequently received COAMFTE accreditation; or holds a master's degree or doctoral degree in marriage, couple and family counseling from an institution of higher education that is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP);
(b) Completed a clinical practicum that meets the accreditation requirements of COAMFTE or CACREP programs and one hundred (100) hours of clinical supervision before receipt of the qualifying degree;
(c) Passes the national Examination in Marital and Family Therapy prescribed by the Association for Marital and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards;
(d) Provides all professional services under the supervision of a qualified supervisor in accordance with a supervision contract approved by the board; and
(e) Has been successfully cleared through a criminal history records check, including a fingerprint and an acceptable sex offender check, by appropriate governmental authorities as prescribed by the board.
SECTION 8. Section 73-54-27, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-54-27. (1) Except as provided in Section 33-1-39, licenses issued under this chapter shall be valid for two (2) years and must be renewed biennially, with the renewal fee being determined by the board but not to exceed Three Hundred Fifty Dollars ($350.00).
(2) The license of any marriage and family therapist or marriage and family therapy associate who fails to renew biennially by the license expiration date shall lapse; the failure to renew the license shall not deprive the marriage and family therapist or marriage and family therapy associate of the right of renewal thereafter. Such lapsed license may be renewed within a period of two (2) years after such lapse upon payment of all fees in arrears.
(3) A marriage and family therapist wishing to renew a license that has been lapsed for more than two (2) years shall be required to reapply for licensure.
(4) The board shall require each licensed marriage and family therapist and marriage and family therapy associate to participate in approved continuing education activities in order to renew a license issued under this chapter. Such continuing education must include two (2) hours of continuing education credits relating to domestic violence as a condition of license renewal.
(5) Any licensed marriage and family therapist who notifies the board, in writing on forms prescribed by the board, may place his or her license on inactive status and shall be excused from the payment of renewal fees until the person notifies the board in writing of the intention to resume active practice. Any licensed marriage and family therapist requesting his or her license to be changed from inactive to active status shall be required to pay the current fee and shall also demonstrate compliance with continuing education requirements as defined by the board. Licensed marriage and family therapy associates are not eligible for inactive status.
SECTION 9. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2026.
