EDU-45-15-00017-A Continuing Education Requirements for Licensed Mental Health Counselors

1/27/16 N.Y. St. Reg. EDU-45-15-00017-A

NEW YORK STATE REGISTER

VOLUME XXXVIII, ISSUE 4

January 27, 2016

RULE MAKING ACTIVITIES

EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

NOTICE OF ADOPTION

 

I.D No. EDU-45-15-00017-A

Filing No. 66

Filing Date. Jan. 12, 2016

Effective Date. Jan. 01, 2017

Continuing Education Requirements for Licensed Mental Health Counselors

PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE State Administrative Procedure Act, NOTICE is hereby given of the following action:

Action taken:

Addition of section 79-9.8 to Title 8 NYCRR.

Statutory authority:

Education Law, sections 207 (not subdivided), 212(3), 6504 (not subdivided), 6507(2)(a) and 8412; L. 2013, ch. 486; and L. 2014, ch. 15

Subject:

Continuing education requirements for Licensed Mental Health Counselors.

Purpose:

Implement mandatory continuing education requirements, establish standards for acceptable education and approval of providers.

Text or summary was published

in the November 10, 2015 issue of the Register, I.D. No. EDU-45-15-00017-P.

Final rule as compared with last published rule:

No changes.

Text of rule and any required statements and analyses may be obtained from:

Kirti Goswami, State Education Department, Office of Counsel, State Education Building, Room 148, 89 Washington Ave., Albany, NY 12234, [phone], email: [e-mail]

Initial Review of Rule

As a rule that requires a RFA, RAFA or JIS, this rule will be initially reviewed in the calendar year 2021, which is the 4th or 5th year after the year in which this rule is being adopted. This review period, justification for proposing same, and invitation for public comment thereon, were contained in a RFA, RAFA or JIS.

An assessment of public comment on the 4 or 5-year initial review period is not attached because no comments were received on the issue.

Assessment of Public Comment

Since publication of a Notice of Proposed Rule Making in the November 10, 2015 State Register, the State Education Department received the following comments:

1. COMMENT:

One commenter recommends that individuals, who are licensed in more than one profession established under Article 163 of the Education Law (e.g., mental health counseling and marriage and family therapy), be allowed to use a course they had taken to satisfy the continuing education (CE) requirements of one profession to satisfy the CE requirements of another profession(s). The commenter recommended a single consolidated provider application for qualified entities that seek to offer CE to more than one of the mental health practitioner (MHP) professions.

DEPARTMENT RESPONSE:

Education Law § 8412(3)(b) requires licensees to complete CE courses from a Department approved provider. The commenter's recommendation is consistent with the language and intent of the statute and the proposed rules. The Department will take under consideration the commenter's recommendation to allow a prospective CE provider to submit one application and fee for approval to offer courses to one or more of the MHP professions. However, such courses must be consistent with the profession-specific requirements for each of the MHP professions for which the provider is seeking to offer courses, and would not be acceptable for individuals licensed in another profession established in the Education Law outside of Article 163 (e.g., licensed clinical social work), unless the provider applies and meets the requirements to become an approved provider for that profession under applicable provisions of the Education Law and Regulations of the Commissioner of Education (e.g., for licensed clinical social work, Education Law § 7710[3][b] and 8 NYCRR § 74.10[c][3][ii]).

The Department appreciates the comment and notes that no changes are necessary to implement these regulatory provisions.