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1 S.193
2 Introduced by Senators Gulick, Chittenden, Cummings, Hardy, Harrison,
3 Hashim, Lyons, Vyhovsky, Weeks, White and Wrenner
4 Referred to Committee on
5 Date:
6 Subject: Human services; professions and occupations; social work; Social
7 Work Licensure Compact
8 Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes that the State
9 adopt and enter into the Social Work Licensure Compact.
10 An act relating to Vermont’s adoption of the Social Work Licensure
11 Compact
12 It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont:
13 Sec. 1. 26 V.S.A. chapter 61 is amended to read:
14 CHAPTER 61. SOCIAL WORKERS
15 Subchapter 1. General Provisions
16 ***
17 Subchapter 2. Social Work Licensure Compact
18 § 3214. SOCIAL WORK LICENSURE COMPACT; ADOPTION
19 This subchapter is the Vermont adoption of the Social Work Licensure
20 Compact. The form, format, and text of the Compact have been conformed to
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1 the conventions of the Vermont Statutes Annotated. It is the intent of the
2 General Assembly that this subchapter be interpreted as substantively the same
3 as the Social Work Licensure Compact that is enacted by other Compact party
4 states.
5 § 3215. PURPOSE
6 (a) The purpose of this Compact is to facilitate interstate practice of
7 regulated social workers by improving public access to competent social work
8 services. The Compact preserves the regulatory authority of states to protect
9 public health and safety through the current system of state licensure.
10 (b) This Compact is designed to achieve the following objectives:
11 (1) increase public access to social work services;
12 (2) reduce overly burdensome and duplicative requirements associated
13 with holding multiple licenses;
14 (3) enhance the member states’ ability to protect the public’s health and
15 safety;
16 (4) encourage the cooperation of member states in regulating multistate
17 practice;
18 (5) promote mobility and address workforce shortages by eliminating
19 the necessity for licenses in multiple states by providing for the mutual
20 recognition of other member state licenses;
21 (6) support military families;
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1 (7) facilitate the exchange of licensure and disciplinary information
2 among member states;
3 (8) authorize all member states to hold a regulated social worker
4 accountable for abiding by a member state’s laws, regulations, and applicable
5 professional standards in the member state in which the client is located at the
6 time care is rendered; and
7 (9) allow for the use of telehealth to facilitate increased access to
8 regulated social work services.
9 § 3216. DEFINITIONS
10 As used in this Compact, and except as otherwise provided, the following
11 definitions shall apply:
12 (1) “Active military member” means any individual with full-time-duty
13 status in the U.S. Armed Forces, including members of the National Guard and
14 Reserve.
15 (2) “Adverse action” means any administrative, civil, equitable, or
16 criminal action permitted by a state’s laws that is imposed by a licensing
17 authority or other authority against a regulated social worker, including actions
18 against an individual’s license or multistate authorization to practice, such as
19 revocation, suspension, probation, monitoring of the licensee, limitation on the
20 licensee’s practice, or any other encumbrance on licensure affecting a VT LEG #372068 v.1
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1 regulated social worker’s authorization to practice, including issuance of a
2 cease and desist action.
3 (3) “Alternative program” means a nondisciplinary monitoring or
4 practice remediation process approved by a licensing authority to address
5 practitioners with an impairment.
6 (4) “Charter member states” means member states who have enacted
7 legislation to adopt this Compact where such legislation predates the effective
8 date of this Compact as described in section 3228 of this title.
9 (5) “Compact Commission” or “Commission” means the government
10 agency whose membership consists of all states that have enacted this
11 Compact, which is known as the Social Work Licensure Compact
12 Commission, as described in section 3224 of this title, and which shall operate
13 as an instrumentality of the member states.
14 (6) “Current significant investigative information” means:
15 (A) investigative information that a licensing authority, after a
16 preliminary inquiry that includes notification and an opportunity for the
17 regulated social worker to respond, has reason to believe is not groundless and,
18 if proved true, would indicate more than a minor infraction as may be defined
19 by the Commission; or
20 (B) investigative information that indicates that the regulated social
21 worker represents an immediate threat to public health and safety, as may be
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1 defined by the Commission, regardless of whether the regulated social worker
2 has been notified and has had an opportunity to respond.
3 (7) “Data system” means a repository of information about licensees,
4 including continuing education, examination, licensure, current significant
5 investigative information, disqualifying event, multistate license or licenses,
6 and adverse action information or other information as required by the
7 Commission.
8 (8) “Disqualifying event” means any adverse action or incident that
9 results in an encumbrance that disqualifies or makes the licensee ineligible to
10 either obtain, retain, or renew a multistate license.
11 (9) “Domicile” means the jurisdiction in which the licensee resides and
12 intends to remain indefinitely.
13 (10) “Encumbrance” means a revocation or suspension of, or any
14 limitation on, the full and unrestricted practice of social work licensed and
15 regulated by a licensing authority.
16 (11) “Executive committee” means a group of delegates elected or
17 appointed to act on behalf of, and within the powers granted to them by, the
18 Compact and Commission.
19 (12) “Home state” means the member state that is the licensee’s primary
20 domicile.
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1 (13) “Impairment” means a condition or conditions that may impair a
2 practitioner’s ability to engage in full and unrestricted practice as a regulated
3 social worker without some type of intervention and may include alcohol and
4 drug dependence, mental health impairment, and neurological or physical
5 impairments.
6 (14) “Licensee” means an individual who currently holds a license from
7 a state to practice as a regulated social worker.
8 (15) “Licensing authority” means the board or agency of a member
9 state, or equivalent, that is responsible for the licensing and regulation of
10 regulated social workers.
11 (16) “Member state” means a state, commonwealth, district, or territory
12 of the United States of America that has enacted this Compact.
13 (17) “Multistate authorization to practice” means a legally authorized
14 privilege to practice, which is equivalent to a license, associated with a
15 multistate license permitting the practice of social work in a remote state.
16 (18) “Multistate license” means a license to practice as a regulated
17 social worker issued by a home state licensing authority that authorizes the
18 regulated social worker to practice in all member states under multistate
19 authorization to practice.
20 (19) “Qualifying national exam” means a national licensing examination
21 approved by the Commission.
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1 (20) “Regulated social worker” means any clinical, master’s, or
2 bachelor’s social worker licensed by a member state regardless of the title used
3 by that member state.
4 (21) “Remote state” means a member state other than the licensee’s
5 home state.
6 (22) “Rule” or “rule of the Commission” means a regulation duly
7 promulgated by the Commission, as authorized by the Compact, that has the
8 force of law.
9 (23) “Single state license” means a social work license issued by any
10 state that authorizes practice only within the issuing state and does not include
11 multistate authorization to practice in any member state.
12 (24) “Social work” or “social work services” means the application of
13 social work theory, knowledge, methods, ethics, and the professional use of
14 self to restore or enhance social, psychosocial, or biopsychosocial functioning
15 of individuals, couples, families, groups, organizations, and communities
16 through the care and services provided by a regulated social worker as set forth
17 in the member state’s statutes and regulations in the state where the services
18 are being provided.
19 (25) “State” means any state, commonwealth, district, or territory of the
20 United States of America that regulates the practice of social work.
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1 (26) “Unencumbered license” means a license that authorizes a
2 regulated social worker to engage in the full and unrestricted practice of social
3 work.
4 § 3217. STATE PARTICIPATION IN THE COMPACT
5 (a) To be eligible to participate in the Compact, a potential member state
6 must currently meet all of the following criteria:
7 (1) license and regulate the practice of social work at either the clinical,
8 master’s, or bachelor’s category;
9 (2) require applicants for licensure to graduate from a program that is:
10 (A) operated by a college or university recognized by the licensing
11 authority;
12 (B) accredited, or in candidacy by an institution that subsequently
13 becomes accredited, by an accrediting agency recognized by either:
14 (i) the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, or its
15 successor; or
16 (ii) the U.S. Department of Education; and
17 (C) corresponds to the licensure sought as outlined in section 3218 of
18 this title;
19 (3) require applicants for clinical licensure to complete a period of
20 supervised practice;
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1 (4) have a mechanism in place for receiving, investigating, and
2 adjudicating complaints about licensees.
3 (b) To maintain membership in the Compact, a member state shall:
4 (1) Require that applicants for a multistate license pass a qualifying
5 national exam for the corresponding category of multistate license sought as
6 outlined in section 3218 of this title.
7 (2) Participate fully in the Commission’s data system, including using
8 the Commission’s unique identifier as defined in rules.
9 (3) Notify the Commission, in compliance with the terms of the
10 Compact and rules, of any adverse action or the availability of current
11 significant investigative information regarding a licensee.
12 (4) Implement procedures for considering the criminal history records of
13 applicants for a multistate license. Such procedures shall include the
14 submission of fingerprints or other biometric-based information by applicants
15 for the purpose of obtaining an applicant’s criminal history record information
16 from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the agency responsible for
17 retaining that state’s criminal records.
18 (5) Comply with the rules of the Commission.
19 (6) Require an applicant to obtain or retain a license in the home state
20 and meet the home state’s qualifications for licensure or renewal of licensure,
21 as well as all other applicable home state laws.
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1 (7) Authorize a licensee holding a multistate license in any member state
2 to practice in accordance with the terms of the Compact and rules of the
3 Commission.
4 (8) Designate a delegate to participate in the Commission meetings.
5 (c) A member state meeting the requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of
6 this section shall designate the categories of social work licensure that are
7 eligible for issuance of a multistate license for applicants in such member state.
8 To the extent that any member state does not meet the requirements for
9 participation in the Compact at any particular category of social work
10 licensure, such member state may choose, but is not obligated to, issue a
11 multistate license to applicants that otherwise meet the requirements of section
12 3218 of this title for issuance of a multistate license in such category or
13 categories of licensure.
14 (d) The home state may charge a fee for granting the multistate license.
15 § 3218. SOCIAL WORKER PARTICIPATION IN THE COMPACT
16 (a) To be eligible for a multistate license under the terms and provisions of
17 the Compact, an applicant, regardless of category must:
18 (1) hold or be eligible for an active, unencumbered license in the home
19 state;
20 (2) pay any applicable fees, including any state fee, for the multistate
21 license;
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1 (3) submit, in connection with an application for a multistate license,
2 fingerprints or other biometric data for the purpose of obtaining criminal
3 history record information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the
4 agency responsible for retaining that state’s criminal records;
5 (4) notify the home state of any adverse action, encumbrance, or
6 restriction on any professional license taken by any member state or
7 nonmember state within 30 days from the date the action is taken;
8 (5) meet any continuing competence requirements established by the
9 home state;
10 (6) abide by the laws, regulations, and applicable standards in the
11 member state where the client is located at the time care is rendered.
12 (b) An applicant for a clinical-category multistate license must meet all of
13 the following requirements:
14 (1) fulfill a competency requirement, which shall be satisfied by either:
15 (A) passage of a clinical-category qualifying national exam;
16 (B) licensure of the applicant in the applicant’s home state at the
17 clinical category, beginning prior to such time as a qualifying national exam
18 was required by the home state and accompanied by a period of continuous
19 social work licensure thereafter, all of which may be further governed by the
20 rules of the Commission; or VT LEG #372068 v.1
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1 (C) the substantial equivalency of the foregoing competency
2 requirements that the Commission may determine by rule.
3 (2) attain at least a master’s degree in social work from a program that
4 is:
5 (A) operated by a college or university recognized by the licensing
6 authority; and
7 (B) accredited, or in candidacy that subsequently becomes accredited,
8 by an accrediting agency recognized by either:
9 (i) the Council for H