CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT
SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1939
Chapter 176, Laws of 2024
68th Legislature
2024 Regular Session
SOCIAL WORK LICENSURE COMPACT
EFFECTIVE DATE: June 6, 2024
Passed by the House January 29, 2024 CERTIFICATE
Yeas 96 Nays 0
I, Bernard Dean, Chief Clerk of the
House of Representatives of the
LAURIE JINKINS State of Washington, do hereby
Speaker of the House of certify that the attached is
Representatives SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1939 as
passed by the House of
Representatives and the Senate on
the dates hereon set forth.
Passed by the Senate February 28,
2024
Yeas 49 Nays 0 BERNARD DEAN
Chief Clerk
DENNY HECK
President of the Senate
Approved March 19, 2024 9:42 AM FILED
March 19, 2024
Secretary of State
JAY INSLEE State of Washington
Governor of the State of Washington
 SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1939
Passed Legislature - 2024 Regular Session
State of Washington 68th Legislature 2024 Regular Session
By House Postsecondary Education & Workforce (originally sponsored by
Representatives Orwall, Rule, Leavitt, Slatter, Bateman, Reed,
Jacobsen, Callan, Macri, Donaghy, Doglio, Goodman, Reeves, Riccelli,
Shavers, and Hackney)
READ FIRST TIME 01/16/24.
1 AN ACT Relating to adopting the social work licensure compact;
2 adding a new chapter to Title 18 RCW; creating a new section; and
3 providing a contingent effective date.
4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
5 NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) It is the intent of the legislature to
6 allow clinical social workers in compact member states the
7 opportunity to provide behavioral health services in the state of
8 Washington, while broadening and simplifying the opportunities for
9 Washington-licensed clinical social workers to practice in other
10 states belonging to the compact. It is further the intent of the
11 legislature to maintain standards already adopted in Washington by
12 making it explicitly clear that this legislation in no way conflicts
13 with either chapter 192, Laws of 2023 or chapter 193, Laws of 2023.
14 (2) The legislature acknowledges that the association of social
15 work boards licensing test has been shown to have severe disparities
16 in outcomes based on the race, age, and language of test takers.
17 Because of these disparities, the state of Washington aims to
18 collaborate with other states and interested parties to find
19 alternatives to this test.
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 1 NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The purpose of this compact is to
2 facilitate interstate practice of regulated social workers by
3 improving public access to competent social work services. The
4 compact preserves the regulatory authority of states to protect
5 public health and safety through the current system of state
6 licensure.
7 This compact is designed to achieve the following objectives:
8 (1) Increase public access to social work services;
9 (2) Reduce overly burdensome and duplicative requirements
10 associated with holding multiple licenses;
11 (3) Enhance the member states' ability to protect the public's
12 health and safety;
13 (4) Encourage the cooperation of member states in regulating
14 multistate practice;
15 (5) Promote mobility and address workforce shortages by
16 eliminating the necessity for licenses in multiple states by
17 providing for the mutual recognition of other member state licenses;
18 (6) Support military families;
19 (7) Facilitate the exchange of licensure and disciplinary
20 information among member states;
21 (8) Authorize all member states to hold a regulated social worker
22 accountable for abiding by a member state's laws, regulations, and
23 applicable professional standards in the member state in which the
24 client is located at the time care is rendered; and
25 (9) Allow for the use of telehealth to facilitate increased
26 access to regulated social work services.
27 NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. As used in this compact, and except as
28 otherwise provided, the following definitions shall apply:
29 (1) "Active military member" means any individual with full-time
30 duty status in the active armed forces of the United States including
31 members of the national guard and reserve.
32 (2) "Adverse action" means any administrative, civil, equitable,
33 or criminal action permitted by a state's laws which is imposed by a
34 licensing authority or other authority against a regulated social
35 worker, including actions against an individual's license or
36 multistate authorization to practice such as revocation, suspension,
37 probation, monitoring of the licensee, limitation on the licensee's
38 practice, or any other encumbrance on licensure affecting a regulated
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 1 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
5 address 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
8 effective date of this compact as described in section 15 of this
9 act.
10 (5) "Compact commission" or "commission" means the government
11 agency whose membership consists of all states that have enacted this
12 compact, which is known as the social work licensure compact
13 commission, as described in section 11 of this act, and which shall
14 operate as an instrumentality of the member states.
15 (6) "Current significant investigative information" means:
16 (a) Investigative information that a licensing authority, after a
17 preliminary inquiry that includes notification and an opportunity for
18 the regulated social worker to respond has reason to believe is not
19 groundless and, if proved true, would indicate more than a minor
20 infraction as may be defined by the commission; or
21 (b) Investigative information that indicates that the regulated
22 social worker represents an immediate threat to public health and
23 safety, as may be defined by the commission, regardless of whether
24 the regulated social worker has been notified and has had an
25 opportunity to respond.
26 (7) "Data system" means a repository of information about
27 licensees including continuing education, examination, licensure,
28 current significant investigative information, disqualifying event,
29 multistate license(s), and adverse action information or other
30 information as required by the commission.
31 (8) "Disqualifying event" means any adverse action or incident
32 which results in an encumbrance that disqualifies or makes the
33 licensee ineligible to either obtain, retain, or renew a multistate
34 license.
35 (9) "Domicile" means the jurisdiction in which the licensee
36 resides and intends to remain indefinitely.
37 (10) "Encumbrance" means a revocation or suspension of, or any
38 limitation on, the full and unrestricted practice of social work
39 licensed and regulated by a licensing authority.
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 1 (11) "Executive committee" means a group of delegates elected or
2 appointed to act on behalf of, and within the powers granted to them
3 by, the compact and commission.
4 (12) "Home state" means the member state that is the licensee's
5 primary domicile.
6 (13) "Impairment" means a condition(s) that may impair a
7 practitioner's ability to engage in full and unrestricted practice as
8 a regulated social worker without some type of intervention and may
9 include alcohol and drug dependence, mental health impairment, and
10 neurological or physical impairments.
11 (14) "Licensee(s)" means an individual who currently holds a
12 license from a state to practice as a regulated social worker.
13 (15) "Licensing authority" means the board or agency of a member
14 state, or equivalent, that is responsible for the licensing and
15 regulation of regulated social workers.
16 (16) "Member state" means a state, commonwealth, district, or
17 territory of the United States of America that has enacted this
18 compact.
19 (17) "Multistate authorization to practice" means a legally
20 authorized privilege to practice, which is equivalent to a license,
21 associated with a multistate license permitting the practice of
22 social work in a remote state.
23 (18) "Multistate license" means a license to practice as a
24 regulated social worker issued by a home state licensing authority
25 that authorizes the regulated social worker to practice in all member
26 states under multistate authorization to practice.
27 (19) "Qualifying national exam" means a national licensing
28 examination approved by the commission.
29 (20) "Regulated social worker" means any clinical, master's or
30 bachelor's social worker licensed by a member state regardless of the
31 title used by that member state.
32 (21) "Remote state" means a member state other than the
33 licensee's home state.
34 (22) "Rule(s)" or "rule(s) of the commission" means a regulation
35 or regulations duly promulgated by the commission, as authorized by
36 the compact, that has the force of law.
37 (23) "Single state license" means a social work license issued by
38 any state that authorizes practice only within the issuing state and
39 does not include multistate authorization to practice in any member
40 state.
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 1 (24) "Social work" or "social work services" means the
2 application of social work theory, knowledge, methods, ethics, and
3 the professional use of self to restore or enhance social,
4 psychosocial, or biopsychosocial functioning of individuals, couples,
5 families, groups, organizations, and communities through the care and
6 services provided by a regulated social worker as set forth in the
7 member state's statutes and regulations in the state where the
8 services are being provided.
9 (25) "State" means any state, commonwealth, district, or
10 territory of the United States of America that regulates the practice
11 of social work.
12 (26) "Unencumbered license" means a license that authorizes a
13 regulated social worker to engage in the full and unrestricted
14 practice of social work.
15 NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. (1) To be eligible to participate in the
16 compact, a potential member state must currently meet all of the
17 following criteria:
18 (a) License and regulate the practice of social work at either
19 the clinical, master's, or bachelor's category;
20 (b) Require applicants for licensure to graduate from a program
21 that:
22 (i) Is operated by a college or university recognized by the
23 licensing authority;
24 (ii) Is accredited, or in candidacy by an institution that
25 subsequently becomes accredited, by an accrediting agency recognized
26 by either:
27 (A) The council for higher education accreditation, or its
28 successor; or
29 (B) The United States department of education; and
30 (iii) Corresponds to the licensure sought as outlined in section
31 5 of this act;
32 (c) Require applicants for clinical licensure to complete a
33 period of supervised practice; and
34 (d) Have a mechanism in place for receiving, investigating, and
35 adjudicating complaints about licensees.
36 (2) To maintain membership in the compact, a member state shall:
37 (a) Require that applicants for a multistate license pass a
38 qualifying national exam for the corresponding category of multistate
39 license sought as outlined in section 5 of this act;
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 1 (b) Participate fully in the commission's data system, including
2 using the commission's unique identifier as defined in rules;
3 (c) Notify the commission, in compliance with the terms of the
4 compact and rules, of any adverse action or the availability of
5 current significant investigative information regarding a licensee;
6 (d) Implement procedures for considering the criminal history
7 records of applicants for a multistate license. Such procedures shall
8 include the submission of fingerprints or other biometric-based
9 information by applicants for the purpose of obtaining an applicant's
10 criminal history record information from the federal bureau of
11 investigation and the agency responsible for retaining that state's
12 criminal records;
13 (e) Comply with the rules of the commission;
14 (f) Require an applicant to obtain or retain a license in the
15 home state and meet the home state's qualifications for licensure or
16 renewal of licensure, as well as all other applicable home state
17 laws;
18 (g) Authorize a licensee holding a multistate license in any
19 member state to practice in accordance with the terms of the compact
20 and rules of the commission; and
21 (h) Designate a delegate to participate in the commission
22 meetings.
23 (3) A member state meeting the requirements of subsections (1)
24 and (2) of this section shall designate the categories of social work
25 licensure that are eligible for issuance of a multistate license for
26 applicants in such member state. To the extent that any member state
27 does not meet the requirements for participation in the compact at
28 any particular category of social work licensure, such member state
29 may choose, but is not obligated to, issue a multistate license to
30 applicants that otherwise meet the requirements of section 5 of this
31 act for issuance of a multistate license in such category or
32 categories of licensure.
33 (4) The home state may charge a fee for granting the multistate
34 license.
35 NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. (1) To be eligible for a multistate
36 license under the terms and provisions of the compact, an applicant,
37 regardless of category must:
38 (a) Hold or be eligible for an active, unencumbered license in
39 the home state;
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 1 (b) Pay any applicable fees, including any state fee, for the
2 multistate license;
3 (c) Submit, in connection with an application for a multistate
4 license, fingerprints or other biometric data for the purpose of
5 obtaining criminal history record information from the federal bureau
6 of investigation and the agency responsible for retaining that
7 state's criminal records;
8 (d) Notify the home state of any adverse action, encumbrance, or
9 restriction on any professional license taken by any member state or
10 nonmember state within 30 days from the date the action is taken;
11 (e) Meet any continuing competence requirements established by
12 the home state; and
13 (f) Abide by the laws, regulations, and applicable standards in
14 the member state where the client is located at the time care is
15 rendered.
16 (2) An applicant for a clinical-category multistate license must
17 meet all of the following requirements:
18 (a) Fulfill a competency requirement, which shall be satisfied by
19 either:
20 (i) Passage of a clinical-category qualifying national exam; or
21 (ii) Licensure of the applicant in their home state at the
22 clinical category, beginning prior to such time as a qualifying
23 national exam was required by the home state and accompanied by a
24 period of continuous social work licensure thereafter, all of which
25 may be further governed by the rules of the commission; or
26 (iii) The substantial equivalency of the foregoing competency
27 requirements which the commission may determine by rule.
28 (b) Attain at least a master's degree in social work from a
29 program that is:
30 (i) Operated by a college or university recognized by the
31 licensing authority; and
32 (ii) Accredited, or in candidacy that subsequently becomes
33 accredited, by an accrediting agency recognized by either:
34 (A) The council for higher education accreditation or its
35 successor; or
36 (B) The United States department of education;
37 (c) Fulfill a practice requirement, which shall be satisfied by
38 demonstrating completion of either:
39 (i) A period of postgraduate supervised clinical practice equal
40 to a minimum of 3,000 hours; or
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 1 (ii) A minimum of two years of full-time postgraduate supervised
2 clinical practice; or
3 (iii) The substantial equivalency of the for