Enrolled Bill Summary

            Senate Bill 617 amends the Nursing Practice Act to authorize the Board of Nurse Examiners to develop pilot programs to evaluate the effectiveness of a variety of mechanisms, including the use of proactive nursing peer review and targeted continuing nursing education, for assuring maintenance of clinical competency by registered nurses and for assuring that registered nurses understand the laws and regulations governing the practice of professional nursing. The act authorizes the board to make expenditures to develop or fund pilot programs and to contract with or make grants to certain entities to implement the pilot programs. Senate Bill 617 establishes the Competency Advisory Committee and the Laws and Regulations Advisory Committee and requires the board to consult with the committees in the development, administration, approval, and funding of pilot programs.

            In addition, Senate Bill 617 changes the composition of the Board of Nurse Examiners to include a nurse faculty member in a graduate school of nursing preparing advance practice nurses, rather than a nurse faculty member in a school of nursing pursuing the diploma program. The board is authorized to collect information that would allow it to determine whether a student preparing for licensure as a nurse is aware of any conditions that would disqualify the student from licensure. The act also establishes certain conditions under which a person is not entitled to a hearing on a refusal to renew a license.

            Senate Bill 617 takes effect September 1, 1997, except the provision that changes the composition of the Board of Nurse Examiners, which takes effect January 31, 1999.