By Barrientos                                    S.B. No. 915

      75R8114 BEM-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the requirements for licensing as a professional

 1-3     counselor.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 10, Licensed Professional Counselor Act

 1-6     (Article 4512g, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is amended to read

 1-7     as follows:

 1-8           Sec. 10.  APPLICANT QUALIFICATIONS.  (a)  A person is a

 1-9     qualified applicant if the person:

1-10                 (1)  is at least 18 years old;

1-11                 (2)  has submitted an application as required by the

1-12     board, accompanied by the application fee set by the board;  the

1-13     board may require that the statements on the application be made

1-14     under oath;

1-15                 (3)  has a master's or doctorate degree in counseling

1-16     or a related field;

1-17                 (4)  has successfully completed a graduate degree at a

1-18     regionally accredited institution of higher education and a planned

1-19     graduate program of 48 graduate semester hours or the substantial

1-20     equivalent, including 300 clock hours of supervised practicum that

1-21     is primarily counseling in nature and that meets the specific

1-22     academic course content and training standards established by the

1-23     board.  The board shall review and consider the standards as

1-24     developed by the appropriate professional association;

 2-1                 (5)  has completed 36 [24] months or 3,000 [2,000]

 2-2     hours of supervised experience working in a counseling setting that

 2-3     meets the requirements established by the board after the

 2-4     completion of the 48 graduate semester hour or equivalent graduate

 2-5     program;

 2-6                 (6)  has successfully completed the examination

 2-7     required under this Act; and

 2-8                 (7)  has met the requirements prescribed by the board.

 2-9           (b)  A person may complete not more than six of the 48

2-10     graduate semester hours required under Subsection (a)(4) of this

2-11     section during or after the time the person completes the 3,000

2-12     [2,000] hours of supervised work experience required under

2-13     Subsection (a)(5) of this section if, at the time the person began

2-14     the work experience, the person possessed a graduate degree and a

2-15     lesser number of hours was required by the law of this state or the

2-16     law in effect where the work experience was performed.

2-17           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997, and

2-18     applies only to a person who begins a program to obtain a graduate

2-19     degree in counseling or a related field or a substantially

2-20     equivalent planned graduate program of at least 48 graduate

2-21     semester hours on or after that date.  A person who begins a

2-22     program to obtain a graduate degree in counseling or a related

2-23     field or a substantially equivalent planned graduate program of at

2-24     least 48 graduate semester hours before September 1, 1997, is

2-25     governed by the law in effect immediately before the effective date

2-26     of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.

2-27           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

 3-1     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 3-2     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 3-3     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 3-4     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.