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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to educational requirements for licensing as an |
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audiologist. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 401.304, Occupations Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as |
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follows: |
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(a) To be eligible for licensing as a speech-language |
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pathologist or audiologist, an applicant must: |
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(1) if the application is for a license in: |
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(A) speech-language pathology, possess at least |
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a master's degree with a major in at least one of the areas of |
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communicative sciences or disorders [from a program accredited by a |
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national accrediting organization that is approved by the |
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commission or department and recognized by the United States |
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secretary of education under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 |
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U.S.C. Section 1001 et seq.) in an accredited or approved college or |
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university]; or |
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(B) audiology, possess at least: |
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(i) a master's degree in audiology |
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conferred on or before December 31, 2007; or |
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(ii) a doctoral degree in audiology or a |
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related hearing science [from a program accredited by a national |
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accrediting organization that is approved by the commission or |
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department and recognized by the United States secretary of |
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education under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section |
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1001 et seq.) in an accredited or approved college or university]; |
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(2) submit a transcript from a public or private |
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institution of higher learning showing successful completion of |
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course work in amounts set by the commission by rule in: |
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(A) normal development and use of speech, |
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language, and hearing; |
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(B) evaluation, habilitation, and rehabilitation |
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of speech, language, and hearing disorders; and |
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(C) related fields that augment the work of |
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clinical practitioners of speech-language pathology and audiology; |
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(3) have successfully completed at least 36 semester |
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hours in courses that are acceptable toward a graduate degree by the |
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college or university in which the courses are taken, at least 24 of |
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which must be in the professional area for which the license is |
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requested; |
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(4) have completed the minimum number of hours, |
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established by the commission by rule, of supervised clinical |
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experience with persons who present a variety of communication |
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disorders; and |
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(5) have completed the full-time supervised |
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professional experience, as defined by commission rule, in which |
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clinical work has been accomplished in the major professional area |
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for which the license is being sought. |
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(a-1) A degree required under Subsection (a)(1) must be |
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obtained from a program accredited by a national accrediting |
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organization that is approved by the commission or department and |
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recognized by the United States secretary of education under the |
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Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section 1001 et seq.) in an |
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accredited or approved college or university. |
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SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |