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Sponsor Statement for HB 343
Extend Board Of Professional Counselors

An Act extending the termination date of the Board of Professional Counselors.

The Board of Professional Counselors consists of five members appointed by the governor: one public member and four licensed professional counselors. Its duties include licensing professional counselors, establishing criteria for supervisor certification, certifying approved counselor supervisors, and establishing continuing education and training requirements.

Regulation and licensing of professional counselors safeguards the public by promoting competence and integrity of those licensed as professional counselors. The board is scheduled to terminate June 30, 2002, and if the legislature does not act this session, the board will have one year to conclude its administrative operations. The board operates in an efficient and effective manner and HB 343 acknowledges the board's effectiveness and extends its termination date.

House Bill 343 also amends professional counselors' education requirements. Currently, applicants are required to earn 48-semester hour master's degrees and gain 12 additional semester hours for a total of 60 hours. Not all accredited master's programs require 48 semester hours, so even applicants with master's degrees from accredited institutions and the necessary hour requirements have been denied because they could not meet Alaska's stringent educational requirements. Now applicants will be able to earn their master's degrees, whether they be 39- or 48-semester hour programs, then take the additional hours to achieve their 60 credit hours.

Notably, the Division of Legislative Audit, in its 2001 audit report, recommends the Board of Professional Counselors and the Marital and Family Therapy Board merge. Although there is merit to combining the boards, neither board fully supports a merger at this time. Therefore, HB 343 extends the Board of Professional Counselors for three years instead of four, coinciding with the current termination dates of three similar boards (Marital and Family Therapists, Social Workers, and Psychologists) so that the issue of an even broader merger can be revisited.

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