GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1993

S	4 

SENATE BILL 255*
Introduced and Referred 3/11/93
Children and Human Resources Committee Substitute Adopted 4/29/93
Finance Committee Substitute Adopted 6/23/93

Short Title:  Counselor Licensing.	(Public)
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Sponsors:
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Referred to:  
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February 19, 1993

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE REGULATION OF THE PRACTICE OF COUNSELING AND THE LICENSURE OF COUNSELORS.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  Article 24 of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes reads as rewritten:
"ARTICLE 24.
" Licensed Professional Counselors Act.
"§ 90-329.  Declaration of policy.
It is declared to be the public policy of this State that the activities of persons who render counseling services to the public be regulated to insure the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare.
"§ 90-330.  Definitions; practice of marriage and family therapy.
(a)	Definitions. – As used in this Article certain terms are defined as follows:
	(1a)	The 'Board' means the Board of Licensed Professional Counselors.
(2)	A 'licensed professional counselor' is a person engaged in the practice of counseling who holds a license as a licensed professional counselor issued under the provisions of this Article.
(3)	The 'practice of counseling' means holding oneself out to the public as a professional counselor offering counseling services that include, but are not limited to, the following:
a.	Counseling. – Assisting individuals, groups, and families through the counseling relationship, using a combination of clinical mental health and human development principles, methods, diagnostic procedures, treatment plans, and other psychotherapeutic techniques, to develop an understanding of personal problems, to define goals, and to plan action reflecting the client's interests, abilities, aptitudes, and mental health needs as these are related to personal-social-emotional concerns, educational progress, and occupations and careers.
b.	Appraisal Activities. – Administering and interpreting tests for assessment of personal characteristics.
c.	Consulting. – Interpreting scientific data and providing guidance and personnel services to individuals, groups, or organizations.
d.	Referral Activities. – Identifying problems requiring referral to other specialists.
e.	Research Activities. – Designing, conducting, and interpreting research with human subjects.
(4)	A 'supervisor' means any licensed professional counselor or, when one is inaccessible, an equivalently credentialed mental health professional, as determined by the Board, with a minimum of five years of counseling experience who meets the qualifications established by the Board.
	(c)	Practice of Marriage and Family Therapy, Psychology, or Social Work. – No person licensed as a licensed professional counselor under the provisions of this Article shall be allowed to hold himself or herself out to the public as a certified marriage and family therapist, licensed practicing psychologist, psychological associate, or certified clinical social worker unless specifically authorized by other provisions of law.
"§ 90-331.  Unlawful use of title 'licensed professional counselor'.
It shall be unlawful for any person who is not licensed under this Article to engage in the practice of counseling, use the title 'licensed professional counselor', use the letters 'LPC', use any facsimile or combination of these words or letters, abbreviations, or insignia, or indicate or imply orally, in writing, or in any other way that the person is a licensed professional counselor.
"§ 90-332.  Use of title by firm.
It shall be unlawful for any firm, partnership, corporation, association, or other business or professional entity to assume or use the title of licensed professional counselor unless each of the members of the firm, partnership, or association is licensed by the Board.
"§ 90-332.1.  Exemptions from licensure.
(a)	It is not the intent of this Article to regulate members of other regulated professions who do counseling in the normal course of the practice of their profession.  Accordingly, this Article does not apply to:
(1)	Any person registered, certified, or licensed by the State to practice any other occupation or profession while rendering counseling services in the performance of the occupation or profession for which the person is registered, certified, or licensed.
(2)	Any school counselor certified by the State Board of Education while counseling within the scope of employment by a board of education or private school.
(3)	Any student intern or trainee in counseling pursuing a course of study in counseling in a regionally accredited institution of higher learning or training institution, if the intern or trainee is a designated 'counselor intern' and the activities and services constitute a part of the supervised course of study.
(4)	Any ordained minister or other member of the clergy while acting in a ministerial capacity.
(5)	Any nonresident temporarily employed in this State to render counseling services for not more than 30 days in a year, if the person holds a license or certificate required for counselors in another state.
(6)	Any person employed by State, federal, county, or municipal government while counseling within the scope of employment.
(7)	Any person performing mental health counseling solely as an employee of an area facility, as defined in G.S. 122C-3(14)a., if both of the following apply:
a.	The mental health services are provided by a qualified mental health professional who meets or exceeds the minimum educational qualifications for licensure as a licensed professional counselor under this Article.
b.	The area facility has obtained written verification from the following boards that the employee has not had his or her license, registration, or certification revoked, rescinded, or suspended: the North Carolina Board of Licensed Professional Counselors, the North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Practicing Psychologists, the North Carolina Certification Board for Social Work, and the North Carolina Marital and Family Therapy Certification Board.
(b)	Persons who claim to be exempt under subsection (a) of this section are prohibited from advertising or offering themselves as 'licensed professional counselors'.
(c)	Persons licensed under this Article are exempt from rules pertaining to counseling adopted by other occupational licensing boards.
"§ 90-333.  North Carolina Board of Licensed Professional Counselors; appointments; terms; composition.
(a)	For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Article, there is hereby created the North Carolina Board of Licensed Professional Counselors which shall consist of seven members appointed by the Governor in the manner hereinafter prescribed.  Any nationally recognized association representing professional counselors may submit recommendations to the Governor for Board membership.  The Governor may remove any member of the Board for neglect of duty or malfeasance or conviction of a felony or other crime of moral turpitude, but for no other reason.
(b)	At least five members of the Board shall be licensed professional counselors except that initial appointees shall be persons  who meet the educational and experience requirements for licensure as licensed professional counselors under the provisions of this Article; and two members shall be public-at-large members appointed from the general public.  Composition of the Board as to the race and sex of its members shall reflect the composition of the population of the State and each member shall reside in a different congressional district.
(c)	At all times the Board shall include at least one counselor primarily engaged in counselor education, at least one counselor primarily engaged in the public sector, at least one counselor primarily engaged in the private sector, and two licensed professional counselors at large.
(d)	All members of the Board shall be residents of the State of North Carolina, and, with the exception of the public-at-large members, shall be licensed by the Board under the provisions of this Article. Professional members of the Board must be actively engaged in the practice of counseling or in the education and training of students in counseling, and have been for at least three years prior to their appointment to the Board. The engagement in this activity during the two years preceding the appointment shall have occurred primarily in this State.
(e)	The term of office of each member of the Board shall be three years; provided, however, that of the members first appointed, three shall be appointed for terms of one year, two for terms of two years, and two for terms of three years. No member shall serve more than two consecutive three-year terms.
(f)	Each term of service on the Board shall expire on the 30th day of June of the year in which the term expires. As the term of a member expires, the Governor shall make the appointment for a full term, or, if a vacancy occurs for any other reason, for the remainder of the unexpired term.
(g)	Members of the Board shall receive compensation for their services and reimbursement for expenses incurred in the performance of duties required by this Article, at the rates prescribed in G.S. 93B-5.
(h)	The Board may employ, subject to the provisions of Chapter 126 of the General Statutes, the necessary personnel for the performance of its functions, and fix their compensation within the limits of funds available to the Board.
"§ 90-334.  Functions and duties of the Board.
(a)	The Board shall administer and enforce the provisions of this Article.
(b)	The Board shall elect from its membership, a chairperson, a vice-chairperson, and secretary-treasurer, and adopt rules to govern its proceedings.  A majority of the membership shall constitute a quorum for all Board meetings.
(c)	The Board shall examine and pass on the qualifications of all applicants for licenses under this Article, and shall issue a license or renewal of license to each successful applicant therefor.
(d)	The Board may adopt a seal which may be affixed to all licenses issued by the Board.
(e)	The Board may authorize expenditures deemed necessary to carry out the provisions of this Article from the fees which it collects, but in no event shall expenditures exceed the revenues of the Board during any fiscal year.  No State appropriations shall be subject to the administration of the Board.
(f)	The Board shall establish and receive fees not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100.00) for initial or renewal application, not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100.00) for examination, and not to exceed twenty-five dollars ($25.00) for late renewal, maintain Board accounts of all receipts, and make expenditures from Board receipts for any purpose which is reasonable and necessary for the proper performance of its duties under this Article.
(g)	The Board shall have the power to establish or approve study or training courses and to establish reasonable standards for licensure and license renewal, including but not limited to the power to adopt or use examination materials and accreditation standards of any recognized counselor accrediting agency and the power to establish reasonable standards for continuing counselor education.
(h)	Subject to the provisions of Chapter 150B of the General Statutes, the Board shall have the power to adopt, amend, or repeal rules to carry out the purposes of this Article, including but not limited to the power to adopt ethical and disciplinary standards.
(i)	The Board shall establish the criteria for determining the qualifications constituting 'supervised professional practice'.
	(j)  The Board may examine counselor applicants, approve, issue, deny, revoke, suspend, and renew the licenses of counselor applicants and licensees under this Article, and conduct hearings in connection with these actions.
(k)	The Board shall investigate, subpoena individuals and records, and take necessary appropriate action to properly discipline persons licensed under this Article and to enforce this Article.
"§ 90-335.  Board general provisions.
The Board shall be subject to the provisions of Chapter 93B of the General Statutes.
"§ 90-336.  Title and qualifications for licensure.
(a)	Each person desiring to be a licensed professional counselor shall make application to the Board upon such forms and in such manner as the Board shall prescribe, together with the required application fee.
(b)	The Board shall issue a license as 'licensed professional counselor' to an applicant who meets all of the following criteria:
(1)	Has earned one of the following:
a.	A masters degree in counseling from a regionally accredited institution of higher education, which includes a minimum of 48 semester hours.
		b.	A graduate degree in a related field supplemented with courses that the Board determines to be substantially equivalent.
) (2)	Has had no less than two years of masters or post-masters counseling experience, or of both, in a professional setting, including a minimum of 2,000 hours of supervised professional practice as defined by the Board.
(3)	Has passed an examination as adopted by the Board.
"§ 90-337.  Persons credentialed in other states.
The Board may license any person who is currently licensed, certified, or registered by another state if the individual has met requirements determined by the Board to be substantially similar to or exceeding those established under this Article.
"§ 90-338.  Exemptions.
Applicants holding certificates of registration as Registered Practicing Counselors and in good standing with the Board shall be issued licenses as licensed professional counselors without meeting the requirements of G.S. 90-336(b).  The following applicants shall be exempt from the academic qualifications required by this Article for licensed professional counselors and shall be licensed upon passing the Board examination and meeting the experience requirements:
(1)	An applicant who was engaged in the practice of counseling before July 1, 1993.
(2)	An applicant who holds a masters degree from a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting associations or from a college or university determined by the Board to have standards substantially equivalent to a regionally accredited institution, provided the applicant was enrolled in the masters program prior to July 1, 1994.
"§ 90-339.  Renewal of licenses.
(a)	All licenses shall be effective upon the date of issuance by the Board, and shall expire on the second June 30 thereafter.
(b)	All licenses issued hereunder shall be renewed at the times and in the manner provided by this section. At least 45 days prior to expiration of each license, the Board shall mail a notice for license renewal to the person licensed for the current licensure period. At least 10 days before the current license expires, the applicant must return the notice properly completed, together with a renewal fee established by the Board and evidence of continuing counselor education as approved by the Board, upon receipt of which the Board shall issue to the person to be licensed the renewed license for the period stated on the license.
(c)	Any person licensed who allows the license to lapse for failure to apply for renewal within 45 days after notice shall be subject to the late renewal fee.  Failure to apply  for renewal of a license within one year after the license's expiration date will require that a license be reissued only upon application as for an original license.
"§ 90-340.  Protection of the public.
The Board may, in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 150B of the General Statutes, refuse to grant or to renew, may suspend, or may revoke the license of any person licensed under this Article on one or more of the following grounds:
(1)	Conviction of a misdemeanor under this Article.
(2)	Conviction of a felony under the laws of the United States or of any state of the United States.
(3)	Gross unprofessional conduct, dishonest practice or incompetence in the practice of counseling.
(4)	Procuring or attempting to procure a license by fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation.
(5)	Any fraudulent or dishonest conduct in counseling.
(6)	Inability of the person to perform the functions for which a license has been issued due to impairment of mental or physical faculties.
(7)	Violations of any of the provisions of this Article or rules of the Board.
(8)	Violations of the American Counseling Association Ethical Standards adopted by the Board.
"§ 90-341.  Violation a misdemeanor.
Any person violating any provision of this Article is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, may be punishable by fine, by imprisonment, or by both fine and imprisonment.
"§ 90-342.  Injunction.
As an additional remedy, the Board may proceed in a superior court to enjoin and restrain any person from violating the prohibitions of this Article. The Board shall not be required to post bond in connection with such proceeding.
"§ 90-343.  Disclosure.
Any individual, or employer of an individual, who is licensed under this Article may not charge a client or receive remuneration for professional counseling services unless, prior to the performance of those services, the client is furnished a copy of a Professional Disclosure Statement that includes the licensee's professional credentials, the services offered, the fee schedule, and other provisions required by the Board."
Sec. 2.  G.S. 8-53.8 reads as rewritten:
"§ 8-53.8.  Counselor privilege.
No person, duly licensed pursuant to Chapter 90, Article 24, of the General Statutes, shall be required to disclose any information which he or she may have acquired in rendering professional counseling services, and which information was necessary to enable him or her to render professional counseling services: Provided, that the presiding judge of a superior or district court may compel such disclosure, if in the court's opinion the same is necessary to a proper administration of justice and such disclosure is not prohibited by other statute or regulation."
Sec. 3.  G.S. 7A-551 reads as rewritten:
"§ 7A-551.  Privileges not grounds for excluding evidence.
Neither the physician-patient privilege, the psychologist-client privilege, the licensed professional counselor-client privilege, nor the husband-wife privilege shall be grounds for excluding evidence of abuse or neglect in any judicial proceeding (civil, criminal, or juvenile) in which a juvenile's abuse or neglect is in issue nor in any judicial proceeding resulting from a report submitted under this Article, both as said privileges relate to the competency of the witness and to the exclusion of confidential communications."
Sec. 4.  If any portion of this act is declared invalid or unconstitutional, that declaration shall not affect the validity and constitutionality of the remaining portions.
Sec. 5.  This act becomes effective July 1, 1994, except that the Board's rule-making authority under this act is effective upon ratification of the act.