STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1423 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 14, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sen. ORTT -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education AN ACT to amend the education law and the social services law, in relation to the practice of school psychology, and establishing a pilot program of multi-tiered system of support model of substance use prevention and intervention The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative intent and findings. The legislature finds that 2 while significant steps have been taken through legislation to implement 3 the recommendations of executive and legislative task forces in the 4 joint effort to combat the heroin and opioid crises in New York state, 5 much more must be done to identify risk factors, develop community 6 response and support strategies and to increase access to treatment. 7 The legislature intends to build on the initial aggressive efforts of 8 the executive and legislative by recognizing the significant role mental 9 and behavioral health professionals play in identifying the warning 10 signs of heroin and opioid addiction in our children and the maladaptive 11 behaviors that lead to early drug use and ultimately abuse and 12 addiction. The legislature recognizes that certified school psychol- 13 ogists are uniquely qualified to identify the risk and protective 14 factors, coupled with adverse childhood experiences which constitute the 15 drug abuse process. However, these highly trained specialists are 16 constrained to provide vital services to the school setting only. The 17 legislature finds that the state's mission to address the heroin and 18 opioid crises in the state will be advanced through the licensure of 19 school psychologists and the meaningful involvement of these trained 20 practitioners in the development of a school and community based strate- 21 gy of response and support. 22 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new article 166-A to 23 read as follows: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD01019-01-9

S. 1423 2 1 ARTICLE 166-A 2 SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY 3 Section 8720. Introduction. 4 8721. Practice of school psychology and use of the title "school 5 psychologist". 6 8722. Definition of the practice of school psychology. 7 8723. Requirements for a professional license. 8 8724. Boundaries of professional competency. 9 8725. Limited permits. 10 8726. Exemptions. 11 8727. Special provisions. 12 § 8720. Introduction. This article applies to the profession and prac- 13 tice of school psychology and to the use of the title "licensed school 14 psychologist". The general provisions for all professions contained in 15 article one hundred thirty of this title apply to this article. 16 § 8721. Practice of school psychology and use of the title "school 17 psychologist". Only a person licensed or exempt under this article 18 shall practice school psychology or use the title "licensed school 19 psychologist". 20 § 8722. Definition of the practice of school psychology. The practice 21 of school psychology is: 22 1. the assessment, including psycho-educational, developmental and 23 vocational assessment, evaluation and interpretation of intelligence, 24 cognitive processes, aptitudes, interests, academic achievement, 25 adjustment, personality factors and motivations, or any other attri- 26 butes, to individuals or groups of individuals aged birth to twenty-five 27 years that relate to learning, education or adjustment needs; 28 2. the development and implementation of educationally-related 29 psychotherapeutic and behavioral approaches to increase school adjust- 30 ment and academic success, counseling and interpretive services to 31 reduce education-related problems including, but not limited to, verbal 32 interaction, interviewing, behavior techniques, developmental and voca- 33 tional intervention, environmental management and group processes; 34 3. consultation with representatives of schools, agencies and organ- 35 izations, families or individuals, including psycho-educational, devel- 36 opmental and vocational assistance or direct educational services, 37 related to learning problems and adjustments to those problems to the 38 benefit of an individual or group of individuals age birth to twenty- 39 five years; and 40 4. the development of programming, including designing, implementing 41 or evaluating educationally and psychologically sound learning environ- 42 ments and the facilitation of psycho-educational development of individ- 43 uals, families or groups. 44 § 8723. Requirements for a professional license. To qualify for a 45 license as a licensed school psychologist, an applicant shall fulfill 46 the following requirements: 47 1. Application: File an application with the department; 48 2. Education: Complete a minimum of sixty graduate semester hours in 49 psychology credits including a master's degree and fulfill the require- 50 ments of an advanced certificate in school psychology or its equivalent 51 or doctoral degree in school psychology from a program registered by the 52 department, or determined by the department to be the substantial equiv- 53 alent in accordance with the commissioner's regulations. The graduate 54 coursework shall include, but not be limited to, the following areas: 55 (i) biological, social and cultural bases of development; 56 (ii) psychopathology and exceptionality in learning and behavior;

S. 1423 3 1 (iii) assessment and appraisal of learners in home and school 2 contexts; 3 (iv) consultation and collaboration in family, school and community 4 systems; 5 (v) effective instruction and development of cognitive and academic 6 skills; 7 (vi) prevention and treatment of behavioral and emotional disorders 8 and deficits; 9 (vii) school organization, curriculum, policy and law; 10 (viii) research and program evaluation; 11 (ix) profession and ethical practice of psychology in schools; and 12 (x) completion of a twelve hundred hour supervised internship in 13 school psychology, with no less than six hundred hours completed within 14 a school setting. 15 3. Experience: Complete a minimum of two thousand four hundred hours 16 of post-master's supervised experience relevant to the practice of 17 school psychology satisfactory to the board and in accordance with the 18 commissioner's regulations, such supervised experience which may include 19 one thousand two hundred hours completed as part of a program in school 20 psychology. Satisfactory experience obtained in an entity operating 21 under a waiver issued by the department pursuant to section sixty-five 22 hundred three-a of this title may be accepted by the department, 23 notwithstanding that such experience may have been obtained prior to the 24 effective date of such section sixty-five hundred three-a and/or prior 25 to the entity having obtained a waiver. The department may, for good 26 cause shown, accept satisfactory experience that was obtained in a 27 setting that would have been eligible for a waiver but which has not 28 obtained a waiver from the department or experience that was obtained in 29 good faith by the applicant under the belief that appropriate authori- 30 zation had been obtained for the experience, provided that such experi- 31 ence meets all other requirements for acceptable experience; 32 4. Examination: Pass an examination satisfactory to the board and in 33 accordance with the commissioner's regulations; 34 5. Age: Be at least twenty-one years of age; 35 6. Character: Be of good moral character as determined by the depart- 36 ment; and 37 7. Fees: Pay a fee of one hundred seventy-five dollars to the depart- 38 ment for admission to a department conducted examination and for an 39 initial license and a fee of one hundred seventy dollars for each trien- 40 nial registration period. 41 § 8724. Boundaries of professional competency. 1. It shall be deemed 42 practicing outside the boundaries of his or her professional competence 43 for a person licensed pursuant to this article, in the case of treatment 44 of any serious mental illness, to provide any mental health services 45 for such illness on a continuous and sustained basis without a medical 46 evaluation of the illness by, and consultation with, a physician regard- 47 ing such illness. Such medical evaluation and consultation shall be to 48 determine and advise whether any medical care is indicated for such 49 illness. For purposes of this section, "serious mental illness" means 50 schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, major 51 depressive disorder, panic disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. 52 Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent, limit or impair 53 consultation with any other health or mental health professional. Noth- 54 ing herein contained shall limit, modify, restrict or otherwise affect 55 the definition of the practice of school psychology as provided in 56 section eighty-seven hundred twenty-two of this article.

S. 1423 4 1 2. Any individual whose license or authority to practice derives from 2 the provisions of this article shall be prohibited from: 3 (a) prescribing or administering drugs as defined in this chapter as a 4 treatment, therapy, or professional service in the practice of his or 5 her profession; or 6 (b) using invasive procedures as a treatment, therapy, or professional 7 service in the practice of his or her profession. For purposes of this 8 subdivision, "invasive procedure" means any procedure in which human 9 tissue is cut, altered, or otherwise infiltrated by mechanical or other 10 means. Invasive procedure includes surgery, lasers, ionizing radiation, 11 therapeutic ultrasound, or electroconvulsive therapy; or 12 (c) engaging in dual setting practice, or otherwise offering or 13 providing private practice services to a student of a school or special 14 education program where the practitioner is currently employed or under 15 contract with such school or program. 16 3. Nothing in this article shall be deemed to authorize, grant or 17 extend hospital privileges to individuals licensed under this article. 18 § 8725. Limited permits. 1. The department may issue a limited permit 19 to an applicant whose qualifications have been approved for admission to 20 the examination in accordance with regulations promulgated therefor. 21 2. Limited permits shall be for one year and be renewed, at the 22 discretion of the department, for one additional year. 23 3. The fee for each limited permit and for each renewal shall be 24 seventy dollars. 25 § 8726. Exemptions. Nothing contained in this article shall be 26 construed to: 27 1. apply to the practice, conduct, activities, services or use of any 28 title by any person licensed or otherwise authorized to practice medi- 29 cine within the state pursuant to article one hundred thirty-one of this 30 title or by any person registered to perform services as a physician 31 assistant within the state pursuant to article one hundred thirty-one-B 32 of this title or by any person licensed or otherwise authorized to prac- 33 tice psychology within this state pursuant to article one hundred 34 fifty-three of this title or by any person licensed or otherwise author- 35 ized to practice as a licensed clinical social worker within this state 36 pursuant to article one hundred fifty-four of this title, or by any 37 person licensed or otherwise authorized to practice nursing as a regis- 38 tered professional nurse within this state pursuant to article one 39 hundred thirty-nine of this title, or by any person licensed or other- 40 wise authorized to practice mental health counseling, marriage and fami- 41 ly therapy, creative arts therapy, or psychoanalysis within the state, 42 or by any person licensed or otherwise authorized to practice applied 43 behavior analysis within the state pursuant to this article; provided, 44 however, that no physician, physician's assistant, registered profes- 45 sional nurse, psychologist, licensed clinical social worker, licensed 46 mental health counselor, licensed marriage and family therapist, 47 licensed creative arts therapist, licensed psychoanalyst or licensed 48 applied behavior analyst may use the title unless licensed under this 49 article; 50 2. prohibit or limit any individual who is credentialed under any law, 51 including attorneys, rape crisis counselors, certified alcoholism coun- 52 selors and certified substance abuse counselors from providing mental 53 health services within their respective established authorities; 54 3. prohibit or limit the practice of a profession licensed pursuant 55 to this article by a student, intern or resident in, and as a part of, a

S. 1423 5 1 supervised educational program in an institution approved by the depart- 2 ment; 3 4. prohibit or limit the provision of pastoral counseling services by 4 any member of the clergy or Christian Science practitioner, within the 5 context of his or her ministerial charge or obligation; 6 5. prohibit or limit individuals, churches, schools, teachers, organ- 7 izations, or not-for-profit businesses, from providing instruction, 8 advice, support, encouragement, or information to individuals, families, 9 and relational groups; 10 6. prohibit or limit an occupational therapist from performing work 11 consistent with article one hundred fifty-six of this title; or 12 7. affect or prevent the activities or services on the part of a 13 person in the employ of a federal, state, county, or municipal agency, 14 other political subdivision, or a chartered elementary or secondary 15 school or degree-granting educational institution insofar as such activ- 16 ities and services are a part of the duties of such person's salaried 17 position. 18 § 8727. Special provisions. 1. Any nonexempt person practicing the 19 profession of school psychology shall apply for a license of such 20 profession within one year of the effective date of this section. 21 (a) If such person does not meet the requirements for a license estab- 22 lished within this article, such person may meet alternative criteria 23 determined by the department to be the substantial equivalent of such 24 criteria. 25 (b) If such person meets the requirements for a license established 26 within this article, except for examination, and has been certified or 27 registered by a national certifying or registering body having certif- 28 ication or registration standards acceptable to the commissioner, the 29 department shall license without examination. 30 2. Notwithstanding the requirements of section eighty-seven hundred 31 twenty-three of this article, and for a period of time not to exceed two 32 years from the effective date of this article, an individual may be 33 licensed as a school psychologist provided such person has either: 34 (a) met the educational requirements as defined in section eighty-sev- 35 en hundred twenty-three of this article and performed the duties of a 36 school psychologist as authorized by article one hundred fifty-three of 37 this title or any other provision of law, for two of the past five years 38 prior to the effective date of this article; or 39 (b) performed the duties of a school psychologist as authorized by 40 article one hundred fifty-three of this title or any other provision of 41 law, for at least five years prior to the effective date of this arti- 42 cle. 43 3. Any person licensed pursuant to this article may use accepted codes 44 and classifications of signs, symptoms, dysfunctions and disorders, as 45 approved in accordance with regulations promulgated by the department, 46 in the practice of such licensed profession. 47 4. Nothing in this article shall be deemed to alter, modify or affect 48 the provisions of section three thousand twelve or twenty-five hundred 49 ten of this chapter or otherwise affect the certification of a school 50 psychologist. 51 § 3. Paragraph a of subdivision 3 of section 6507 of the education 52 law, as amended by chapter 554 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read 53 as follows: 54 a. Establish standards for preprofessional and professional education, 55 experience and licensing examinations as required to implement the arti- 56 cle for each profession. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the

S. 1423 6 1 commissioner shall establish standards requiring that all persons apply- 2 ing, on or after January first, nineteen hundred ninety-one, initially, 3 or for the renewal of, a license, registration or limited permit to be a 4 physician, chiropractor, dentist, registered nurse, podiatrist, optome- 5 trist, psychiatrist, psychologist, licensed school psychologist, 6 licensed master social worker, licensed clinical social worker, licensed 7 creative arts therapist, licensed marriage and family therapist, 8 licensed mental health counselor, licensed psychoanalyst, dental hygien- 9 ist, licensed behavior analyst, or certified behavior analyst assistant 10 shall, in addition to all the other licensure, certification or permit 11 requirements, have completed two hours of coursework or training regard- 12 ing the identification and reporting of child abuse and maltreatment. 13 The coursework or training shall be obtained from an institution or 14 provider which has been approved by the department to provide such 15 coursework or training. The coursework or training shall include infor- 16 mation regarding the physical and behavioral indicators of child abuse 17 and maltreatment and the statutory reporting requirements set out in 18 sections four hundred thirteen through four hundred twenty of the social 19 services law, including but not limited to, when and how a report must 20 be made, what other actions the reporter is mandated or authorized to 21 take, the legal protections afforded reporters, and the consequences for 22 failing to report. Such coursework or training may also include informa- 23 tion regarding the physical and behavioral indicators of the abuse of 24 individuals with [~~mental retardation and other~~] developmental disabili- 25 ties and voluntary reporting of abused or neglected adults to the office 26 [~~of mental retardation and~~] for people with developmental disabilities 27 or the local adult protective services unit. Each applicant shall 28 provide the department with documentation showing that he or she has 29 completed the required training. The department shall provide an 30 exemption from the child abuse and maltreatment training requirements to 31 any applicant who requests such an exemption and who shows, to the 32 department's satisfaction, that there would be no need because of the 33 nature of his or her practice for him or her to complete such training; 34 § 4. Section 7602 of the education law, as added by chapter 987 of the 35 laws of 1971, is amended to read as follows: 36 § 7602. State board for psychology. A state board for psychology 37 shall be appointed by the board of regents on recommendation of the 38 commissioner for the purpose of assisting the board of regents and the 39 department on matters of professional licensing and professional conduct 40 in accordance with section sixty-five hundred eight of this title. The 41 board shall be composed of not less than eleven [~~psychologists licensed~~ 42 ~~in this state~~] members, a number of whom shall be licensed school 43 psychologists sufficient to assure meaningful participation in board 44 activities. An executive secretary to the board shall be appointed by 45 the board of regents upon the recommendation of the commissioner and 46 shall be a psychologist, licensed in this state. 47 § 5. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 413 of the social 48 services law, as amended by section 7 of part C of chapter 57 of the 49 laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows: 50 (a) The following persons and officials are required to report or 51 cause a report to be made in accordance with this title when they have 52 reasonable cause to suspect that a child coming before them in their 53 professional or official capacity is an abused or maltreated child, or 54 when they have reasonable cause to suspect that a child is an abused or 55 maltreated child where the parent, guardian, custodian or other person 56 legally responsible for such child comes before them in their profes-

S. 1423 7 1 sional or official capacity and states from personal knowledge facts, 2 conditions or circumstances which, if correct, would render the child an 3 abused or maltreated child: any physician; registered physician assist- 4 ant; surgeon; medical examiner; coroner; dentist; dental hygienist; 5 osteopath; optometrist; chiropractor; podiatrist; resident; intern; 6 psychologist; licensed school psychologist; registered nurse; social 7 worker; emergency medical technician; licensed creative arts therapist; 8 licensed marriage and family therapist; licensed mental health counse- 9 lor; licensed psychoanalyst; licensed behavior analyst; certified behav- 10 ior analyst assistant; hospital personnel engaged in the admission, 11 examination, care or treatment of persons; a Christian Science practi- 12 tioner; school official, which includes but is not limited to school 13 teacher, school guidance counselor, school psychologist, school social 14 worker, school nurse, school administrator or other school personnel 15 required to hold a teaching or administrative license or certificate; 16 full or part-time compensated school employee required to hold a tempo- 17 rary coaching license or professional coaching certificate; social 18 services worker; employee of a publicly-funded emergency shelter for 19 families with children; director of a children's overnight camp, summer 20 day camp or traveling summer day camp, as such camps are defined in 21 section thirteen hundred ninety-two of the public health law; day care 22 center worker; school-age child care worker; provider of family or group 23 family day care; employee or volunteer in a residential care facility 24 for children that is licensed, certified or operated by the office of 25 children and family services; or any other child care or foster care 26 worker; mental health professional; substance abuse counselor; alcohol- 27 ism counselor; all persons credentialed by the office of alcoholism and 28 substance abuse services; employees, who are expected to have regular 29 and substantial contact with children, of a health home or health home 30 care management agency contracting with a health home as designated by 31 the department of health and authorized under section three hundred 32 sixty-five-l of this chapter or such employees who provide home and 33 community based services under a demonstration program pursuant to 34 section eleven hundred fifteen of the federal social security act who 35 are expected to have regular and substantial contact with children; 36 peace officer; police officer; district attorney or assistant district 37 attorney; investigator employed in the office of a district attorney; or 38 other law enforcement official. 39 § 6. The education department, the office of children and family 40 services, the office of mental health and the office of alcoholism and 41 substance abuse services are hereby directed to establish a multi-tiered 42 system of support (MTSS) model of substance use prevention and inter- 43 vention utilizing tiered levels of primary prevention services and 44 secondary and tertiary intervention services and to pilot such model in 45 communities with occurrences of heroin and opioid addiction in children 46 under the age of twenty-five in New York state. Such model shall be 47 designed with the meaningful participation of mental and behavioral 48 health practitioners whose training focuses on the needs of children 49 under the age of twenty-five including, but not limited to, school 50 psychologists, such practitioners being uniquely qualified to implement 51 the model to the fullest extent possible. Such pilot shall be designed 52 for implementation by September 1, 2020. 53 § 7. Subparagraph (i) of paragraph a of subdivision 1 of section 54 6503-a of the education law, as amended by chapter 554 of the laws of 55 2013, is amended to read as follows:

S. 1423 8 1 (i) services provided under article one hundred fifty-four, one 2 hundred sixty-three [or], one hundred sixty-seven or one hundred sixty- 3 six-A of this title for which licensure would be required, or 4 § 8. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part 5 of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to 6 be invalid, the judgment shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the 7 remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, 8 sentence, paragraph, section or part thereof directly involved in the 9 controversy in which the judgment shall have been rendered. 10 § 9. This act shall take effect twelve months after it shall have 11 become a law; provided, however, that effective immediately the depart- 12 ment of education is authorized to promulgate any and all rules and 13 regulations and take any other measure necessary to implement this act 14 on or before its effective date, including, but not limited to, the 15 appointment of the state board for psychology, the acceptance and proc- 16 essing of applications for licensure and the issuance of licenses; and 17 provided, further, that the provisions of article 166-A of the education 18 law, as added by section two of this act, requiring a license or limited 19 permit to practice under such article shall not be enforced until twen- 20 ty-four months after the effective date of this act.

Provides for licensure of school psychologists

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