STAND. COM. REP. NO. 589

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2005

RE: H.B. No. 1759

H.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.B. No. 1759 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to relax the requirements for licensure as a mental health counselor.

Specifically, this bill repeals the requirement for passing the National Counselor Examination for Licensure and Certification, National Clinical Mental Health Counselors Examination of the National Board for Certified Counselors, or Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification examination after January 1, 2000, and before July 1, 2005, as a condition for obtaining a license as a mental health counselor. The bill further grandfathers in those who hold current, unencumbered certification as a national certified counselor or a national certified rehabilitation counselor prior to July 1, 2005.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this bill from four individuals. Testimony in opposition to this bill was received from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

Your Committee finds that this bill, as written, has the possibility of posing a certain amount of risk to the health and safety of consumers of mental health counseling services. Moreover, the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs has testified that there may be an alternative approach that may adequately address the concerns that apparently underlie this bill.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this bill to change the effective date to July 1, 2020, for the purposes of facilitating further discussion.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1759, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1759, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health,

 

____________________________

DENNIS A. ARAKAKI, Chair