S.L. 1979-697

NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1979 SESSION

CHAPTER 697

HOUSE BILL 1134

AN ACT REQUIRING CERTIFICATION OF CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS WHO USE THE TITLE "CERTIFIED MARRIAGE AND FAMILY COUNSELOR/THERAPIST" AND CREATING A BOARD TO BE KNOWN AS THE STATE BOARD OF MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY EXAMINERS.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

Section 1. Chapter 90 of the North Carolina General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article to read as follows:

"1. This act shall be known as the 'Marital and Family Therapy Certification Act'.

2. Policy and purpose. Marital and family therapy in the State of North Carolina is declared to be a professional practice which affects the public safety and welfare and requires appropriate certification and control in the public interest.

It is the purpose of this act to establish a certification agency, a structure, and procedures which will ensure that the public has a means of protecting itself from unprofessional, improper, unauthorized and unqualified use of certain titles by persons who practice marital and family therapy. This act shall be liberally construed to carry out these policies and purposes.

3. Definitions. As used in this act, unless the context clearly requires a different meaning:

(a) 'Certified marital and family therapist' means a person to whom a certificate has been issued pursuant to the provisions of this act, which certificate is in force and not suspended or revoked as of the particular time in question.

(b) 'Practice of marital and family therapy' means the rendering of professional marital and family therapy or counseling services to individuals, family groups and marital pairs, singly or in groups, whether such services are offered directly to the general public or through organizations, either public or private, for a fee, monetary or otherwise. 'Marital and family therapy' is a specialized field of therapy which centers largely upon the family system and the relationship between husband and wife. 'Marital and family therapy' consists of the application of principles, methods, educational and therapeutic techniques for the purpose of resolving emotional conflict, altering old attitudes and establishing new ones in the area of marriage and family life.

(1) master's or doctoral degree in clinical social work;

(2) master's or doctoral degree in psychiatric nursing;

(3) doctoral degree in clinical or counseling psychology;

(4) doctor of medicine or doctor of osteopathy degree with an appropriate residency training in psychiatry; or

(5) master's or doctoral degree in any mental health field wherein the course of study is equivalent to the master's degree in marital and family therapy.

(d) 'Board' means the North Carolina Marital and Family Therapy Certification Board.

(e) 'Recognized educational institution' means any educational institution which grants a bachelor's, master's, or doctor's degree and which is recognized by the Board or by a nationally or regionally recognized educational or professional accrediting body.

4. Prohibited acts. Except as specifically provided elsewhere in this act, commencing January 1, 1980, no person who is not certified under this act shall use a title or description such as 'certified marital or marriage therapist, counselor, advisor or consultant,' 'certified marital or marriage and family therapist, counselor, advisor or consultant,' or any other name, style or description denoting that the person is a certified marital and family therapist. Nothing herein shall prohibit any person from advertising the performance of marital and family therapy or counseling services, the persons from whom it may be obtained and prices.

5. North Carolina Marital and Family Therapy Certification Board.

(a) Establishment. There is hereby established as an agency of the State of North Carolina the North Carolina Marital and Family Therapy Certification Board, which shall be composed of seven Board members, one of which shall be designated as chairperson, to be appointed in the manner provided for in Section 6 of this act. Of the first Board members appointed, three shall continue in office for two years, two for three years, and two, including the chairperson for four years, respectively. Their successors shall be appointed for terms of four years each, except that any person chosen to fill a vacancy shall be appointed only for the unexpired term of the Board member whom he shall succeed. Upon the expiration of his term of office, a Board member shall continue to serve until his successor shall have been appointed and shall have qualified. No person may be appointed more than once to fill an unexpired term or more than two consecutive full terms. The Governor shall designate one Board member to serve as chairperson during the term of his appointment to the Board. No person may serve as chairperson for more than four years.

The Governor may remove any member of the Board or the chairperson from his position as chairperson for neglect of duty or malfeasance or conviction of a felony or crime of moral turpitude while in office but for no other reason.

No Board member shall participate in any matter before the Board in which he has a pecuniary interest, personal bias, or other similar conflict of interest.

(b) Quorum and principal office. Four of the members of the Board shall constitute a quorum of the Board. The principal office of the Board shall be at such location in the State of North Carolina as the Board shall from time to time specify.

(c) Board employees. The Board is authorized to employ, subject to the provisions of Chapter 126 of the General Statutes, such attorneys, experts, and other employees as it may from time to time find necessary for the proper performance of its duties and for whom the necessary funds are appropriated.

6. Appointment and qualification of Board members.

(a) Nominations for appointment.

(1) The Governor shall appoint members of the Board only from among the candidates who meet the following qualifications:

a. Four members shall be practicing marital and family therapists who meet the educational and experience requirements stated in this act for persons applying after January 1, 1981; and each shall have been at least five years immediately preceding appointment actively engaged as a marital and family therapist in rendering professional services in marital and family therapy, or in the education and training of doctoral or postdoctoral students of marital and family therapy, and shall have spent the majority of the time devoted by him to such activity during the two years preceding his appointment, in this State. The initial appointees, appointed pursuant to this section, shall be deemed to be and shall become certified practicing marital and family therapists immediately upon their appointment and qualification as members of the Board.

b. Three members shall be representatives of the general public who have no direct affiliation with the practice of marital and family therapy.

(2) The appointment of any member of the Board shall automatically terminate 30 days after the date such member is no longer a resident of the State of North Carolina.

(3) If before the expiration of his term any member shall die, resign, become disqualified, or otherwise cease to be a Board member, the vacancy shall be filled by the Governor by appointment for the unexpired term.

7. Board meetings. (a) The Board shall administer and enforce the provisions of this act.

(b) Subject to the provisions of Chapter 150A, the Board shall have the power and authority to adopt, amend, or repeal reasonable rules and regulations for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Chapter, but not inconsistent herewith, which rules and regulations shall become effective when filed as provided by law.

(c) The Board shall examine and pass on the qualifications of all applicants for certificates under this act, and shall issue a certificate to each successful applicant therefor.

(d) The Board may adopt a seal which may be affixed to all certificates issued by the Board.

(e) The Board may authorize expenditures deemed necessary to carry out the provisions of this act from the fees which it collects, but in no event shall expenditures exceed the revenues of the Board during any fiscal year.

8. Certification application. Each person desiring to obtain a certificate under this act shall make application thereof to the Board upon such form and in such manner as the Board shall prescribe and shall furnish evidence satisfactory to the Board that he:

(a) is of good moral character;

(b) has not engaged or is not engaged in any practice or conduct which would be a ground for denial, revocation or suspension of a certificate under Section 16 of this act;

9. Application before January 1, 1981. Any person who applies on or before January 1, 1981, shall be issued a certificate by the Board if he meets the qualifications set forth in subsections (a), (b), and (c) of Section 8 and provides satisfactory evidence to the Board that he either:

(a) meets educational and experience qualifications as follows:

(1) Educational requirements: Possesses a minimum of a master's degree or the equivalent from a recognized educational institution in the field of marriage or family therapy or a degree in an allied mental health field or shall be a clergyman or a physician whose official transcripts establish that he has completed an appropriate course of study in an allied mental health field.

(2) Experience requirements: at least 3,000 hours of clinical experience in the practice of marital and family therapy, not more than 500 hours of which experience was obtained while the candidate was a student in a master's degree program and at least 2,500 of which experience was obtained subsequent to the granting of such degree in the field of marital and family therapy or an allied mental health field; or

(b) was certified prior to January 1, 1981, in this State in an allied mental health profession and satisfies the educational requirements for certification as a certified marital and family therapist set forth in (a)(1), of this section.

10. Application after January 1, 1981. Any person who applies to the Board after January 1, 1981, shall be issued a certificate by the Board if he meets the qualifications set forth in subsections (a), (b), and (c) of Section 8 and provides satisfactory evidence to the Board that he:

(a) meets educational and experience qualifications as follows:

(1) educational requirements: possesses a minimum of a master's degree or the equivalent from a recognized educational institution in the field of marital and family therapy or counseling, or a degree in an allied mental health field, which degree is evidenced by the applicant's official transcripts which establish that he has completed an appropriate course of study in an allied mental health field.

(2) experience requirements: at least 1,500 hours of clinical experience in the practice of marital and family therapy, not more than 500 hours of which experience was obtained while the candidate was a student in a Master's Degree program and at least 1,000 of which experience was obtained subsequent to the granting of such degree in the field of marital and family therapy or an allied mental health field; (with ongoing supervision consistent with standards approved by the Board); and

(b) passes a written and/or oral examination administered by the Board.

11. Examination. (a) The Board shall conduct an examination at least once a year at a time and place designated by the Board.

(b) Examinations may be written or oral as determined by the Board.

(c) Examinations shall include questions in such theoretical and applied fields to test an applicant's knowledge and competence to engage in the practice of marital and family therapy.

(d) An applicant shall be held to have passed an examination upon affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the Board present and voting.

(e) Any person who fails an examination conducted by the Board shall not be admitted to a subsequent examination for a period of at least six months.

12. Reciprocal certificates. The Board shall issue a certificate by reciprocity to any person licensed or certified as a marital and family therapist in another state whose requirements for the license or certificate are equivalent to or exceed the requirements of this State, provided the applicant submits an application on forms prescribed by the Board and pays the original certification fee prescribed by this act.

13. Fees. The Board shall charge for each examination and certificate provided for in this Chapter a fee not exceeding fifty dollars ($50.00). This fee shall be payable to the Board by the applicant at the time of filing application. In no case shall the examination fee be refunded, unless in the discretion of the Board the applicant shall be deemed ineligible for examination.

14. Renewal of certificate. The Board shall require the renewal of all certificates of qualification annually on the first day of July, and shall charge and collect a fee not to exceed twenty-five dollars ($25.00) for such renewal.

15. Disposition of funds. All fees and other monies collected and received by the Board shall be used for the purpose of implementing this Article.

16. Denial, revocation or suspension of certification.

(a)

Grounds for denial, revocation, or suspension.

The Board is authorized to deny, revoke or suspend a certificate granted pursuant to this act on the following grounds:

(1) conviction of a felony under the laws of the United States or of any state of the United States;

(2) conviction of any crime, an essential element of which is dishonesty, deceit, or fraud;

(3) fraud or deceit in obtaining a certificate as a certified marital and family therapist;

(4) dishonesty, fraud or gross negligence in the practice of marital and family therapy;

(5) violation of any rule of professional ethics and professional conduct adopted by the Board.

Any disciplinary action taken shall be in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 150A of the General Statutes.

17. Penalties. Any person not certified as a marital and family therapist under this act, who on or after January 1, 1980, holds himself out to be or advertises that he is a certified marital and family therapist in violation of this act shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a misdemeanor and be punished by a fine not exceeding two hundred dollars ($200.00) for the first offense and five hundred dollars ($500.00) for each subsequent offense.

18. Injunction. As an additional remedy, the Board may proceed in a superior court to enjoin and restrain any uncertified person from violating the prohibitions of this act. The Board shall not be required to post bond to such proceeding."

Sec. 2. Chapter 8 of the North Carolina General Statutes is amended by adding a new paragraph as follows:

"§ 8-53.5. Communications between marital and family therapist and client(s). — No person, duly authorized as a certified marital and family therapist, nor any of his employees or associates, shall be required to disclose any information which he may have acquired in rendering professional marital and family therapy services, and which information was necessary to enable him to render professional marital and family therapy services: Provided, that the presiding judge of a superior court may compel such disclosure, if in his opinion the same is necessary to a proper administration of justice."

Sec. 3. The Board shall be subject to the provisions of Chapter 93B of the General Statutes. No State appropriations shall be subject to the administration of this Board.

Sec. 4. This act shall become effective October 1, 1979, and shall expire October 1, 1985.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 30th day of May, 1979.