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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 7081
January Session, 2025
LCO No. 5305
Referred to Committee on PUBLIC HEALTH
Introduced by:
(PH)
AN ACT CONCERNING LICENSURE PORTABILITY FOR MARRIAGE
AND FAMILY THERAPISTS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 20-195c of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2025): 2
(a) Each applicant for licensure as a marital and family therapist shall 3
present to the department satisfactory evidence that such applicant has: 4
(1) Completed a graduate degree program specializing in marital and 5
family therapy offered by a regionally accredited college or university 6
or an accredited postgraduate clinical training program accredited by 7
the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy 8
Education offered by a regionally accredited institution of higher 9
education; (2) completed a supervised practicum or internship with 10
emphasis in marital and family therapy supervised by the program 11
granting the requisite degree or by an accredited postgraduate clinical 12
training program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for 13
Marriage and Family Therapy Education and offered by a regionally 14
accredited institution of higher education; (3) completed twenty-four 15
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months of relevant postgraduate experience, including (A) a minimum 16
of one thousand hours of direct client contact offering marital and 17
family therapy services subsequent to being awarded a master's degree 18
or doctorate or subsequent to the training year specified in subdivision 19
(2) of this subsection, and (B) one hundred hours of postgraduate 20
clinical supervision provided by a licensed marital and family therapist; 21
and (4) passed an examination prescribed by the department. The fee 22
shall be two hundred dollars for each initial application. 23
(b) Each applicant for licensure as a marital and family therapist 24
associate shall present to the department satisfactory evidence that such 25
applicant has completed a graduate degree program specializing in 26
marital and family therapy offered by a regionally accredited institution 27
of higher education or an accredited postgraduate clinical training 28
program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage 29
and Family Therapy Education and offered by a regionally accredited 30
institution of higher education. The fee shall be one hundred twenty-31
five dollars for each initial application. 32
(c) The department may grant licensure without examination, subject 33
to payment of fees with respect to the initial application, to any 34
applicant who is currently licensed or certified as a marital or marriage 35
and family therapist or a marital and family therapist associate in 36
another state, territory or commonwealth of the United States. [, 37
provided such state, territory or commonwealth maintains licensure or 38
certification standards which, in the opinion of the department, are 39
equivalent to or higher than the standards of this state.] No license shall 40
be issued under this section to any applicant against whom professional 41
disciplinary action is pending or who is the subject of an unresolved 42
complaint. 43
(d) (1) A license issued to a marital and family therapist issued under 44
this section may be renewed annually in accordance with the provisions 45
of section 19a-88. The fee for such renewal shall be two hundred dollars. 46
Each licensed marital and family therapist applying for license renewal 47
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shall furnish evidence satisfactory to the commissioner of having 48
participated in continuing education programs. The commissioner shall 49
adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, to (A) define basic 50
requirements for continuing education programs, which shall include 51
not less than one contact hour of training or education each registration 52
period on the topic of cultural competency and, on and after January 1, 53
2016, not less than two contact hours of training or education during the 54
first renewal period in which continuing education is required and not 55
less than once every six years thereafter on the topic of mental health 56
conditions common to veterans and family members of veterans, 57
including (i) determining whether a patient is a veteran or family 58
member of a veteran, (ii) screening for conditions such as post-traumatic 59
stress disorder, risk of suicide, depression and grief, and (iii) suicide 60
prevention training, (B) delineate qualifying programs, (C) establish a 61
system of control and reporting, and (D) provide for waiver of the 62
continuing education requirement for good cause. 63
(2) A license issued to a marital and family therapist associate (A) 64
prior to July 1, 2023 shall expire on or before twenty-four months after 65
the date on which such license was issued, and [,] (B) on or after July 1, 66
2023 shall expire on or before twelve months after the date on which 67
such license was issued. Such license may be renewed not more than 68
two times if issued prior to July 1, 2023, and not more than three times 69
if issued on or after July 1, 2023, for twelve months in accordance with 70
the provisions of section 19a-88. The fee for such renewal shall be one 71
hundred twenty-five dollars. Each licensed marital and family therapist 72
associate applying for license renewal shall furnish evidence 73
satisfactory to the commissioner of having satisfied the continuing 74
education requirements prescribed in subdivision (1) of this subsection. 75
[(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, an applicant who 76
is currently licensed or certified as a marital or marriage and family 77
therapist in another state, territory or commonwealth of the United 78
States that does not maintain standards for licensure or certification that 79
are equivalent to or higher than the standards in this state may 80
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substitute three years of licensed or certified work experience in the 81
practice of marital and family therapy, as defined in section 20-195a, in 82
lieu of the requirements of subdivisions (2) and (3) of subsection (a) of 83
this section.] 84
[(f)] (e) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, a person who 85
is a graduate of a graduate degree program or a postgraduate clinical 86
training program described in subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of this 87
section may practice marital and family therapy for a period not greater 88
than one hundred twenty calendar days after the date such person 89
completed such program, provided such person works under the 90
clinical supervision of a licensed marital family therapist. 91
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2025 20-195c
Statement of Purpose:
To allow the Department of Public Health to grant licensure without
examination to any person who is currently licensed or certified as a
marital or marriage and family therapist or a marital and family
therapist associate in another state, territory or commonwealth of the
United States.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]