SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2673
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
_______________
SENATE, April 1, 2024.
The committee on Higher Education, to whom was referred the petitions (accompanied
by bill, Senate, No. 160) of Sal N. DiDomenico, Manny Cruz, Susannah M. Whipps, Jack
Patrick Lewis and other members of the General Court for legislation relative to Social Work
Uplifting Practices and Exam Removal (“The SUPER Act”), report the accompanying bill
(Senate, No. 2673).
For the committee,
Joanne M. Comerford 1 of 4
FILED ON: 2/7/2024
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2673
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
_______________
An Act relative to social work uplifting practices and exam removal..
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. The first paragraph of section 131 of chapter 112 of the General Laws, is
2hereby amended by striking out the words “has passed an examination prepared by the board for
3this purpose;”.
4 SECTION 2. The first sentence of the first paragraph of section 132 of chapter 112 of the
5General Laws is hereby amended by striking the words “Examinations for licensed certified
6social workers, including those in independent clinical practice” and inserting in place thereof
7the following words:- Examinations for licensed independent clinical social workers.
8 SECTION 3. Chapter 112 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
9section 135C the following section:-
10 Section 135D. To ensure a stable, diverse workforce of licensed social workers in the
11Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and to provide for increased support and retention of
12practicing licensed social workers, the executive office of health and human services shall create
13and administer a field placement grant program. The program shall, subject to appropriation, 2 of 4
14provide grant funding to designated recipients with a specific focus on recruiting and retaining
15Masters of Social Work (MSW) students from historically marginalized communities and low-
16income communities. Funds to establish this program shall be allocated from state, federal, or
17other dedicated resources, including existing trust funds.
18 Eligible applicants must attend a school of social work Masters program physically
19located in Massachusetts that has been accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.
20 To be eligible for consideration, applicants must submit the following:
21 (i) Applicant demographic background information, including, but not limited to, race,
22ethnicity, geographic location in the state, and date of birth for purposes of data collection;
23 (ii) Applicant’s school of social work, type of Masters program, and grade point average;
24 (iii) Applicant’s stated and signed commitment to working in Massachusetts post-
25graduation for at least 2 years; and
26 (iv) Applicant’s 1-page statement on the importance of this stipend in the applicant’s life
27and how the grant will support their educational goals and the workforce needs of the
28Commonwealth.
29 Priority for the field placement grant program shall go to first-generation college students
30and persons from currently underrepresented communities in the social worker profession.
31Applications will be submitted and considered on a rolling basis between January 1st and no
32later than March 1st of each year. Recipients of stipends shall be notified no later than April
3315th.
34 Stipends shall be allocated as follows: 3 of 4
35 (i) A current MSW student in good standing completing their first-year field placement of
3616 hours per week shall be eligible for a monthly stipend of $1,000 per month, not to exceed
37$8,000 annually.
38 (ii) A current MSW student in good standing completing their second-year field
39placement of 24 hours per week shall be eligible for a monthly stipend of $2,000 per month, not
40to exceed a total of $16,000 annually.
41 (iii) Advanced standing students who are only required to conduct one field placement
42shall be eligible for the second-year field placement stipend.
43 Applicant data, including application details submitted, shall be tracked by the executive
44office so that the program efficacy can be evaluated.
45 SECTION 4. Section 136 of chapter 112 of the General Laws is hereby amended by
46inserting after the fourth paragraph the following paragraph:-
47 Licensed independent clinical social workers engaged in independent clinical practice
48who provide one-on-one supervision to a licensed certified social worker, Masters of social work
49intern, or Bachelors of social work intern, shall be eligible to receive up to 8 continuing
50education credits during a licensing period for this supervision.
51 SECTION 5. The executive office of health and human services shall conduct an
52evaluation of the impact of removal of the licensing examination requirement for Licensed
53Certified Social Workers under sections 1 and 2. The executive office shall contract with an
54independent evaluation consultant to perform the evaluation. The evaluation shall include an
55analysis of the impact of removing the examination requirement on alleviating shortages of 4 of 4
56qualified social workers, expanding access to quality behavioral health services, increasing the
57diversity of the social worker workforce among diverse language skills, race, ethnicity, and
58cultural backgrounds, and the impact of any increase in diversity on patient care, particularly for
59vulnerable populations. In preparing the evaluation, the consultant shall meet with
60representatives of organizations representing social workers, social work education, social work
61testing, social work patients, behavioral health advocacy organizations, and other groups that
62may assist the evaluation. The evaluation and analysis shall be conducted independently of the
63executive office. The executive office shall submit the evaluation to the committee on higher
64education, the committee on mental health, substance use and recovery and the house and senate
65committees on ways and means no later than July 1, 2028.
66 SECTION 6. Sections 1 and 2 are hereby repealed.
67 SECTION 7. Sections 1 and 2 shall take effect on January 1, 2026. Section 6 shall take
68effect on July 1, 2029.