Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB905 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 905
	2	+	(In the Senate - Filed January 24, 2025; February 13, 2025,
	3	+	read first time and referred to Committee on Health & Human
	4	+	Services; May 5, 2025, reported adversely, with favorable
	5	+	Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 9, Nays 0;
	6	+	May 5, 2025, sent to printer.)
	7	+	Click here to see the committee vote
	8	+	COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 905 By: Perry
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6	13		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
7	14		AN ACT
8	15		relating to the licensing and regulation of speech-language
9	16		pathologists and audiologists.
10	17		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	18		SECTION 1. Section 401.2021, Occupations Code, is amended
12	19		to read as follows:
13	20		Sec. 401.2021. RULES FOR HEARING INSTRUMENTS. With the
14	21		assistance of the advisory board [and the Hearing Instrument
15	22		Fitters and Dispensers Advisory Board], the commission shall adopt
16	23		rules to establish requirements for each sale of a hearing
17	24		instrument for purposes of this chapter [and Chapter 402]. The
18	25		rules must:
19	26		(1) address:
20	27		(A) the information and other provisions
21	28		required in each written contract for the purchase of a hearing
22	29		instrument;
23	30		(B) records that must be retained under this
24	31		chapter [or Chapter 402]; and
25	32		(C) guidelines for the 30-day trial period during
26	33		which a person may cancel the purchase of a hearing instrument; and
27	34		(2) require that the written contract and 30-day trial
28	35		period information provided to a purchaser of a hearing instrument
29	36		be in plain language designed to be easily understood by the average
30	37		consumer.
31		-	SECTION 2. Section 401.304, Occupations Code, is amended by
32		-	amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as
33		-	follows:
34		-	(a) To be eligible for licensing as a speech-language
35		-	pathologist or audiologist, an applicant must:
36		-	(1) if the application is for a license in:
37		-	(A) speech-language pathology, possess at least
38		-	a master's degree with a major in at least one of the areas of
39		-	communicative sciences or disorders [from a program accredited by a
40		-	national accrediting organization that is approved by the
41		-	commission or department and recognized by the United States
42		-	secretary of education under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
43		-	U.S.C. Section 1001 et seq.) in an accredited or approved college or
44		-	university]; or
45		-	(B) audiology, possess at least:
46		-	(i) a master's degree in audiology
47		-	conferred on or before December 31, 2007; or
48		-	(ii) a doctoral degree in audiology or a
49		-	related hearing science [from a program accredited by a national
50		-	accrediting organization that is approved by the commission or
51		-	department and recognized by the United States secretary of
52		-	education under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section
53		-	1001 et seq.) in an accredited or approved college or university];
54		-	(2) submit a transcript from a public or private
55		-	institution of higher learning showing successful completion of
56		-	course work in amounts set by the commission by rule in:
57		-	(A) normal development and use of speech,
58		-	language, and hearing;
59		-	(B) evaluation, habilitation, and rehabilitation
60		-	of speech, language, and hearing disorders; and
61		-	(C) related fields that augment the work of
62		-	clinical practitioners of speech-language pathology and audiology;
63		-	(3) have successfully completed at least 36 semester
64		-	hours in courses that are acceptable toward a graduate degree by the
65		-	college or university in which the courses are taken, at least 24 of
66		-	which must be in the professional area for which the license is
67		-	requested;
68		-	(4) have completed the minimum number of hours,
69		-	established by the commission by rule, of supervised clinical
70		-	experience with persons who present a variety of communication
71		-	disorders; and
72		-	(5) have completed the full-time supervised
73		-	professional experience, as defined by commission rule, in which
74		-	clinical work has been accomplished in the major professional area
75		-	for which the license is being sought.
76		-	(a-1) A degree required under Subsection (a)(1) must be
77		-	obtained from a program accredited by a national accrediting
78		-	organization that is approved by the commission or department and
79		-	recognized by the United States secretary of education under the
80		-	Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section 1001 et seq.) in an
81		-	accredited or approved college or university.
82		-	SECTION 3. Section 401.308, Occupations Code, is amended to
	38	+	SECTION 2. Section 401.308, Occupations Code, is amended to
83	39		read as follows:
84	40		Sec. 401.308. [PROVISIONAL LICENSE;] CERTIFICATE OF
85	41		CLINICAL COMPETENCE WAIVER. [(a) The department may grant a
86	42		provisional license to an applicant who:
87	43		[(1) is licensed in good standing as a speech-language
88	44		pathologist or an audiologist in another state that has licensing
89	45		requirements that are substantially equivalent to the requirements
90	46		of this chapter;
91	47		[(2) has passed a national or other examination
92	48		recognized by the department relating to speech-language pathology
93	49		or audiology; and
94	50		[(3) is sponsored by a license holder with whom the
95	51		provisional license holder may practice under this section.
96	52		[(b) An applicant for a provisional license may be excused
97	53		from the requirement of Subsection (a)(3) if the department
98	54		determines that compliance with that requirement is a hardship to
99	55		the applicant.
100	56		[(c) A provisional license is valid until the date the
101	57		department approves or denies the provisional license holder's
102	58		application for a license.
103	59		[(d) The department shall issue a license under this chapter
104	60		to a provisional license holder:
105	61		[(1) who passes the examination required by Section
106	62		401.305;
107	63		[(2) for whom the department verifies satisfaction of
108	64		the academic and experience requirements for a license under this
109	65		chapter; and
110	66		[(3) who satisfies any other license requirements
111	67		under this chapter.
112	68		[(e) The department shall complete the processing of a
113	69		provisional license holder's application for a license not later
114	70		than the 180th day after the date the provisional license is issued.
115	71		[(f)] The department may waive the examination requirement
116	72		and issue a license to an applicant who holds the Certificate of
117	73		Clinical Competence of the American Speech-Language-Hearing
118	74		Association.
119		-	SECTION 4. Section 401.404, Occupations Code, is amended to
	75	+	SECTION 3. Section 401.404, Occupations Code, is amended to
120	76		read as follows:
121	77		Sec. 401.404. HEARING INSTRUMENT SALES TO MINORS. A
122	78		licensed audiologist may not sell a hearing instrument to a person
123	79		under 18 years of age unless the person or the parent or guardian of
124	80		the person presents to the audiologist a written statement signed
125	81		by a licensed physician [who specializes in diseases of the ear]
126	82		stating that:
127	83		(1) the person's hearing loss has been medically
128	84		evaluated during the six-month period preceding the date the
129	85		statement is presented; and
130	86		(2) the person may be considered a candidate for a
131	87		hearing instrument.
132		-	SECTION 5. Section 402.1021, Occupations Code, is amended
	88	+	SECTION 4. Section 402.1021, Occupations Code, is amended
133	89		to read as follows:
134	90		Sec. 402.1021. RULES FOR HEARING INSTRUMENTS. With the
135	91		assistance of the advisory board [and the Speech-Language
136	92		Pathologists and Audiologists Advisory Board], the commission
137	93		shall adopt rules to establish requirements for each sale of a
138	94		hearing instrument for purposes of this chapter [and Chapter 401].
139	95		The rules must:
140	96		(1) address:
141	97		(A) the information and other provisions
142	98		required in each written contract for the purchase of a hearing
143	99		instrument;
144	100		(B) records that must be retained under this
145	101		chapter [or Chapter 401]; and
146	102		(C) guidelines for the 30-day trial period during
147	103		which a person may cancel the purchase of a hearing instrument; and
148	104		(2) require that the written contract and 30-day trial
149	105		period information provided to a purchaser of a hearing instrument
150	106		be in plain language designed to be easily understood by the average
151	107		consumer.
152		-	SECTION 6. Section 401.404, Occupations Code, as amended by
	108	+	SECTION 5. Section 401.404, Occupations Code, as amended by
153	109		this Act, applies only to conduct that occurs on or after the
154	110		effective date of this Act. Conduct that occurs before the
155	111		effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
156	112		date the conduct occurred, and the former law is continued in effect
157	113		for that purpose.
158		-	SECTION 7. (a) A provisional license issued under Section
	114	+	SECTION 6. (a) A provisional license issued under Section
159	115		401.308, Occupations Code, before the effective date of this Act
160	116		that is in effect on that date continues to be valid until the
161	117		license expires, and the provisions of Section 401.308, Occupations
162	118		Code, repealed by this Act continue in effect for that purpose.
163	119		Chapter 401, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act, continues to
164	120		apply to a holder of an unexpired provisional license.
165	121		(b) On or after the effective date of this Act, the Texas
166	122		Department of Licensing and Regulation may not renew or extend a
167	123		provisional license issued under Section 401.308, Occupations
168	124		Code, before the effective date of this Act.
169	125		(c) A proceeding under Chapter 51 or 401, Occupations Code,
170	126		that is pending against a holder of a provisional license on the
171	127		date the license expires is terminated on that date.
172		-	SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.
	128	+	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.
	129	+	* * * * *