By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 905
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the licensing and regulation of speech-language
pathologists and audiologists.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 401.2021, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 401.2021. RULES FOR HEARING INSTRUMENTS. With the
assistance of the advisory board [and the Hearing Instrument
Fitters and Dispensers Advisory Board], the commission shall adopt
rules to establish requirements for each sale of a hearing
instrument for purposes of this chapter [and Chapter 402]. The
rules must:
(1) address:
(A) the information and other provisions
required in each written contract for the purchase of a hearing
instrument;
(B) records that must be retained under this
chapter [or Chapter 402]; and
(C) guidelines for the 30-day trial period during
which a person may cancel the purchase of a hearing instrument; and
(2) require that the written contract and 30-day trial
period information provided to a purchaser of a hearing instrument
be in plain language designed to be easily understood by the average
consumer.
SECTION 2. Section 401.304, Occupations Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as
follows:
(a) To be eligible for licensing as a speech-language
pathologist or audiologist, an applicant must:
(1) if the application is for a license in:
(A) speech-language pathology, possess at least
a master's degree with a major in at least one of the areas of
communicative sciences or disorders [from a program accredited by a
national accrediting organization that is approved by the
commission or department and recognized by the United States
secretary of education under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. Section 1001 et seq.) in an accredited or approved college or
university]; or
(B) audiology, possess at least:
(i) a master's degree in audiology
conferred on or before December 31, 2007; or
(ii) a doctoral degree in audiology or a
related hearing science [from a program accredited by a national
accrediting organization that is approved by the commission or
department and recognized by the United States secretary of
education under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section
1001 et seq.) in an accredited or approved college or university];
(2) submit a transcript from a public or private
institution of higher learning showing successful completion of
course work in amounts set by the commission by rule in:
(A) normal development and use of speech,
language, and hearing;
(B) evaluation, habilitation, and rehabilitation
of speech, language, and hearing disorders; and
(C) related fields that augment the work of
clinical practitioners of speech-language pathology and audiology;
(3) have successfully completed at least 36 semester
hours in courses that are acceptable toward a graduate degree by the
college or university in which the courses are taken, at least 24 of
which must be in the professional area for which the license is
requested;
(4) have completed the minimum number of hours,
established by the commission by rule, of supervised clinical
experience with persons who present a variety of communication
disorders; and
(5) have completed the full-time supervised
professional experience, as defined by commission rule, in which
clinical work has been accomplished in the major professional area
for which the license is being sought.
(a-1) A degree required under Subsection (a)(1) must be
obtained from a program accredited by a national accrediting
organization that is approved by the commission or department and
recognized by the United States secretary of education under the
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section 1001 et seq.) in an
accredited or approved college or university.
SECTION 3. Section 401.308, Occupations Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 401.308. [PROVISIONAL LICENSE;] CERTIFICATE OF
CLINICAL COMPETENCE WAIVER. [(a) The department may grant a
provisional license to an applicant who:
[(1) is licensed in good standing as a speech-language
pathologist or an audiologist in another state that has licensing
requirements that are substantially equivalent to the requirements
of this chapter;
[(2) has passed a national or other examination
recognized by the department relating to speech-language pathology
or audiology; and
[(3) is sponsored by a license holder with whom the
provisional license holder may practice under this section.
[(b) An applicant for a provisional license may be excused
from the requirement of Subsection (a)(3) if the department
determines that compliance with that requirement is a hardship to
the applicant.
[(c) A provisional license is valid until the date the
department approves or denies the provisional license holder's
application for a license.
[(d) The department shall issue a license under this chapter
to a provisional license holder:
[(1) who passes the examination required by Section
401.305;
[(2) for whom the department verifies satisfaction of
the academic and experience requirements for a license under this
chapter; and
[(3) who satisfies any other license requirements
under this chapter.
[(e) The department shall complete the processing of a
provisional license holder's application for a license not later
than the 180th day after the date the provisional license is issued.
[(f)] The department may waive the examination requirement
and issue a license to an applicant who holds the Certificate of
Clinical Competence of the American Speech-Language-Hearing
Association.
SECTION 4. Section 401.404, Occupations Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 401.404. HEARING INSTRUMENT SALES TO MINORS. A
licensed audiologist may not sell a hearing instrument to a person
under 18 years of age unless the person or the parent or guardian of
the person presents to the audiologist a written statement signed
by a licensed physician [who specializes in diseases of the ear]
stating that:
(1) the person's hearing loss has been medically
evaluated during the six-month period preceding the date the
statement is presented; and
(2) the person may be considered a candidate for a
hearing instrument.
SECTION 5. Section 402.1021, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 402.1021. RULES FOR HEARING INSTRUMENTS. With the
assistance of the advisory board [and the Speech-Language
Pathologists and Audiologists Advisory Board], the commission
shall adopt rules to establish requirements for each sale of a
hearing instrument for purposes of this chapter [and Chapter 401].
The rules must:
(1) address:
(A) the information and other provisions
required in each written contract for the purchase of a hearing
instrument;
(B) records that must be retained under this
chapter [or Chapter 401]; and
(C) guidelines for the 30-day trial period during
which a person may cancel the purchase of a hearing instrument; and
(2) require that the written contract and 30-day trial
period information provided to a purchaser of a hearing instrument
be in plain language designed to be easily understood by the average
consumer.
SECTION 6. Section 401.404, Occupations Code, as amended by
this Act, applies only to conduct that occurs on or after the
effective date of this Act. Conduct that occurs before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
date the conduct occurred, and the former law is continued in effect
for that purpose.
SECTION 7. (a) A provisional license issued under Section
401.308, Occupations Code, before the effective date of this Act
that is in effect on that date continues to be valid until the
license expires, and the provisions of Section 401.308, Occupations
Code, repealed by this Act continue in effect for that purpose.
Chapter 401, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act, continues to
apply to a holder of an unexpired provisional license.
(b) On or after the effective date of this Act, the Texas
Department of Licensing and Regulation may not renew or extend a
provisional license issued under Section 401.308, Occupations
Code, before the effective date of this Act.
(c) A proceeding under Chapter 51 or 401, Occupations Code,
that is pending against a holder of a provisional license on the
date the license expires is terminated on that date.
SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.