Dr. Bob Bakko directs and rallies our legislative efforts.
Lobbyist, Gloria Hermanson monitors and advocates for us in the corridors of the Capital.
The Board of the Montana Licensed Clinical Professional Counselors Association is particularly interested in Senate Bill 235 and Senate Bill 287 during this 2009 legislative session:
Senate Bill 235 entitled "Clarify Law on Who May Indicate Performance of Psychological Testing" is a bill the MLCPCA Board has initiated to redress the change made to the Psychologist law in the 2005 legislature. SB 235 seeks to reclaim the use of the adjective "psychological" as well as its derivatives. The use of the word "psychological" to describe services rendered is a very different thing than claiming the title of "Psychologist."
In addition to our lobbyist, Gloria Hermanson, the MLCPCA Board has retained the law services of Gough, Shanahan, Johnson & Waterman, in Helena to guide us in this process. It has become apparent that the 2005 law change was a ploy meant to restrict a variety of services rendered by anyone other than a Psychologist. The opponents to this bill want to submit that only their credentialing process qualifies them to provide any service which could be described as "psychological." In fact the American Mental Health Counselors Association as well as our own Montana State Law provide guidance, structure, practice standards and limits for accreditation and delivery of said services. As much as some might want to make it so, our qualifications are not in question in this law. The importance of the scope of practice has already been codified in the Montana State Law.
SB 235 reinstates a standard of public awareness that has been in place since the 1980s. Only since 2005 have we been limited in our public descriptions. This bill will not expand our practice nor limit another profession. It is only allowing us to state publically what we are already allowed and trained to do.
The Public Health, Welfare and Safety Committee in the Senate saw fit to pass our proposal in a 6 to 1 vote. On the Senate Floor it passed 40 to 9, but our work is not done. SB 235 has been assigned to the House Business and Labor Committee. When it is scheduled for a hearing we would appreciate your presence as well as your solicitation of the committee. You can follow the current status of SB 235 via the Montana Legislative on line service or at this MLCPCA Legislative website
More history of this bill is available at the bottom of this page. Also, contact the MLCPCA Board with the Contact Us tab to the left and let us know of your interests, concerns and questions. which we plan on updating regularly. As this bill moves through the House we will need your help.
For Your Information the House Business and Labor Committee members consist of:
Chair- Bill Wilson (D) Great Falls bw208@bresnan.net
Michele Reinhart Vice Chair (D) Missoula michelereinhart@gmail.com
Elsie Arntzen (R) Billings emartzen@excite.com
Shannon Augare (D) Browning shannonjaugare@aol.com
Paul Beck (D) Red Lodge paul@beckforcarboncounty.com
Tom Berry (R) Roundup tom@tomberrymt.com
Carlie Boland (D) ccboland@bresnan.net
John Fleming (D) St. Ignatius fleming@stignatus.net
Timothy Furey (D) Milltown tifurey@montana.com
Pat Noonan (D) Ramsay pnoonan736@yahoo.com
Chuck Hunter (D) Helena chunter717@bresnan.net
Harry Klock (R) Harlowtown klock@mtintouch.net
Mike Milburn (R) Cascade mmilburn@mcn.net
Scott Reichner (R) Big Fork sreichner@centurytel.net
Cary Smith (R) Billings cary@bresnan.net
Gordon Vance (R) Bozeman vancehd67@gmail.com
Jeffrey Welborn (R) Dillon
Bill Beck Vice Chair (R) Whitefish bbeck@centurytel.net
Senate Bill 287 entitled "The Consumer Health Freedom and Access to Health Care Services Act" will take away the necessity for credentialing and licensure for unscrupulous practitioners. An uninformed and innocent public will be unprotected from the breath of this law. The requirements of licensure and the codes of ethics imbued with standards of practice are lost with the intent of broadening Montana independence.
The MLCPCA Board is opposed to this bill. You can track the current status of SB 287 or check back to this website to follow its status and know when and how to respond. Unfortunately this bill passed the Business, Labor, and Economic Affairs Committee (9-yes and 2-no) in the Senate and passed upon the third reading on the Senate floor (32-yes to 18-no). It is now headed to the House where it will be assigned to a House Committee. Stay tuned and participate.
When you Contact Us with the tab to the left we will have a means to quickly keep you abreast of the progress of these bills and when it would be most effective to contact various legislators.
Your willingness to participate in this process will further our profession and enhance our presence in the state. It is important to vote at our tolling places on election day, it is just as important to engage and inform the legislators who have responded to our call to service. Let them know of your position on these and other issues.
To identify your specific legislators (on both at the state and national levels), enter your nine digit zip code at vote smart.
As for a history of Senate Bill 235 ...
The Board of Licensed Clinical Professional Counselors Assoc. became aware of a purposeful change to the Psychologist law right after the 2005 legislature ended. This action is clearly a “turf” decision to restrict our practice and prevent us from providing necessary mental health care according to our law. Several LCPC’s and LCSW’s have had cease and desist orders served on them as a result of the amendment to the Psychologists law in 2005. These cease and desist orders have also been posted on the Web unfairly representing to the public that these individuals have been served. This “turf” action effects all LCPC’s especially those who conduct any assessments, evaluations, child custody or parenting evaluations, reports to the court or DPHHS. The amendment added to 37-17-102 (5) of Montana Codes Annotated that:
“A person represents to the public that the person is a “psychologist” when the person uses a title or description of services incorporating the words psychologist, psychological, psychologic or psychology and offers or renders psychological services defined in subsection (4) to individuals, groups, corporations or the public, whether or not the person does so for compensation or fee.”
Our Practice Law clearly allows those with training to administer testing and evaluations and or write appropriate reports of the assessment or evaluation. As of 2005 we restricted from using the words listed above to describe what we are doing or its content. It is preposterous to assume that any profession owns the word psychology, psychologic or psychological. Hello! All mental health professions use these terms interchangeably in their own specific course of study. Try to go through a week of practice without using the forbidden words or terms. Several other States have had to confront this same attempt by psychologists in their States. The psychologists have lost in their attempts. September of 2007 your LCPCA Board approved retaining Ron Waterman, Attorney at Law, with Gough, Shanahan, Johnson & Waterman, in Helena, to develop and implement appropriate legal steps to correct this problem. Additionally, our Licensure Board has stepped up assertively to protect LCPC’s and LCSW’s by beginning the process of seeking an Attorney General Opinion on this matter and opening dialogue with the Psychologist Licensure Board. LCPCA President Tom Ferro, Board Member Bob Bakko, LCPCA Attorney Ron Waterman, and John Wilkinson NASW Exec. Director met with our Licensure Board March 14 to discuss and present our agenda openly. A representative of the Psychologist Licensure Board was present by phone conferencing. Ron Waterman did an outstanding job communicating to the psychologists the several important items we have in common. He then communicated directly the legal problems with their law and the problems it creates for us and equally important those individuals needing mental health care which is denied because of the conflict with our laws. Bob Bakko introduced to our Licensure Board the changes we are proposing for the 2009 legislature to strengthen our law. We are proposing the following:
- Amend 37-23-102(3)(ii)(b), MCA by inserting at the end of subparagraph (b) the clause which defines assessment, the phrase: “including, where administered by appropriate trained individuals, the administration of psychological tests.”
- Amend 37-17-104(1) MCA by inserting after “counselors” the phrase “individuals governed by 37-23-101, et. seq, MCA.”
- Amend 37-17-104(1) inserting at the end of the subparagraph the following: “provided, however, that such qualified members of other professions may administer assessments and indicate they perform psychological testing, provided they are licensed and otherwise qualified to administer such tests.
President Tom Ferro then asked the representative from Board of Psychologists, “In the spirit of good faith, to go back to his Board and present to them that they immediately stop serving cease and desist orders to LCPC’s and LCSW’s who are in violation of this conflicting law.” The representative said he would communicate President Ferro’s request. The next meeting of both Licensure Boards is scheduled for April 25th in Helena. Dr. Jill Thorngren will represent LCPC’s from our Licensure Board and Ron Waterman will represent LCPCA, President Ferro and Bob Bakko will be on phone conferencing. We are encouraged and impressed with the resolve of our Licensure Board. This is a serious threat to our law and overall practice of our profession. It is a threat to the general public. We have the support of our parent organization the American Mental Health Counselors Association, National Board of Certified Counselors and the Fair Access Coalition on Testing. Tom Ferro and Bob Bakko met with John Wilkinson Exec. Dir. Of NASW in Montana to openly discuss how we can work together. Our meeting was very productive.
