HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 4584

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, March 14, 2022.

The committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure to whom was referred the petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 455) of Jon Santiago and others relative to Division of Professional Licensure demographics reporting, reports recommending that the accompanying bill (House, No. 4584) ought to pass.

For the committee,

TACKEY CHAN.

        FILED ON: 1/31/2022

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 4584

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Second General Court
(2021-2022)

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An Act relative to licensure demographics reporting.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1.  Chapter 13 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after Section 109 the following new section:-

Section 110. The department of public health shall collect and publish on an annual basis the demographic data of applicants for initial licensure and renewal of licensure in professions that provide mental health and addiction treatment. At a minimum, the department of public health shall report data from the following boards of registration:

(a)  Board of registration in social work;

(b)  Board of registration in the allied mental health and human services professions; and

(c)  Board of registration of psychologists.

The applicable boards of registration shall collect the following information for each applicant:

(a)  Race;

(b)  Ethnicity;

(c)  Primary and secondary language;

(d)  Gender;

(e)  Gender Expression;

(f)   All counties where applicant intends to practice or currently practices;

(g)  School where master’s degree was conferred;

(h)  Years of prior experience in the field of behavioral health;

(i) Jurisdictions where currently or previously licensed;

(j) Application decision, and if application resulted in denial, the division or department shall report on the reasons for denial; and

(k)   Speed of application decision.

The department of public health shall publish this data in aggregate form no later than 90 days after the close of the fiscal year. Published data shall be available in searchable, sortable format to allow for the cross-tabulation of statistical variables.

SECTION 2. The department of public health shall complete all obligations under this act within six months of enactment of section 1.