MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

1998 Regular Session

To: Public Health and Welfare

By: Senator(s) Ferris, Hall

AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE CERTIFICATION OF PROFESSIONAL ART THERAPISTS BY THE STATE BOARD OF HEALTH; TO CREATE THE PROFESSIONAL ART THERAPISTS ADVISORY COUNCIL TO ADVISE THE BOARD ON MATTERS RELATING TO THE ADMINISTRATION OF THIS ACT; TO PRESCRIBE THE POWERS OF THE BOARD IN ADMINISTERING THIS ACT; TO PRESCRIBE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTIFICATION OF PROFESSIONAL ART THERAPISTS; TO PROVIDE FOR FEES; TO SPECIFY THE GROUNDS FOR SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION OF A PROFESSIONAL ART THERAPIST CERTIFICATE; TO CREATE A SPECIAL FUND IN THE STATE TREASURY INTO WHICH SHALL BE DEPOSITED FUNDS RECEIVED BY THE BOARD UNDER THIS ACT; TO PROVIDE THAT THIS ACT SHALL NOT APPLY TO PERSONS LICENSED, CERTIFIED OR REGISTERED UNDER OTHER PROVISIONS OF MISSISSIPPI LAW; TO PROVIDE FOR CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS OF THIS ACT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. As used in this act, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) "Board" means the State Board of Health;

(b) "Certified professional art therapist" means a person who has completed a master's or doctoral degree program in art therapy, or an equivalent course of study, from an accredited educational institution and who is certified by the board;

(c) "Certificate holder" means a certified professional art therapist certified under the provisions of this act;

(d) "Accredited institution" means a university or college accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency of institutions of higher education, or an institution or clinical program approved by the American Art Therapy Association, Inc.

SECTION 2. (1) There is created the Professional Art Therapists Advisory Council. The purpose of the council is to advise the State Board of Health on matters relating to the administration and interpretation of the provisions of this act. The council shall consist of three (3) members who are professional art therapists certified pursuant to Section 4 of this act and who have engaged in art therapy practice or teaching for at least five (5) years, and two (2) members who are family members of consumers of art therapy services. All council members shall be citizens of the United States and residents of Mississippi. Provided, however, that the initial certified art therapist appointments shall meet requirements for certification and be certified within two (2) years after their appointment. Within sixty (60) days after July 1, 1998, the board shall appoint two (2) members of the council for two (2) years, two (2) members of the council for three (3) years and one (1) member of the council for one (1) year. All subsequent appointments to the council shall be appointed by the board for terms of four (4) years, beginning on July 1 of the year of appointment.

(2) Members of the council shall receive no compensation or per diem for their service on the council, but may receive reimbursement for travel expenses incurred in attending council meetings, as provided in Section 25-3-41.

(3) The council shall elect annually from its membership a chairman and any other officers as necessary to carry out its duties. The council shall meet at least two (2) times each year. Additional meetings may be called by the chairman, upon the written request of at least two (2) members of the council. Three (3) council members shall constitute a quorum of the council.

SECTION 3. The board shall:

(a) Promulgate regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this act;

(b) Require that all applicants register for and satisfactorily pass the national board certification examination administered by the Art Therapy Credentials Board of the American Art Therapy Association;

(c) Establish the application deadline for and score required to pass the examination;

(d) Process applications and conduct and review the required examinations;

(e) Issue certificates to applicants who meet the requirements of Sections 4 through 7 of this act;

(f) Deny, suspend or revoke a certificate to practice art therapy;

(g) Censure, reprimand or place a certificate holder or applicant on probation for a period not to exceed one (1) year;

(h) Maintain a current register of certificate holders as a matter of public record;

(i) Establish criteria for continuing education;

(j) Establish procedures for receiving, investigating and resolving complaints against certificate holders;

(k) Approve the level of supervision and experience required for persons seeking certification;

(l) Assess fees for the issuance and renewal of certificates to cover expenses of the board in administering this act;

(m) Implement an impaired professional art therapist treatment program; and

(n) Adopt a code of ethics as established by the American Art Therapy Association.

SECTION 4. (1) The board shall issue a certificate as a certified professional art therapist to any person who files a completed application, accompanied by the required fees, and who submits satisfactory evidence that the applicant is at least twenty-one (21) years of age, demonstrates professional competency by satisfactorily passing the required examination, is a registered art therapist as defined by the Art Therapy Credentials Board, Inc., is a certified art therapist as defined by the Art Therapy Credentials Board, Inc., and has:

(a) Received a master's degree or doctoral degree in art therapy that includes six hundred (600) hours of supervised internship experience from an accredited institution and has completed an additional one thousand (1,000) client contact hours of postgraduate experience under appropriate supervision; or

(b) Received a master's degree or doctoral degree in a related field, has a minimum of twenty-one (21) semester hours of sequential coursework in the history, theory, and practice of art therapy, has completed seven hundred (700) hours of supervised internship experience from an accredited institution, and has completed an additional two thousand (2,000) client contact hours of postgraduate experience under appropriate supervision.

(2) The board shall issue a certificate as a certified professional art therapist to any person who received registration from the American Art Therapy Association prior to 1980.

(3) The board may approve on a case-by-case basis applicants who have a master's degree or a doctoral degree from nonaccredited institutions.

(4) If an applicant has met all of the requirements for certification except satisfactorily passing the required examination, the applicant shall be scheduled to take the next examination following the approval of the examination.

(5) An applicant for certification as a professional art therapist may be certified without examination if the applicant files a completed application within one (1) year of the effective date of this act, accompanied by the required fees, and if the board determines that the applicant meets all other requirements for certification as a professional art therapist.

(6) All applicants who have completed the educational and internship qualifications required under subsection (1)(a) or (b) may be granted provisional certification if they are under the direct supervision of a certified professional art therapist while completing the required client contact hours of experience. Such provisional certificate shall be valid for no more than a five-year period.

(7) The board may issue a certificate to an applicant without examination if the person possesses a valid regulatory document issued by the appropriate examining board under the laws of any other state or territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or any foreign nation that in the judgment of the board has requirements substantially equivalent to or exceeding the requirements in this section.

(8) The council may set criteria for continuing education and supervisory experience.

SECTION 5. (1) Each certificate holder shall renew the certificate to practice art therapy biennially by submitting a renewal application on a form provided by the board, paying a certificate renewal fee, and producing evidence of completion of relevant professional continuing education experience satisfactory to the council, not to exceed forty (40) hours per renewal cycle.

(2) A ninety-day grace period shall be allowed for each certificate holder after the certification period, during which time the certificate may be renewed upon payment of the renewal fee, the late fee, and compliance with all renewal requirements.

(3) Any certificate granted by the board shall be automatically suspended if the holder fails to apply for the certificate renewal pursuant to this section within a period of three (3) months after the renewal deadline; however, any suspended certificate may be restored by the board upon payment of a reinstatement fee not to exceed One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) in addition to any unpaid renewal or late fees. Failure to renew a certificate within three (3) months from the date of suspension as provided in this section shall cause the certificate to be automatically revoked. Reinstatement of a revoked certificate shall require the certificate holder to reapply and meet all current standards for certification.

(4) A person certified under the provisions of Section 4 of this act who intends to retire as a certified professional art therapist shall notify the board in writing before the expiration of his current certification. If, within a period of five (5) years from the year of retirement, the certificate holder wishes to resume practice as a certified professional art therapist, he shall notify the board in writing, and upon giving proof of completing the required continuing education and the payment of an amount equivalent to elapsed renewal fees, the certificate shall be restored in full effect.

SECTION 6. The board shall set the amount of the fees required to be paid by applicants for certification and certificate holders including, but not limited to, the following:

(a) For an application for initial certification, the fee shall be nonrefundable and shall not exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00);

(b) The renewal fee shall not exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00);

(c) For a duplicate or replacement certificate, the fee shall not exceed Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00);

(d) For failure to renew a certificate within the allotted grace period pursuant to Section 5 of this act, the fee shall not exceed One Hundred Dollars ($100.00); and

(e) Other reasonable fees for administrative services.

SECTION 7. (1) The board may deny any application, or suspend or revoke any certificate held or applied for under the provisions of Section 4 of this act if the person:

(a) Is found guilty of fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation in procuring or attempting to procure a certificate to practice art therapy;

(b) Is adjudicated mentally incompetent;

(c) Is found guilty of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude;

(d) Is found guilty of unprofessional or unethical conduct in this or any other jurisdiction;

(e) Has been using any controlled substance or alcoholic beverage to an extent or in a manner dangerous to the person, any other person, or the public, or to an extent that the use impairs the ability to perform as a certified professional art therapist;

(f) Has violated any provision of this act; or

(g) Willfully or negligently divulges a professional confidence.

(2) A certified copy of the record of conviction shall be conclusive evidence of the conviction.

(3) Disciplinary proceedings may be initiated upon the receipt by the board of a sworn complaint by any person, including members of the board.

SECTION 8. There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to be known as the Professional Art Therapy Practice Fund. All funds received by the board under the provisions of Sections 4 through 7 of this act shall be deposited in the fund. Any interest earned on the fund shall be credited to the fund and shall not be paid into the State General Fund. Any unexpended funds remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the General Fund. The money in the fund shall be used by the board, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this act.

SECTION 9. (1) The provisions of this act shall not apply to persons licensed, certified, or registered under any other provisions of Mississippi law, including, but not limited to, physicians, social workers, psychologists and nurses, or students within accredited training programs of these professions. Nothing in this act shall be construed to limit, interfere with, or restrict the practice, descriptions of services, or manner in which these persons hold themselves out to the public.

(2) No person shall use the title "certified professional art therapist" or hold himself out as having this status, unless he is certified as such by the board.

SECTION 10. Any person who violates the provisions of this act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), or sentenced to three (3) months in the county jail, or both, for each violation.

SECTION 11. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 1998.