Senate Bill 2061

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 73-50-2, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO EXEMPT PSYCHOLOGISTS FROM THE UNIVERSAL RECOGNITION OF OCCUPATIONAL LICENSES ACT; TO AMEND SECTION 73-31-15, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM TO THE PRECEDING PROVISION; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. Section 73-50-2, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

73-50-2. (1) This section shall be known as the "Universal Recognition of Occupational Licenses Act."

(2) As used in this section, the term:

(a) "License" means any license (other than a privilege license), certificate, registration, permit or other evidence of qualification that an individual is required by the state to obtain before he or she may engage in or represent himself or herself to be a member of a particular profession or occupation.

(b) "Occupational licensing board" means any state board, commission, department or other agency in Mississippi that is established for the primary purpose of regulating the entry of persons into, and/or the conduct of persons within, a particular profession or occupation, and which is authorized to issue licenses. For the purposes of this section, the State Department of Education shall be considered an occupational licensing board when issuing teacher licenses under Section 37-3-2.

(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an occupational licensing board shall issue a license or government certification in the discipline applied for and at the same practice level to a person who establishes residence in this state if, upon application to an occupational licensing board, the applicant satisfies the following conditions:

(a) The applicant holds a current and valid license in good standing in another state in an occupation with a similar scope of practice, as determined by the occupational licensing board in Mississippi, and has held this license from the occupational licensing board in the other state for at least one (1) year; and

(b) There were minimum education requirements and, if applicable, work experience, examination and clinical supervision requirements in effect, and the other state verifies that the applicant met those requirements in order to be licensed in that state; and

(c) The applicant has not committed any act in the other state that would have constituted grounds for refusal, suspension or revocation of a license to practice that occupation in Mississippi at the time the act was committed, and the applicant does not have a disqualifying criminal record as determined by the occupational licensing board in Mississippi under Mississippi law; and

(d) The applicant did not surrender a license because of negligence or intentional misconduct related to the applicant's work in the occupation in another state; and

(e) The applicant does not have a complaint, allegation or investigation pending before an occupational licensing board or other board in another state that relates to unprofessional conduct or an alleged crime. If the applicant has a complaint, allegation or investigation pending, the occupational licensing board in Mississippi shall not issue or deny a license to the applicant until the complaint, allegation or investigation is resolved, or the applicant otherwise satisfies the criteria for licensure in Mississippi to the satisfaction of the occupational licensing board in Mississippi; and

(f) The applicant pays all applicable fees in Mississippi.

(4) Notwithstanding any other law, the occupational licensing board shall issue a license to an applicant in the discipline applied for and at the same practice level, as determined by the occupational licensing board, to a person who establishes residence in this state based on work experience in another state, if all the following apply:

(a) The applicant worked in a state that does not use a license to regulate a lawful occupation, but Mississippi uses a license to regulate a lawful occupation with a similar scope of practice, as determined by the occupational licensing board;

(b) The applicant worked for at least three (3) years in the lawful occupation; and

(5) An occupational licensing board may require an applicant to pass a jurisprudential examination specific to relevant state laws in Mississippi that regulate the occupation if the issuance of a license in Mississippi requires an applicant to pass a jurisprudential examination specific to relevant state statutes and administrative rules in Mississippi that regulate the occupation.

(6) For purposes of this section, residence may be established by demonstrating proof of a state-issued identification card or one (1) of the following:

(a) Current Mississippi residential utility bill with the applicant's name and address;

(b) Documentation of the applicant's current ownership, or current lease of a residence in Mississippi;

(c) Documentation of current in-state employment or notarized letter of promise of employment of the applicant or his or her spouse; or

(d) Any verifiable documentation demonstrating Mississippi residency.

(7) A person who receives a license under this section is subject to the laws regulating the person's practice in this state and is subject to the occupational licensing board's jurisdiction.

(8) A license issued under this section is valid only in this state and does not make the person eligible to be part of an interstate compact.

(9) The occupational licensing board shall issue or deny the license to the applicant within one hundred twenty (120) days after receiving an application.

If the application requires longer than two (2) weeks to process, the occupational licensing board shall issue a temporary practice permit within thirty (30) days after receiving the application if the applicant submits an affidavit, under penalties of perjury, affirming that he or she satisfies the provisions of subsection (3) or subsection (4) and pays all applicable fees as required by subsection (3)(f) or subsection (4)(c).

The applicant may practice under the temporary permit until a license is granted, or until a notice to deny the license is issued, in accordance with rules adopted by the occupational licensing board. A temporary license will expire in three hundred sixty-five (365) days after its issuance if the applicant fails to satisfy the requirement for licensure in subsections (3) through (5), as applicable.

(10) (a) The applicant may appeal any of the following decisions of an occupational licensing board to a court of general jurisdiction:

(i) Denial of a license;

(ii) Determination of the occupation;

(iii) Determination of the similarity of the scope of practice of the license issued; or

(iv) Other determinations under this section.

(b) The court shall determine all questions of law, including the interpretation of a constitutional or statutory provision or a rule adopted by an occupational licensing board, without regard to any previous determination that may have been made on the question in any action before the occupational licensing board.

(11) An occupational licensing board shall prominently print the following on all license applications, any communication denying a license, and on the board's website: "Pursuant to the provisions of the Universal Recognition of Occupational Licenses Act, Mississippi shall recognize occupational licenses obtained from other states." An occupational licensing board shall prepare and place on the board's website an annual report detailing the number of applications submitted to the licensing board under this section during a calendar year and the actions taken by the board on the applications.

(12) An occupational licensing board shall adopt rules necessary to implement this section by January 1, 2022. In addition, an occupational licensing board shall make all reasonable efforts to issue a license to an applicant for a license under this section.

(13) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit an applicant for licensure from proceeding under the existing licensure requirements established by an occupational licensing board in Mississippi.

(14) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prevent Mississippi from entering into a licensing compact or reciprocity agreement with another state, foreign province or foreign country. A license issued under this section is valid only in Mississippi. It does not make the person eligible to work in another state under an interstate compact or reciprocity agreement unless otherwise provided in Mississippi law.

(15) Nothing in this section shall be construed to apply to:

(a) The practice of law as regulated under Section 73-3-1 et seq.;

(b) Criteria for an applicant to obtain a license that is established under an interstate compact;

(c) The ability of an occupational licensing board to require an applicant to submit fingerprints in order to access state and federal criminal records information for noncriminal justice purposes;

(d) The practice of medicine by physicians as regulated under Section 73-25-1 et seq.;

(e) The provisions of the Military Family Freedom Act, Section 73-50-1; * * *or

(f) An occupation regulated under Section 73-1-1 et seq. to the extent there is a conflict with a law granting licensure reciprocity under Section 73-1-1 et seq * * *.; or

(g) The practice of psychology by psychologists licensed under Section 73-31-1 et seq.

SECTION 2. Section 73-31-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

73-31-15. (1) Upon application accompanied by the proper fee, the board may issue a license to any psychologist who furnishes, upon a form and in the manner as the board prescribes, evidence satisfactory to the board that he or she is a diplomate in good standing of the American Board of Examiners in Professional Psychology; or possesses a valid Certificate of Professional Qualification (CPQ) granted by the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards; or has at least twenty (20) years of licensure to practice in another state, territorial possession of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or Canadian Province when that license was based on a doctoral degree; and

(a) Has had no disciplinary sanction during the entire period of licensure; and

(b) Is not currently under investigation by another licensure board; and

(2) The issuance of a license by reciprocity to a military-trained applicant * * *, or military spouse * * * shall be subject to the provisions of Section 73-50-1 * * * ~~or 73‑50‑2, as applicable~~.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2023.