Article archive / April 1, 2013
Originally published: . Volume 4, No. 8. Source pages: 4.
SB 134 creates the Louisiana Behavior Analyst Board. Five behavior analysts, to be appointed by the governor, will serve for 3, 4 or 5 years. The LSBEP shall appoint a member to serve as an ex officio, non-voting member of the board.
The BA board is to regulate behavior analysts, assistant behavior analysts, and to register line-technicians. SB 134 outlines definitions and scope of practice. Other professionals who practice under other boards are exempted, as long as they do not use the title. The board automatically sunsets in July 2018.
The board can, “Accept grants, donations, or gifts of money or services from public or private individuals or organizations or from any other sources to be utilized for the purposes of the board.”
“Proof that the applicant passed a nationally recognized examination administered by a nonprofit organization accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies, the National Standards Institute, or a substantial equivalent to credential professional practitioners of behavior analysis related to the principles and practice of the profession of behavior analysis that is approved by the board.”
The bill also notes, “The standards and requirements in this Chapter shall be separate and unique from the standards and requirements for practicing psychology and pertain to the practice of applied behavior analysis.”
And, “There shall be no requirement for individuals practicing under this Chapter to be supervised by members of other professions.”
Exemptions include, “Other human service professionals who are licensed, certified, or registered by the state of Louisiana, provided such individuals are working within the scope of practice of their profession and the scope of their training and competence.”
And, “An individual who provides general applied behavior analysis services to an organization, so long as those services are for the benefit of such organization and does not involve direct services to an individual.”
The bill exempts “An individual licensed to practice psychology within the state, so long as the applied behavior analysis services provided by the licensed psychologist are within the licensed psychologist's education, training, and expertise and provided he does not represent himself as behavior analysts, assistant behavior analysts, licensed behavior analysts, or state certified assistant behavior analysts without being duly licensed or state certified.”
The act will make it a misdemeanor for those not licensed or certified to represent themselves as a behavior analyst, assistant or line technician, and this includes, “To employ as a line technician, a line technician who is not registered pursuant to this Chapter.”
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