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An Act To Amend the Licensing Requirements for Marriage and Family Therapists
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 32 MRSA §13858, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2003, c. 542, §2, is further amended to read:
 
3. Licensed marriage and family therapist. To be qualified as a licensed marriage and family therapist, an applicant must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the board adherence to the ethics of the counseling profession, successfully complete the examination prescribed by the board and have:
 
A.  A master's degree or a doctoral degree in marriage and family therapy or its equivalent from an accredited institution or a program approved by the board. Such schooling must include a minimum core curriculum to include a one-year clinical practicum and total credit hours adopted by the board; and
 
B.  Two years of experience after obtainment of a master's degree or a doctoral degree comprised of at least 1,000 hours of direct clinical contact with couples and families and 200 hours of supervision, at least 100 of which must be individual supervision.
 
Notwithstanding the requirements for conditional licensure in section 13851, subsection 4, the board may grant a temporary conditional license for a period not to exceed 6 months to an applicant who meets the requirements of this subsection except for the successful completion of the examination prescribed by the board. In addition, the applicant must be employed at an agency under clinical supervision and must apply for and successfully complete the examination within this 6-month period. If the applicant fails the examination, the applicant is prohibited from using any clinical experience gained during the 6-month period that the applicant held the temporary conditional license to qualify for licensure.
Sec. 2. Appropriations and allocations. The following appropriations and allocations are made.
 
PROFESSIONAL AND FINANCIAL REGULATION, DEPARTMENT OF
 
Administrative Services - Professional and Financial Regulation 0094
 
Initiative: Allocates one-time funds for the costs associated with establishing a new license category in the agency's licensing system.

OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS	2009-10	2010-11	
All Other	$2,500	$0	
			
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL	$2,500	$0	

Licensing and Enforcement 0352
 
Initiative: Allocates one-time funding for the costs associated with rulemaking.

OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS	2009-10	2010-11	
All Other	$1,500	$0	
			
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL	$1,500	$0	

PROFESSIONAL AND FINANCIAL REGULATION, DEPARTMENT OF			
DEPARTMENT TOTALS	2009-10	2010-11	
			
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS	$4,000	$0	
			
DEPARTMENT TOTAL - ALL FUNDS	$4,000	$0	

Effective September 12, 2009