South Dakota is moving to reduce barriers to professional licensing for people in addiction counseling recovery. A bill passed out of the Senate Health and Human Services committee and heading to the full Senate would allow people seeking an addiction counseling license to have their application screened by the South Dakota Board of Addiction and Prevention Professionals even if they have a felony conviction. The board would then have authority to determine whether to grant the license based on whether the applicant poses a risk to public safety, reviewing each application on a case-by-case basis.
Jennifer Stalley, testifying on behalf of the Board of Addiction and Prevention Professionals, explained the rationale: “As you can imagine in the addictions field, we see a number of people who themselves are in recovery. And they may have come through recovery by way of some criminal convictions.” The board would have authority to require applicants to take a physical or mental health exam if needed. Currently, people with criminal convictions seeking addiction counseling licensure must wait five years after incarceration or must have complied with all conditions of their probation.
License Renewal and Fee Changes
The bill also allows re-licensing to occur every two years instead of annually, and permits licensees to place their license on inactive status for up to four years if they wish to step back from counseling services. However, the shift to two-year re-licensing comes with an increase in fees, according to Stalley, with applicants paying the new rate each year they are re-licensed.
Stalley emphasized the value these professionals bring to the field, noting that “we have a number of people who have first-hand experience in these areas. That is an asset to the profession in many ways.”
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://www.argusleader.com/story/news/politics/2023/01/30/south-dakota-aims-reduce-barriers-for-addiction-counseling-licensing/69854989007/