[Counselor_Educ] Advocacy Needed to Oppose Legislation

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Dear Counseling Community,

I wanted to alert you about the proposed Senate Bill 366 and House Bill 617 currently presented to the Ohio legislature that would greatly impact all of us.
These two pieces of legislation were quickly introduced without input from counseling professional organizations and would enact a consolidation of social work, pscyhology, school psychology, chemical dependency, marriage and family therapists, and counselor's into ONE  Behavioral Health Professionals Board.  The proposed Behavioral Health Professionals board does not guarantee that a counselor would have a seat to represent our profession on this board.

According to the information I have received, the bills create a single Behavioral Health Professionals Board that includes one seat for a licensed social worker, one seat for a school psychologist, one seat for a non-school psychologist, one seat for a chemical dependency/aod counselor, one seat for a chemical prevention specialist and one seat for a marriage family therapist OR a professional licensed counselor.

Here are links to the bills: https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/legislation-summary?id=GA131-HB-617 
 https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/legislation-summary?id=GA131-HB-366 
).

I encourage all of us to unite and contact your local legislative member as soon as possible as the planned date for voting is December 8th. .
Here is a link to find your State Senator: http://ohiosenate.gov/members/contacting-your-senator 
Here is a linke to find your State Representative: http://www.ohiohouse.gov/index 
Below is verbage based on a letter by Victoria Kress that can be sent as an email or voice mail message to your Ohio Senator and Representative:
"November 17, 2016
RE: Opposition to HB 617 and SB 366
 Dear Legislator:
Thank you for all that you are doing.  Today, I am writing to encourage you to oppose House Bill 617 and SB 366, which is a companion pieces of legislation that could greatly affect the counseling profession in Ohio.  I strongly oppose this legislation.
If enacted, these pieces of legislation would create a massive overhaul of professional licensing in Ohio by abolishing 11 licensing boards and consolidating them under three new boards and two existing ones. Under this proposal, counselors would be licensed by a newly created Behavioral Health Professionals Board. A counselor would not be guaranteed a seat on the Behavioral Health Professionals Board.
Such complex legislation needs to be thoroughly reviewed and discussed with all stakeholders. I urge you to oppose House Bill 617 and Senate Bill 366 as it is currently written.
Respectfully, "[ https://ssl.gstatic.com/ui/v1/icons/mail/images/cleardot.gif] 
Thank you to everyone for taking time to address this issue.

Sincerely,
Tamarine Foreman, PhD, LPCC-S, NCC
Assistant Professor, Practicum & Internship Coordinator
Dept. of Counseling & Higher Education
Patton College of Education, Ohio University
Phone: 740.593.4395

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