Kansas BSRB moves toward modernized licensing, adds disciplinary resources and seeks statute changes
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Summary
At its Oct. 10 advisory committee meeting, the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board (BSRB) executive director outlined a planned multiyear licensing system upgrade, legislative items to watch, and board actions including new disciplinary resources, a proposed board seat for behavior analysts and procedural changes the board plans to pursue.
The Marriage and Family Therapy Advisory Committee of the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board was briefed Oct. 10 on agency operations, upcoming legislative work and several board initiatives, Executive Director David Fye said.
Fye told committee members the board is about nine months into a two‑year project to move licensing to the state’s enterprise system, Acela, which the BSRB expects will let applicants apply online and reduce errors and processing time. “We’re really looking forward to that transition,” Fye said, adding he expects launch in roughly 18 months.
The update covered several items the board has discussed or may pursue in statute changes. Fye said the House select committee on government oversight has been reviewing licensing‑board processes and criticized some agencies’ renewal and investigative communications; the BSRB plans to monitor those hearings and respond where appropriate. “I think our processes are in a good spot,” Fye said, while noting the agency will consider lessons from those reviews.
At recent board meetings, members reviewed a cross‑profession grid of unprofessional conduct to determine whether disciplinary language should be aligned across professions. The board also endorsed a partnership with EBOS, a vendor that supplies curriculum and remediation for licensees subject to discipline. The board’s stated aim is to add tools—such as targeted courses, testing and supervised activities—to help licensees address deficiencies and return to safe practice.
The board recommended adding a behavior analyst board member after growth in that profession; Fye said behavior analyst licensees numbered roughly 600. The board also voted to expand the Complaint Review Committee from five to six members.
On licensure policy, the board has taken or proposed several changes for potential legislation: shortening a reciprocity qualification period to 12 months for certain applicants (to match military/spouse provisions), creating a fee‑based program review process so out‑of‑state academic programs can request a staff opinion on curriculum equivalency, and removing a vaguely worded statutory exception that refers to “individuals preparing for the practice of” a profession because the board could not identify the provision’s original intent.
Fye also described proposed clarifications to supervision requirements to address who may provide clinical supervision for professional counselors and marriage and family therapists. The compromise under consideration would require that half the supervision hours for clinical professional counselor applicants be provided by board‑approved professional counselors; the other half could, with approval, be provided by an appropriately approved supervisor from another profession.
On finance and operations, Fye said licensing numbers continue to rise and the BSRB is working to implement a board‑approved fee decrease but plans to add time‑limited language to protect the agency’s fund balance. He said the board is considering a multi‑year strategic plan and will conduct a SWOT analysis over the coming year.
Why it matters: the BSRB regulates licensure, discipline and professional conduct for multiple behavioral health professions in Kansas. The changes under discussion affect how applicants qualify for licensure, how discipline is handled and what information licensees receive about board processes. Several items—statutory clarifications, supervision rules and reciprocity timelines—would require legislative approval.
The committee received the report and had follow‑up questions about supervision standards and how multi‑state compacts may affect license volume in future years. The advisory committee directed staff to forward the board’s proposed regulation and statutory changes for review at the next BSRB meeting.
