Board approves regulatory drafting to clarify and tighten experience rules for licensed educational psychologists

The California Board of Behavioral Sciences on Aug. 22 approved proposed regulatory text to clarify how licensed educational psychologists (LEPs) document and demonstrate qualifying experience when applying for licensure.

Board staff presented revisions intended to implement statutory changes in Senate Bill 775 and to resolve long-standing ambiguities about what counts as qualifying experience in private or parochial schools, experience gained through temporary-employment agencies, and experience gained under the direction of a licensed educational psychologist (LEP) in California public schools.

Under the proposed approach, experience earned in private or parochial schools will be accepted only when a supervisor or authorized representative certifies under penalty of perjury that the applicant performed the same range of duties required of credentialed school psychologists in California public schools. The regulation would set documentation minimums for temporary-agency placements and clarify that supervised experience "under the direction of an LEP" means formal supervision from an appropriately credentialed California LEP; it would also bar supervisors from holding a financial or therapeutic relationship with the supervisee.

Board staff said the draft also aligns time limits and definitions: the measure being drafted would define a full school year and what constitutes "full-time equivalent" experience, and limit qualifying experience, exam scores and application documents to a seven-year window consistent with other license types.

Board members praised the clearer definitions and said the changes will increase accountability and public protection. Christopher Jones (board member) and other members said California—s school-psychology pathway is different from other states and the revisions better protect students and the public by ensuring in-state or California-supervised experience where required.

Vote and implementation

The board voted to authorize staff to submit the proposed regulatory text for review and, if no adverse comments are received, to proceed with the formal rulemaking. The motion instructs staff to prepare the regulatory packet and make non-substantive edits as needed.

Why it matters

LEP licensure relies heavily on practice inside public schools. The new rules aim to ensure that an applicant—s experience reflects California practice and the legal framework governing special education in public schools. Staff and board members cited gaps that could occur when experience is gained in settings that do not offer the full range of public-school special-education duties.

Provenance

- topicintro: transcript block starting at 5440.495, evidence_excerpt: "discussion and possible action to amend the board's experience requirements for licensed educational psychologists..." (s:5440.495)

- topfinish: transcript block starting at 6386.8, evidence_excerpt: "Motion carries." (s:6386.8)

Speakers

- Christy Berger, Regulatory Manager, Board staff (presenter on regulatory text). first_reference: {"timecode":"00:04:52"} - Christopher Jones, Board Member (LEP), commenter. first_reference: {"timecode":"00:03:54"} - Annette Walker, Board Member (public), commenter. first_reference: {"timecode":"234.645"}

Authorities

- statute: "Senate Bill 775 (statutory amendments to BPC 4989.20 and related sections; referenced as pending)." referenced_by: ["lep-experience-requirements"]

Actions

- kind: "rulemaking" motion: "Approve the proposed regulatory text as presented in attachment A and submit the approved text to the Director of the Department of Consumer Affairs and the Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency for review; if no adverse comments are received, authorize the executive officer to initiate the rulemaking process, make non-substantive changes, and complete the rulemaking if no adverse comments or hearing requests are received." mover: "not specified" second: "Annette Walker" vote_record:[{"member":"Wendy Strack","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Nicholas Boyd","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Lares Bailey","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Susan Friedman","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Justin Huff","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Christopher Jones","vote":"yes"},{"member":"John Sobek","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Rebecca Theiss","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Eleanor Uribe","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Annette Walker","vote":"yes"}] tally: {"yes":11,"no":0,"abstain":0,"absent":1} outcome: "approved" notes: "Directs staff to prepare a rulemaking packet aligned with SB 775 and to clarify documentation, supervision and private-school acceptance criteria."

Clarifying details extracted from discussion

- "full range of duties" for public-school school psychologists will be defined by Commission on Teacher Credentialing duties and must be attested to by a supervisor when experience was gained in private/parochial settings. - Experience gained via temporary employment agencies must be documented with a supervisor attestation covering duties performed. - Experience and exam scores will be limited to a 7-year lookback to align with other licensing requirements.

Searchable_tags: ["LEP","experience requirements","school psychology","SB775","supervision"]

Community_relevance: {"geographies":["US-CA"],"impact_groups":["school psychologists","students in special education","employers in schools"]}

Meeting_context: {"engagement_level":{"speakers_count":6,"duration_minutes":40,"items_count":1},"implementation_risk":"low","history":[{"date":"2025-07-01","note":"SB775 discussed in committee; statutory amendments pending."}]}