BHEC staff detail recent rule changes, proposed life‑coaching guideline and dozens of mental‑health bills under review

A staff member from the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council summarized recent regulatory activity and a slate of bills being tracked by the agency during an “Insights Over the Lunch Hour” webinar.

The council adopted a single cleanup rule at its Feb. 18 meeting, staff said, and has proposed a new investigatory rule, identified in materials as 8.84.10, that aims to clarify when a person’s services fall under the council’s regulatory authority rather than being unregulated "life coaching." "We do not want to create a scheme where somebody can ... call it life coaching, and therefore, I am removed from your regulatory authority," the staff member said during the presentation.

Why it matters: the proposed rule would guide investigators and licensees on whether conduct is within the scope of regulated practice for licensed professional counselors (LPCs), licensed marriage and family therapists (LMFTs), social workers and related professions. Staff said the rule is intended both to give professionals guidance and to protect the public by preventing regulated practice from being labeled, in words only, as unregulated activity.

What the council said about the proposed rule and timing - Staff described 8.84.10 as guidance for distinguishing counseling and therapy from life‑coaching and said the draft will be published in the Texas Register for public comment. Member boards also completed a rule review process that mostly…