Board hears DCA update, reviews budget and regulations and approves legislative omnibus proposal; minutes and proposal adopted by roll call

The Speech‑Language Pathology and Audiology and Hearing Aid Dispensers Board received a Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) update and several staff reports at its Feb. 21, 2025 meeting in Sacramento and approved an omnibus legislative proposal for non‑substantive statutory updates. The board also approved the Dec. 2024 meeting minutes by roll call.

Why this matters: the DCA update and staff reports include immediate compliance changes for licensees (Form 700 e‑filing), disaster relief measures for wildfire‑affected licensees, and the board’s budget outlook. The legislative action authorizes staff to pursue an omnibus bill to correct and update statutory references.

DCA and administrative updates

- Presenter and contact: Melissa Geer, deputy director for board and bureau relations at DCA, gave the update and asked boards to share resources with licensees.

- Wildfire fee deferral: Geer summarized Governor Newsom’s executive order (cited in the packet as Executive Order N‑1525) providing relief to licensees in specified Los Angeles County ZIP codes affected by wildfires. She said: “Licensees will still need to renew their licenses, but their fees will be postponed for 1 year.” The DCA is providing a disaster help center webpage (www.dca.ca.gov), a toll‑free number and an email (CAfires@DCA.CA.gov) for affected licensees.

- Proposed budget and agency reorganization: Geer noted the governor’s proposed 2025–26 budget package includes eight budget change proposals for DCA programs and a reorganization proposal to form a cabinet‑level consumer protection agency; the proposal will be reviewed by the Little Hoover Commission and the Legislature.

- Ethics filings and training: AB 1170 requires board members to file Form 700 electronically through the Fair Political Practices Commission portal beginning in 2025; paper filings and prior NetFile submissions are no longer accepted. The FPPC portal link and login were emailed to board members; the annual filing deadline is April 1, 2025. Melissa Geer also reminded new and reappointed members to complete Board Member Orientation Training within one year and provided BMOT dates for 2025.

Board administrative matters and staff reports

- Minutes: The board reviewed and approved the Dec. 2024 board meeting minutes as amended. A motion to approve the minutes carried on a roll‑call vote with all members present voting aye.

- Budget and enforcement: Interim Executive Officer Melissa Burns reported the board’s fund condition remains generally healthy but that attorney general and OAH expenditures have driven a projected shortfall without an augmentation request. Burns explained the board anticipates requesting an augmentation of the Attorney General line item to keep the fund in positive condition; the augmentation is funded from the board’s licensing fund, not the state general fund.

- Licensing and practical exam: Burns also reported faster licensing processing times after online application changes and noted a 70% pass rate on the most recent practical exam (November 2024); January/February results were not yet available.

- CE/CPD audits and enforcement: The board’s CE/CPD auditor completed a January 2024 audit of 38 licensees (about 5% sampling). Of those, 21 passed, 14 did not pass, and 2 qualified for exemptions. Burns summarized common audit findings — missing documentation, hours outside the renewal period, excessive self‑study relative to live requirements — and said the audits are intended as both compliance checks and education.

Regulations and legislation

- Hearing‑aid advertising regulations: Staff noted adopted regulations clarifying advertising rules for hearing‑aid dispensing (CCR §1399.127) were filed with the Office of Administrative Law on Dec. 30, 2024, and take effect April 1, 2025.

- Omnibus legislative proposal: The board voted to adopt and submit an omnibus legislative proposal to make nonsubstantive statutory corrections and technical updates. The motion to submit the proposal passed on a roll call vote with all members voting aye.

Votes at a glance

- Approval of Dec. 2024 meeting minutes (Agenda item 3): Motion to approve as amended carried. Roll‑call vote recorded as: Gilda Dominguez — Aye; Dr. Amy White — Aye; Todd Borges — Aye; Dr. Tamara Chambers — Aye; Dr. Charles Sanders — Aye; Karen Chang — Aye. (Mover: Dr. Amy White; seconder: not specified in the record.)

- Adopt legislative omnibus proposal (Agenda item 10): Motion carried by roll call. Vote recorded as: Gilda Dominguez — Aye; Dr. Amy White — Aye; Todd Borges — Aye; Dr. Tamara Chambers — Aye; Dr. Charles Sanders — Aye; Karen Chang — Aye. (Mover/Seconder: not specified in the record.)

Ending

Board staff said they will continue to monitor implementation of DCA‑level changes, provide outreach to impacted licensees, proceed with required audits and enforcement activity and follow up with the Department of Finance on the augmentation request. No public comment was received during the meeting’s public‑comment periods.