Kristina Roegner, State Senator — Sponsor Testimony, Senate Bill 90 (October 3rd, 2023)

Summary

State Senator Kristina Roegner of the 27th Senate District gave sponsor testimony on Senate Bill 90 to the Ohio House Commerce and Labor Committee on October 3rd, 2023. The testimony says the bill would join Ohio to the Social Work Licensure Compact, an interstate occupational licensure compact for social workers, and that it passed the Senate by a unanimous 32-0 vote at the end of June. It says the governing commission will form once seven states have enacted legislation and that Missouri has already enacted. It cites University of Minnesota researchers finding the interstate migration rate for occupations with state-specific licensing exam requirements is 36% lower.

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Kristina Roegner
State Senator
27th Senate District

                                Sponsor Testimony
                                    Senate Bill 90
                       Ohio House Commerce and Labor Committee
                                   October 3rd, 2023


Chair Johnson, Vice-Chair Manchester, Ranking Member McNally, and
Members of the House Commerce and Labor Committee, thank you for the
opportunity to provide sponsor testimony on Senate Bill 90, which upon
enactment would join Ohio to the “Social Work Licensure Compact.” Senate
Bill90 passed the Senate by a unanimous 32-0 vote at the end of June.

The Social Work Licensure Compact (“the Compact”) is an interstate
occupational licensure compact for social workers. An interstate occupational
licensure compact is a contract among two or more states which creates and
agreement on a particular policy issue, adopting a certain standard, allowing
them to cooperate on regional or national matters. States joining a compact
agree to recognize a license issued by another compact member state, thereby
allowing a professional to practice in the “remote state” without having to go
through each individual state’s licensure process.

The Compact is similar in form and function to the other compacts Ohio has
already enacted into law, in that a social worker must hold an active,
unencumbered license in a compact member state to be eligible to apply for a
multistate license. These social workers must also pass a background check and
meet other category-specific eligibility requirements related to education and
examinations. When eligibility is verified and all fees are paid, the social worker
receives their multistate license and may begin working in any member state.1

From a regulatory standpoint, there are no changes to each compact member
state’s authority to protect public health and safety through the existing state
regulatory structure2. A social worker with a multi-state license providing
services in a remote state must abide by the scope of practice, laws, and rules
of the remote state where the client is located at the time care is rendered.
Additionally, there are no changes to a state’s ability to offer a single state
license.3

The Compact is still in its formative stage, with the Department of Defense and
the Council of State Governments forming a technical assistance group
consisting of representatives from more than a dozen state boards, the
Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB), the Clinical Social Work
Association (CSWA), and the National Association of Social Workers (NASW)
in 2021. The group met regularly over the course of several months to determine
the mobility needs of the profession, analyze current licensure requirements in
the states, and to develop policy recommendations for the initial draft of the
compact. Using recommendations from the group and the public, a smaller
Document Team of legislative drafting experts, licensure board attorneys and
social work practice specialists created a final draft in early 2023.

One would think that with the Compact language having been approved and
finalized, licensees could begin applying for a multistate license upon state
enactment. That is not yet the case, as this is a brand new compact and it is not
yet active, the governing commission will form once seven states have enacted



1
  Lines 212-329 of Senate Bill 90 “As Introduced”
2
  Lines 351-356 of Senate Bill 90 “As Introduced”
3
  Lines 357-359 of Senate Bill 90 “As Introduced”
legislation4. Those first seven states are responsible for initial adoption of the
rules and bylaws of the Compact’s operation going forward.

Six other states have introduced language to join the Compact (Georgia, South
Carolina, North Carolina, New
Jersey, Wisconsin, and Missouri)
and Missouri has already enacted
their legislation.5 Passing this bill
expeditiously would allow us to
be one of the first seven, not only
giving us that early seat at the
table, but would also signal that
the Buckeye State will continue to
be a national leader in increasing
access to care for patients and
maximizing mobility for licensed
medical professionals.

The lack of occupational licensure reciprocity is a real barrier for licensed
medical professionals seeking to move across state lines, with University of
Minnesota researchers finding that the interstate migration rate for individuals
in occupations with state-specific licensing exam requirements is 36% lower
relative to those in non-licensed occupations.6 More than a third of individuals
are potentially passing up better career opportunities, all due to the hassle
presented by relicensing in a new state. This was one reason more than 600
licensed social workers spoke in support of Senate Bill 90 during the National
Association of Social Workers recent advocacy day (some of whom you will
likely hear from at a future hearing) and is especially important to highlight
since our neighboring state Kentucky is also working on enacting the Compact.
4
  Lines 1051-1053 of Senate Bill 90 “As Introduced”
5
  https://swcompact.org/compact-map/
6
  https://www.minneapolisfed.org/research/sr/sr561.pdf
Just as a Cincinnati social worker doesn’t forget how to drive when they cross
into Kentucky, their social work skillset follows them across the border – their
social work license should too.

Maximizing mobility and ensuring license portability is even more important
for our military families, who relocate every 2-3 years (10x more often than
civilians) and often wait 10+ months for a license transfer.7 8 This Compact
eases that burden and supports military families by allowing the service member
or their spouse to continue to work with their current compact privilege if they
are assigned to a new duty station in a compact member state. Dr. Christine
Hammer, a military spouse and licensed medical professional, stated: “If there
were already a compact, my husband and I wouldn't think twice about how we
rank our duty stations and where we beg the detailer to assign us. It would be
life changing for us in many ways.”9

Thank you for the opportunity to testify on Senate Bill 90. I would be happy to
answer any questions at this time.




7
  https://counselingcompact.org/tool-kit/ (see video time marker 2:05)
8
  https://counselingcompact.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/CC-Summit-Slides-2021.pdf
9
  https://swcompact.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2023/02/Social-Work-Licensure-Compact-Benefits-for-Military-
Families.pdf


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