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HB5166 / File No. 607 1
House of Representatives
File No. 607
General Assembly
February Session, 2026 (Reprint of File No. 23)
House Bill No. 5166
As Amended by House Amendment
Schedule "A"
Approved by the Legislative Commissioner
April 13, 2026
AN ACT CONCERNING SOCIAL WORK LICENSURE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subsection (b) of section 20-195o of the 2026 supplement to 1
the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 2
thereof (Effective from passage): 3
(b) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 20-195n concerning 4
examinations, on or before October 1, 2015, the commissioner may issue 5
a license without examination, to any master social worker applicant 6
who demonstrates to the satisfaction of the commissioner that, on or 7
before October 1, 2013, he or she held a master's degree from a social 8
work program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education or, 9
if educated outside the United States or its territories, completed an 10
educational program deemed equivalent by the council. 11
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 20 -195n concerning 12
examinations, the commissioner shall waive the requirement to pass the 13
HB5166 File No. 607
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masters level examination of the Association of Social Work Boards or 14
any other examination prescribed by the commissioner, as described in 15
subsection (b) of section 20 -195n until [January 1, 2026] July 1, 2029, at 16
which time such requirement shall be reinstituted. Not later than [July 17
1, 2025 ] January 1, 2029 , the commissioner shall notify institutions of 18
higher education offering social work programs about the reinstitution 19
of the examination for all persons graduating after [January 1, 2026] July 20
1, 2029. 21
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage 20-195o(b)
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The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of
the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not
represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general,
fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional
knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final
products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.
OFA Fiscal Note
State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 27 $ FY 28 $
Public Health, Dept. GF - Revenue
Gain
Minimal Minimal
Note: GF=General Fund
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill suspends the master social worker license examination
requirement upon passage until July 1, 2029, resulting in a time-limited
minimal General Fund revenue gain beginning in FY 27. The amount of
the revenue gain depends on the number of additional individuals1 who
(due to this change) apply at no cost for their initial license, and then in
FY 27 and beyond, annually renew their master social worker license for
$125. Beginning in FY 30, the anticipated increase in initial licensure
applications associated with the examination waiver concludes, as well
as the associated revenue gain in future fiscal years related to their
potential renewal fees.
House "A" strikes the underlying bill and its associated fiscal impact,
and results in the fiscal impact described above.
The Out Years
The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would
continue into the future subject to any change in the license renewal fee.
1 There are currently 5,608 master social workers licensed by the state.
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OLR Bill Analysis
HB 5166 (as amended by House "A")*
AN ACT CONCERNING SOCIAL WORK LICENSURE.
SUMMARY
This bill reinstates a requirement that the Department of Public
Health (DPH) commissioner temporarily waive the requirement for a
master social worker license applicant to pass the Association of Social
Work Board’s (ASWB) masters level examination, or other examination
the DPH commissioner prescribes. (Current law suspended this
requirement between June 7, 2023, and January 1, 2026.)
Under the bill, the commissioner must waive the requirement until
July 1, 2029, and then reinstate it. By January 1, 2029, she must also notify
higher education institutions that offer social work programs about
reinstating the examination requirement.
The bill maintains the examination requirement for licensure by
endorsement for applicants who are licensed or certified as a master
social worker in good standing in another state or jurisdiction whose
licensure requirements are substantially similar to Connecticut’s.
Under current law and the bill, applicants for a master social worker
license still must have a master’s degree from a social work program
that is (1) accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE);
(2) in-state and has candidate status with CSWE during or after the 2024
spring semester and before the 2028 spring semester; or (3) deemed
equivalent by CSWE, if educated outside of the U.S. and its territories.
*House Amendment “A” replaces the original bill (File 23) and makes
the examination waiver temporary instead of permanent.
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EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage
BACKGROUND
Social Work Licensure
By law, Connecticut licenses social workers at two levels: master
social worker and clinical social worker. Applicants for a clinical social
worker license must (1) have a doctorate or master’s degree from a
CSWE-accredited program or, if educated outside of the U.S. and its
territories, a program deemed equivalent by CSWE; (2) complete 3,000
hours post -master’s social work experience with at least 100 hours
supervised by a licensed clinical social worker or certified independent
social worker; and (3) pass the ASWB’s clinical level examination.
COMMITTEE ACTION
Public Health Committee
Joint Favorable
Yea 25 Nay 6 (03/02/2026)