Modifies provisions relating to licensure reciprocity

SECOND REGULAR SESSION
[TRUL Y AGREED T O AND FINALL Y P ASSED]
SENA TE SUBSTITUTE FOR
HOUSE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
HOUSE BILL NO. 2974
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
6590S.03T 2026
AN ACT
T o repeal section 324.009, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof four new sections relating to
licensure reciprocity .
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 324.009, RSMo, is repealed and four new sections enacted in lieu
2 thereof, to be known as sections 324.009, 324.1800, 334.730, and 334.1800, to read as
3 follows:
324.009. 1. For purposes of this section, the following terms mean:
2 (1) "License", a license, certificate, registration, permit, accreditation, or military
3 occupational speciality that enables a person to legally practice an occupation or profession in
4 a particular jurisdiction;
5 (2) "Military", the Armed Forces of the United States including the Air Force, Army ,
6 Coast Guard, Marine Corps, Navy , Space Force, National Guard and any other military
7 branch that is designated by Congress as part of the Armed Forces of the United States, and
8 all reserve components and auxiliaries. Such term also includes the military reserves and
9 militia of any United States territory or state;
10 (3) "Missouri law enforcement officer", any person employed by or otherwise serving
11 in a position for the state or a local governmental entity in the state of Missouri as a police
12 of ficer , peace of ficer certified under chapter 590, auxiliary police of ficer , sheriff, sheriff 's
13 deputy , member of the patrol as that term is defined in section 43.010, or in some like position
14 involving the enforcement of the law and protection of the public interest at the risk of that
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
15 person's life and who is a permanent resident of the state of Missouri or who is domiciled in
16 the state of Missouri;
17 (4) "Nonresident military or law enforcement spouse":
18 (a) A nonresident spouse of an active duty member of the Armed Forces of the United
19 States who has been transferred or is scheduled to be transferred to the state of Missouri, or
20 who has been transferred or is scheduled to be transferred to an adjacent state and is or will be
21 domiciled in the state of Missouri, or has moved to the state of Missouri on a permanent
22 change-of-station basis; or
23 (b) A nonresident spouse of a person residing outside the state of Missouri who has
24 accepted an offer of employment from and with the state or a local governmental entity in the
25 state of Missouri and who will become a Missouri law enforcement of ficer upon the
26 commencement of such employment;
27 (5) "Oversight body", any board, department, agency , or of fice of a jurisdiction that
28 issues licenses;
29 (6) "Resident military or law enforcement spouse", a spouse of an active duty
30 member of the Armed Forces of the United States who has been transferred or is scheduled to
31 be transferred to the state of Missouri or an adjacent state and who is a permanent resident of
32 the state of Missouri, who is domiciled in the state of Missouri, or who has Missouri as his or
33 her home of record, or a spouse of a Missouri law enforcement of ficer .
34 2. Any person who holds a valid current license issued by another state, a branch or
35 unit of the military , a territory of the United States, or the District of Columbia, and who has
36 been licensed for at least one year in such other jurisdiction, may submit an application for a
37 license in Missouri in the same occupation or profession, and at the same practice level, for
38 which he or she holds the current license, along with proof of current licensure and proof of
39 licensure for at least one year in the other jurisdiction, to the relevant oversight body in this
40 state.
41 3. The oversight body in this state shall:
42 (1) W ithin six months of receiving an application described in subsection 2 of this
43 section, waive any examination, educational, or experience requirements for licensure in this
44 state for the applicant if it determines that there were minimum education requirements and, if
45 applicable, work experience and clinical supervision requirements in ef fect and the other
46 [ state ] jurisdiction verifies that the person met those requirements in order to be licensed or
47 certified in that [ state ] jurisdiction . An oversight body that administers an examination on
48 laws of this state as part of its licensing application requirement may require an applicant to
49 take and pass an examination specific to the laws of this state; or
50 (2) W ithin thirty days of receiving an application described in subsection 2 of this
51 section from a nonresident military or law enforcement spouse or a resident military or law
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52 enforcement spouse, waive any examination, educational, or experience requirements for
53 licensure in this state for the applicant and issue such applicant a license under this section if
54 such applicant otherwise meets the requirements of this section.
55 4. (1) The oversight body shall not waive any examination, educational, or
56 experience requirements for any applicant who has had his or her license revoked by an
57 oversight body outside the state; who is currently under investigation, who has a complaint
58 pending, or who is currently under disciplinary action, except as provided in subdivision (2)
59 of this subsection, with an oversight body outside the state; who does not hold a license in
60 good standing with an oversight body outside the state; who has a criminal record that would
61 disqualify him or her for licensure in Missouri; or who does not hold a valid current license in
62 the other jurisdiction on the date the oversight body receives his or her application under this
63 section.
64 (2) If another jurisdiction has taken disciplinary action against an applicant, the
65 oversight body shall determine if the cause for the action was corrected and the matter
66 resolved. If the matter has not been resolved by that jurisdiction, the oversight body may
67 deny a license until the matter is resolved.
68 5. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the oversight body from denying a license to
69 an applicant under this section for any reason described in any section associated with the
70 occupation or profession for which the applicant seeks a license.
71 6. Any person who is licensed under the provisions of this section shall be subject to
72 the applicable oversight body's jurisdiction and all rules and regulations pertaining to the
73 practice of the licensed occupation or profession in this state. Any health care provi der
74 licensed under the pr ovisions of this section shall be deemed fully licensed to practice
75 within the pr ofession's scope of practice in this state and may pr ovide telehealth services
76 as described in section 191.1 145 to the same extent and in the same manner as a health
77 car e pr ovider who r eceived his or her license without a waiver of any requ irem ents.
78 7. This section shall not be construed to waive any requirement for an applicant to
79 pay any fees, post any bonds or surety bonds, or submit proof of insurance associated with the
80 license the applicant seeks.
81 8. This section shall not apply to business, professional, or occupational licenses
82 issued or required by political subdivisions.
83 9. The provisions of this section shall not impede an oversight body's authority to
84 require an applicant to submit fingerprints as part of the application process.
85 10. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to alter the authority granted
86 by , or any requirements promulgated pursuant to, any interjurisdictional or interstate
87 compacts adopted by Missouri statute or any reciprocity agreements with other states in
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88 ef fect, and whenever possible this section shall be interpreted so as to imply no conflict
89 between it and any compact, or any reciprocity agreements with other states in ef fect.
90 1 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law , a license issued under this section
91 shall be valid only in this state and shall not make a licensee eligible to be part of an interstate
92 compact. An applicant who is licensed in another state pursuant to an interstate compact shall
93 not be eligible for licensure by an oversight body under the provisions of this section.
94 12. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any occupation set forth in
95 subsection 6 of section 290.257, or any electrical contractor licensed under sections 324.900
96 to 324.945.
324.1800 . SECTION 1. PURPOSE
2 The purpose of this Compact is to facilitate interstate Practice of Dietetics with
3 the goal of impr oving public access to dietetics services. This Compact preserves the
4 r egulatory authority of States to pr otect public health and safety thr ough the curr ent
5 system of State licensur e, while also pr oviding for licensur e portability thr ough a
6 Compact Privilege granted to qualifying pr ofessionals.
7 This Compact is designed to achieve the following objectives:
8 A. Increas e public access to dietetics services;
9 B. Pr ovide opportunities for interstate practice by Licensed Dietitians who meet
10 uniform req uire ments;
11 C. Eliminate the necessity for Licenses in multiple States;
12 D. Reduce administrative burden on Member States and Licensees;
13 E. Enhance the States' ability to pr otect the public's health and safety;
14 F . Encourage the cooperation of Member States in reg ulating multistate practice
15 of Licensed Dietitians;
16 G. Support rel ocating Active Military Members and their spouses;
17 H. Enhance the exchange of licensur e, investigative, and disciplinary
1 8 information among Member States; and
19 I. V est all Member States with the authority to hold a Licensed Dietitian
20 accountable for meeting all State practice laws in the State in which the patient is
21 located at the time care is ren dered .
22 SECTION 2. DEFINITIONS
23 As used in this Compact, and except as otherwise pr ovided, the following
24 definitions shall apply:
25 A. "ACEND" means the Accr editation Council for Education in Nutrition and
26 Dietetics or its successor organization.
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27 B. "Active Military Member" means any individual with full-time duty status in
28 the active armed for ces of the United States, including members of the National Guard
29 and Reserve.
30 C. "Adverse Action" means any administrative, civil, equitable or criminal
31 action permitted by a State's laws which is imposed by a Licensing Authority or other
32 authority against a Licensee, including actions against an individual's License or
33 Compact Privilege such as revocation , suspension, pr obation, monitoring of the
34 Licensee, limitation on the Licensee's practice, or any other Encumbrance on licensur e
35 affecting a Licensee's authorization to practice, including issuance of a cease and desist
36 action.
37 D. "Alternative Pr ogram" means a non-disciplinary monitoring or practice
38 r emediation pro cess appr oved by a Licensing Authority .
39 E. "Charter Member State" means any Member State which enacted this
40 Compact by law before the Effective Date specified in Section 12.
41 F . "Continuing Education" means a requi rem ent, as a condition of License
42 r enewal, to pr ovide evidence of participation in, and completion of, educational and
43 pr ofessional activities releva nt to practice or ar ea of work.
44 G. "CDR" means the Commission on Dietetic Registration or its successor
45 organization.
46 H. "Compact Commission" means the government agency whose membership
47 consists of all States that have enacted this Compact, which is known as the Dietitian
48 Licensur e Compact Commission, as described in Section 8, and which shall operate as
49 an instrumentality of the Member States.
50 I. "Compact Privilege" means a legal authorization, which is equivalent to a
51 License, permitting the Practice of Dietetics in a Remote State.
52 J. "Current Significant Investigative Information" means:
53 1. Investigative Information that a Licensing Authority , after a pr eliminary
54 inquiry that includes notification and an opportunity for the subject Licensee to
55 r espond, if requi red by State law , has rea son to believe is not gr oundless and, if prov ed
56 true, would indicate mor e than a minor infraction; or
57 2. Investigative Information that indicates that the subject Licensee rep res ents
58 an immediate thr eat to public health and safety r egardless of whether the subject
59 Licensee has been notified and had an opportunity to res pond.
60 K. "Data System" means a reposit ory of information about Licensees, including,
61 but not limited to, Continuing Education, examination, licensure , investigative,
62 Compact Privilege and Adverse Action information.
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63 L. "Encumber ed License" means a License in which an Adverse Action res tricts
64 a Licensee's ability to practice dietetics.
65 M. "Encumbrance" means a revo cation or suspension of, or any limitation on a
66 Licensee's full and unr estricted Practice of Dietetics by a Licensing Authority .
67 N. "Executive Committee" means a grou p of delegates elected or appointed to
68 act on behalf of, and within the powers granted to them by , this Compact, and the
69 Compact Commission.
70 O. "Home State" means the Member State that is the Licensee's primary State
71 of res idence or that has been designated pursuant to Section 6.
72 P . "Investigative Information" means information, record s, and documents
73 r eceived or generated by a Licensing Authority pursuant to an investigation.
74 Q. "Jurisprudence Requirem ent" means an assessment of an individual's
75 knowledge of the State laws and r egulations governing the Practice of Dietetics in such
76 State.
77 R. "License" means an authorization fr om a Member State to either:
78 1. Engage in the Practice of Dietetics (including medical nutrition therapy); or
79 2. Use the title "dietitian," "licensed dietitian," "licensed dietitian nutritionist,"
80 "certified dietitian," or other title describing a substantially similar practitioner as the
81 Compact Commission may further define by Rule.
82 S. "Licensee" or "Licensed Dietitian" means an individual who curr ently holds
83 a License and who meets all of the requ irem ents outlined in Section 4.
84 T . "Licensing Authority" means the board or agency of a State, or equivalent,
85 that is res ponsible for the licensing and r egulation of the Practice of Dietetics.
86 U. "Member State" means a State that has enacted the Compact.
87 V . "Practice of Dietetics" means the synthesis and application of dietetics as
88 defined by state law and regu lations, primarily for the pro vision of nutrition car e
89 services, including medical nutrition therapy , in person or via telehealth, to pr event,
90 manage, or tr eat diseases or medical conditions and pr omote wellness.
91 W . "Register ed Dietitian" means a person who:
92 1. Has completed applicable education, experience, examination, and
9 3 r ecertification re quir ements appr oved by CDR;
94 2. Is cr edentialed by CDR as a regist ered dietitian or a r egistere d dietitian
95 nutritionist; and
96 3. Is legally authorized to use the title r egister ed dietitian or regi stered dietitian
97 nutritionist and the corr esponding abbr eviations "RD" or "RDN."
98 X. "Remote State" means a Member State other than the Home State, wher e a
99 Licensee is exer cising or seeking to exerci se a Compact Privilege.
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100 Y . "Rule" means a r egulation pr omulgated by the Compact Commission that
101 has the for ce of law .
102 Z. "Single State License" means a License issued by a Member State within the
103 issuing State and does not include a Compact Privilege in any other Member State.
104 AA. "State" means any state, commonwealth, district, or territory of the United
105 States of America.
106 BB. "Unencumber ed License" means a License that authorizes a Licensee to
107 engage in the full and unr estricted Practice of Dietetics.
108 SECTION 3. ST A TE P AR TICIP A TION IN THE COMP ACT
109 A. T o participate in the Compact, a State must curren tly:
110 1. License and r egulate the Practice of Dietetics; and
111 2. Have a mechanism in place for recei ving and investigating complaints about
112 Licensees.
113 B. A Member State shall:
114 1. Participate fully in the Compact Commission's Data System, including using
115 the unique identifier as defined in Rules;
116 2. Notify the Compact Commission, in compliance with the terms of the
117 Compact and Rules, of any Adverse Action or the availability of Curren t Significant
118 Investigative Information regard ing a Licensee;
119 3. Implement or utilize pr ocedur es for considering the criminal history reco rd
120 information of applicants for an initial Compact Privilege. These proced ures shall
121 include the submission of fingerprints or other biometric-based information by
122 applicants for the purpose of obtaining an applicant's criminal history re cord
123 information fr om the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the agency res ponsible for
124 r etaining that State's criminal reco rds;
125 a. A Member State must fully implement a criminal history r ecord information
126 r equir ement, within a time frame established by Rule, which includes receivi ng the
127 r esults of the Federal Burea u of Investigation r ecord sear ch and shall use those r esults
128 in determining Compact Privilege eligibility .
129 b. Communication between a Member State and the Compact Commission or
130 among Member States regard ing the verification of eligibility for a Compact Privilege
131 shall not include any information recei ved fr om the Federal Burea u of Investigation
132 r elating to a federal criminal history record information check performed by a Member
133 State.
134 4. Comply with and enforce the Rules of the Compact Commission;
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135 5. Require an applicant for a Compact Privilege to obtain or r etain a License in
136 the Licensee's Home State and meet the Home State's qualifications for licensur e or
137 r enewal of licensur e, as well as all other applicable State laws; and
138 6. Recognize a Compact Privilege granted to a Licensee who meets all of the
139 r equir ements outlined in Section 4 in accordance with the terms of the Compact and
140 Rules.
141 C. Member States may set and collect a fee for granting a Compact Privilege.
142 D. Individuals not res iding in a Member State shall continue to be able to apply
143 for a Member State's Single State License as pr ovided under the laws of each Member
144 State. However , the Single State License granted to these individuals shall not be
145 r ecognized as granting a Compact Privilege to engage in the Practice of Dietetics in any
146 other Member State.
147 E. Nothing in this Compact shall affect the requi rem ents established by a
148 Member State for the issuance of a Single State License.
149 F . At no point shall the Compact Commission have the power to define the
150 r equir ements for the issuance of a Single State License to practice dietetics. The
151 Member States shall ret ain sole jurisdiction over the pr ovision of these re quir ements.
152 SECTION 4. COMP ACT PRIVILEGE
153 A. T o exerci se the Compact Privilege under the terms and pr ovisions of the
154 Compact, the Licensee shall:
155 1. Satisfy one of the following:
156 a. Hold a valid curr ent registr ation that gives the applicant the right to use the
157 term Register ed Dietitian; or
158 b. Complete all of the following:
159 i. An education pr ogram which is either:
160 (a) A master's degre e or doctoral degr ee that is pr ogrammatically accr edited by
161 (i) ACEND; or (ii) a dietetics accred iting agency r ecognized by the United States
162 Department of Education, which the Compact Commission may by Rule determine, and
163 fr om a college or university accred ited at the time of graduation by the appr opriate
164 r egional accr editing agency recog nized by the Council on Higher Education
1 6 5 Accr editation and the United States Department of Education;
166 (b) An academic degree fr om a college or university in a for eign country
167 equivalent to the degr ee described in subparagraph (a) that is pro grammatically
168 accr edited by (i) ACEND; or (ii) a dietetics accred iting agency rec ognized by the United
169 States Department of Education, which the Compact Commission may by Rule
170 determine;
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171 ii. A planned, documented, supervised practice experience in dietetics that is
172 pr ogrammatically accr edited by (i) ACEND; or (ii) a dietetics accr editing agency
173 r ecognized by the United States Department of Education which the Compact
174 Commission may by Rule determine and which involves at least 1000 hours of
175 practice experience under the supervision of a Register ed Dietitian or a Licensed
176 Dietitian; and
177 iii. Successful completion of either: (i) the Registration Examination for
178 Dietitians administere d by CDR; or (ii) a national cred entialing examination for
179 dietitians appr oved by the Compact Commission by Rule; such completion being no
180 mor e than five years prior to the date of the Licensee's application for initial licensur e
181 and accompanied by a period of continuous licensur e ther eafter , all of which may be
182 further governed by the Rules of the Compact Commission;
183 2. Hold an Unencumbered License in the Home State;
184 3. Notify the Compact Commission that the Licensee is seeking a Compact
185 Privilege within a Remote State(s);
186 4. Pay any applicable fees, including any State fee, for the Compact Privilege;
187 5. Meet any Jurisprudence Requirem ents established by the Remote State(s) in
188 which the Licensee is seeking a Compact Privilege; and
189 6. Report to the Compact Commission any Adverse Action, Encumbrance, or
190 r estriction on a License taken by any non-Member State within 30 days fr om the date
191 the action is taken.
192 B. The Compact Privilege is valid until the expiration date of the Home State
193 License. T o maintain a Compact Privilege, r enewal of the Compact Privilege shall be
194 congruent with the ren ewal of the Home State License as the Compact Commission may
195 define by Rule. The Licensee must comply with the r equir ements of Section 4(A) to
196 maintain the Compact Privilege in the Remote State(s).
197 C. A Licensee exer cising a Compact Privilege shall adher e to the laws and
198 r egulations of the Remote State. Licensees shall be res ponsible for educating themselves
199 on, and complying with, any and all State laws relat ing to the Practice of Dietetics in
200 such Remote State.
201 D. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary pr ovided in this Compact or State
202 law , a Licensee exer cising a Compact Privilege shall not be r equir ed to complete
203 Continuing Education Requir ements r equir ed by a Remote State. A Licensee exerc ising
204 a Compact Privilege is only requi red to meet any Continuing Education Requireme nts
205 as requ ired by the Home State.
206 SECTION 5. OBT AINING A NEW HOME ST A TE LICENSE BASED ON A
207 COMP ACT PRIVILEGE
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208 A. A Licensee may hold a Home State License, which allows for a Compact
209 Privilege in other Member States, in only one Member State at a time.
210 B. If a Licensee changes Home State by moving between two Member States:
211 1. The Licensee shall file an application for obtaining a new Home State License
212 based on a Compact Privilege, pay all applicable fees, and notify the curr ent and new
213 Home State in accordance with the Rules of the Compact Commission.
214 2. Upon receipt of an application for obtaining a new Home State License by
215 virtue of a Compact Privilege, the new Home State shall verify that the Licensee meets
216 the criteria in Section 4 via the Data System, and requi re that the Licensee complete the
217 following:
218 a. Federal Bur eau of Investigation fingerprint based criminal history reco rd
219 information check;
220 b. Any other criminal history record information requ ired by the new Home
221 State; and
222 c. Any Jurisprudence Requirem ents of the new Home State.
223 3. The former Home State shall convert the former Home State License into a
224 Compact Privilege once the new Home State has activated the new Home State License
225 in accordance with applicable Rules adopted by the Compact Commission.
226 4. Notwithstanding any other pro vision of this Compact, if the Licensee cannot
227 meet the criteria in Section 4, the new Home State may apply its requ irem ents for
228 issuing a new Single State License.
229 5. The Licensee shall pay all applicable fees to the new Home State in order to be
230 issued a new Home State License.
231 C. If a Licensee changes their State of r esidence by moving fr om a Member State
232 to a non-Member State, or fr om a non-Member State to a Member State, the State
233 criteria shall apply for issuance of a Single State License in the new State.
234 D. Nothing in this Compact shall interfer e with a Licensee's ability to hold a
235 Single State License in multiple States; however , for the purposes of this Compact, a
236 Licensee shall have only one Home State License.
237 E. Nothing in this Compact shall affect the requi rem ents established by a
238 Member State for the issuance of a Single State License.
239 SECTION 6. ACTIVE MILIT AR Y MEMBERS OR THEIR SPOUSES
240 An Active Military Member , or their spouse, shall designate a Home State wher e
241 the individual has a curren t License in good standing. The individual may r etain the
242 Home State designation during the period the service member is on active duty .
243 SECTION 7. ADVERSE ACTIONS
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244 A. In addition to the other powers conferr ed by State law , a Remote State shall
245 have the authority , in accordance with existing State due pro cess law , to:
246 1. T ake Adverse Action against a Licensee's Compact Privilege within that
247 Member State; and
248 2. Issue subpoenas for both hearings and investigations that requ ire the
249 attendance and testimony of witnesses as well as the prod uction of evidence. Subpoenas
250 issued by a Licensing Authority in a Member State for the attendance and testimony of
251 witnesses or the pr oduction of evidence from another Member State shall be enforced in
252 the latter State by any court of competent jurisdiction, according to the practice and
253 pr ocedur e applicable to subpoenas issued in pr oceedings pending before that court. The
254 issuing authority shall pay any witness fees, travel expenses, mileage, and other fees
255 r equir ed by the service statutes of the State in which the witnesses or evidence are
256 located.
257 B. Only the Home State shall have the power to take Adverse Action against a
258 Licensee's Home State License.
259 C. For purposes of taking Adverse Action, the Home State shall give the same
260 priority and effect to reported conduct received fr om a Member State as it would if the
261 conduct had occurr ed within the Home State. In so doing, the Home State shall apply
262 its own State laws to determine appr opriate action.
263 D. The Home State shall complete any pending investigations of a Licensee who
264 changes Home States during the course of the investigations. The Home State shall also
265 have authority to take appr opriate action(s) and shall pr omptly repo rt the conclusions
266 of the investigations to the administrator of the Data System. The administrator of the
267 Data System shall prompt ly notify the new Home State of any Adverse Actions.
268 E. A Member State, if otherwise permitted by State law , may reco ver fro m the
269 affected Licensee the costs of investigations and dispositions of cases res ulting fr om any
270 Adverse Action taken against that Licensee.
271 F . A Member State may take Adverse Action based on the factual findings of
272 another Remote State, pro vided that the Member State follows its own proce dures for
273 taking the Adverse Action.
274 G. Joint Investigations:
275 1. In addition to the authority granted to a Member State by its res pective State
276 law , any Member State may participate with other Member States in joint investigations
277 of Licensees.
278 2. Member States shall share any investigative, litigation, or compliance
279 materials in furtherance of any joint investigation initiated under the Compact.
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280 H. If Adverse Action is taken by the Home State against a Licensee's Home State
281 License res ulting in an Encumbrance on the Home State License, the Licensee's
282 Compact Privilege(s) in all other Member States shall be r evoked until all
2 8 3 Encumbrances have been rem oved from the Home State License. All Home State
284 disciplinary orders that impose Adverse Action against a Licensee shall include a
285 statement that the Licensee's Compact Privileges ar e rev oked in all Member States
286 during the pendency of the order .
287 I. Once an Encumber ed License in the Home State is re stored to an
288 Unencumber ed License (as certified by the Home State's Licensing Authority), the
289 Licensee must meet the req uirements of Section 4(A) and follow the administrative
290 r equir ements to reapp ly to obtain a Compact Privilege in any Remote State.
291 J. If a Member State takes Adverse Action, it shall prompt ly notify the
292 administrator of the Data System. The administrator of the Data System shall pr omptly
293 notify the other Member States of any Adverse Actions.
294 K. Nothing in this Compact shall override a Member State's decision that
295 participation in an Alternative Pr ogram may be used in lieu of Adverse Action.
296 SECTION 8. EST ABLISHMENT OF THE DIETITIAN LICENSURE COMP ACT
297 COMMISSION
298 A. The Compact Member States hereb y creat e and establish a joint government
299 agency whose membership consists of all Member States that have enacted the Compact
300 known as the Dietitian Licensur e Compact Commission. The Compact Commission is
301 an instrumentality of the Compact States acting jointly and not an instrumentality of
302 any one State. The Compact Commission shall come into existence on or after the
303 effective date of the Compact as set forth in Section 12.
304 B. Membership, V oting, and Meetings
305 1. Each Member State shall have and be limited to one (1) delegate selected by
306 that Member State's Licensing Authority .
307 2. The delegate shall be the primary administrator of the Licensing Authority or
308 their designee.
309 3. The Compact Commission shall by Rule or bylaw establish a term of office for
310 delegates and may by Rule or bylaw establish term limits.
311 4. The Compact Commission may reco mmend rem oval or suspension of any
312 delegate fr om office.
313 5. A Member State's Licensing Authority shall fill any vacancy of its delegate
314 occurring on the Compact Commission within 60 days of the vacancy .
315 6. Each delegate shall be entitled to one vote on all matters before the Compact
316 Commission requ iring a vote by the delegates.
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317 7. Delegates shall meet and vote by such means as set forth in the bylaws. The
318 bylaws may pr ovide for delegates to meet and vote in-person or by telecommunication,
319 video conferenc e, or other means of communication.
320 8. The Compact Commission shall meet at least once during each calendar year .
321 Additional meetings may be held as set forth in the bylaws. The Compact Commission
322 may meet in person or by telecommunication, video conferen ce, or other means of
323 communication.
324 C. The Compact Commission shall have the following powers:
325 1. Establish the fiscal year of the Compact Commission;
326 2. Establish code of conduct and conflict of interes t policies;
327 3. Establish and amend Rules and bylaws;
328 4. Maintain its financial r ecords in accordance with the bylaws;
329 5. Meet and take such actions as ar e consistent with the pro visions of this
330 Compact, the Compact Commission's Rules, and the bylaws;
331 6. Initiate and conclude legal pro ceedings or actions in the name of the Compact
332 Commission, provi ded that the standing of any Licensing Authority to sue or be sued
333 under applicable law shall not be affected;
334 7. Maintain and certify r ecords and information provi ded to a Member State as
335 the authenticated business records of the Compact Commission, and designate an agent
336 to do so on the Compact Commission's behalf;
337 8. Purchase and maintain insurance and bonds;
338 9. Borr ow , accept, or contract for services of personnel, including, but not
339 limited to, employees of a Member State;
340 10. Conduct an annual financial re view;
341 1 1. Hir e employees, elect or appoint officers, fix compensation, define duties,
342 grant such individuals appr opriate authority to carry out the purposes of the Compact,
343 and establish the Compact Commission's personnel policies and pr ograms relat ing to
344 conflicts of interes t, qualifications of personnel, and other r elated personnel matters;
345 12. Assess and collect fees;
346 13. Accept any and all appr opriate donations, grants of money , other sources of
347 r evenue, equipment, supplies, materials, services, and gifts, and r eceive, utilize, and
348 dispose of the same; pr ovided that at all times the Compact Commission shall avoid any
349 actual or appearance of impr opriety or conflict of interes t;
350 14. Lease, pur chase, ret ain, own, hold, impro ve, or use any prop erty , r eal,
351 personal, or mixed, or any undivided interes t ther ein;
352 15. Sell, convey , mortgage, pledge, lease, exchange, abandon, or otherwise
353 dispose of any pr operty real, personal, or mixed;
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354 16. Establish a budget and make expenditur es;
355 17. Borrow money;
356 18. Appoint committees, including standing committees, composed of members,
357 State r egulators, State legislators or their re pr esentatives, and consumer
3 5 8 r epresent atives, and such other interes ted persons as may be designated in this
359 Compact or the bylaws;
360 19. Pr ovide and r eceive information fr om, and cooperate with, law enforcem ent
361 agencies;
362 20. Establish and elect an Executive Committee, including a chair and a vice
363 chair;
364 21. Determine whether a State's adopted language is materially differ ent fr om
365 the model compact language such that the State would not qualify for participation in
366 the Compact; and
367 22. Perform such other functions as may be necessary or appr opriate to achieve
368 the purposes of this Compact.
369 D. The Executive Committee
370 1. The Executive Committee shall have the power to act on behalf of the
371 Compact Commission according to the terms of this Compact. The powers, duties, and
372 r esponsibilities of the Executive Committee shall include:
373 a. Oversee the day-to-day activities of the administration of the Compact
374 including enforcem ent and compliance with the pr ovisions of the Compact, its Rules and
375 bylaws, and other such duties as deemed necessary;
376 b. Recommend to the Compact Commission changes to the Rules or bylaws,
377 changes to this Compact legislation, fees charged to Compact Member States, fees
378 charged to Licensees, and other fees;
379 c. Ensur e Compact administration services ar e appr opriately pr ovided,
38 0 including by contract;
381 d. Pr epare and re commend the budget;
382 e. Maintain financial records on behalf of the Compact Commission;
383 f. Monitor Compact compliance of Member States and prov ide compliance
384 r eports to the Compact Commission;
385 g. Establish additional committees as necessary;
386 h. Exercis e the powers and duties of the Compact Commission during the
387 interim between Compact Commission meetings, except for adopting or amending
388 Rules, adopting or amending bylaws, and exerci sing any other powers and duties
389 expr essly r eserved to the Compact Commission by Rule or bylaw; and
390 i. Other duties as pr ovided in the Rules or bylaws of the Compact Commission.
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391 2. The Executive Committee shall be composed of nine members:
392 a. The chair and vice chair of the Compact Commission shall be voting members
393 of the Executive Committee;
394 b. Five voting members fr om the curren t membership of the Compact
395 Commission, elected by the Compact Commission;
396 c. One ex-officio, nonvoting member fr om a recog nized pr ofessional association
397 r epresent ing dietitians; and
398 d. One ex-officio, nonvoting member fr om a recog nized national cr edentialing
399 organization for dietitians.
400 3. The Compact Commission may r emove any member of the Executive
401 Committee as pr ovided in the Compact Commission's bylaws.
402 4. The Executive Committee shall meet at least annually .
403 a. Executive Committee meetings shall be open to the public, except that the
404 Executive Committee may meet in a closed, non-public meeting as pr ovided in
405 subsection (F)(2).
406 b. The Executive Committee shall give 30 days' notice of its meetings, posted on
407 the website of the Compact Commission and as determined to pr ovide notice to persons
408 with an interes t in the business of the Compact Commission.
409 c. The Executive Committee may hold a special meeting in accordance with
410 subsection (F)(1)(b).
411 E. The Compact Commission shall adopt and pr ovide to the Member States an
412 annual r eport.
413 F . Meetings of the Compact Commission
414 1. All meetings shall be open to the public, except that the Compact Commission
415 may meet in a closed, non-public meeting as pro vided in subsection (F)(2).
416 a. Public notice for all meetings of the full Compact Commission shall be given
417 in the same manner as requ ired under the rulemaking pr ovisions in Section 10, except
418 that the Compact Commission may hold a special meeting as pr ovided in subsection (F)
419 (1)(b).
420 b. The Compact Commission may hold a special meeting when it must meet to
421 conduct emergency business by giving 24 hours' notice to all Member States, on the
422 Compact Commission's website, and other means as pro vided in the Compact
423 Commission's Rules. The Compact Commission's legal counsel shall certify that the
424 Compact Commission's need to meet qualifies as an emergency .
425 2. The Compact Commission or the Executive Committee or other committees of
426 the Compact Commission may convene in a closed, non-public meeting for the Compact
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427 Commission or Executive Committee or other committees of the Compact Commission
428 to receive legal advice or to discuss:
429 a. Non-compliance of a Member State with its obligations under the Compact;
430 b. The employment, compensation, discipline, or other matters, practices, or
431 pr ocedur es r elated to specific employees;
432 c. Curr ent or thr eatened discipline of a Licensee by the Compact Commission or
433 by a Member State's Licensing Authority;
434 d. Curr ent, thr eatened, or reas onably anticipated litigation;
435 e. Negotiation of contracts for the purch ase, lease, or sale of goods, services, or
436 r eal estate;
437 f. Accusing any person of a crime or formally censuring any person;
438 g. T rade secr ets or commer cial or financial information that is privileged or
439 confidential;
440 h. Information of a personal natur e wher e disclosur e would constitute a clearly
441 unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
442 i. Investigative record s compiled for law enfor cement purposes;
443 j. Information re lated to any investigative r eports prep ared by or on behalf of or
444 for use of the Compact Commission or other committee charged with r esponsibility of
445 investigation or determination of compliance issues pursuant to the Compact;
446 k. Matters specifically exempted fr om disclosur e by federal or Member State
447 law; or
448 l. Other matters as specified in the Rules of the Compact Commission.
449 3. If a meeting, or portion of a meeting, is closed, the presidi ng officer shall state
450 that the meeting will be closed and ref eren ce each relev ant exempting provi sion, and
451 such re feren ce shall be recor ded in the minutes.
452 4. The Compact Commission shall keep minutes that fully and clearly describe
453 all matters discussed in a meeting and shall prov ide a full and accurate summary of
454 actions taken, and the rea sons ther efor e, including a description of the views expr essed.
455 All documents consider ed in connection with an action shall be identified in such
456 minutes. All minutes and documents of a closed meeting shall r emain under seal,
457 subject to r elease only by a majority vote of the Compact Commission or order of a
458 court of competent jurisdiction.
459 G. Financing of the Compact Commission
460 1. The Compact Commission shall pay , or pr ovide for the payment of, the
461 r easonable expenses of its establishment, organization, and ongoing activities.
462 2. The Compact Commission may accept any and all appr opriate reven ue
463 sour ces as pr ovided in subsection (C)(13).
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464 3. The Compact Commission may levy on and collect an annual assessment fr om
465 each Member State and impose fees on Licensees of Member States to whom it grants a
466 Compact Privilege to cover the cost of the operations and activities of the Compact
467 Commission and its staff, which must, in a total amount, be sufficient to cover its annual
468 budget as appr oved each year for which rev enue is not pr ovided by other sources . The
469 aggr egate annual assessment amount for Member States shall be allocated based upon a
470 formula that the Compact Commission shall pro mulgate by Rule.
471 4. The Compact Commission shall not incur obligations of any kind prior to
472 securing the funds adequate to meet the same; nor shall the Compact Commission
473 pledge the cr edit of any of the Member States, except by and with the authority of the
474 Member State.
475 5. The Compact Commission shall keep accurate accounts of all r eceipts and
476 disbursements. The r eceipts and disbursements of the Compact Commission shall be
477 subject to the financial rev iew and accounting proce dures established under its bylaws.
478 However , all receip ts and disbursements of funds handled by the Compact Commission
479 shall be subject to an annual financial review by a certified or licensed public
480 accountant, and the r eport of the financial revi ew shall be included in and become part
481 of the annual repo rt of the Compact Commission.
482 H. Qualified Immunity , Defense, and Indemnification
483 1. The members, officers, executive dir ector , employees and rep res entatives of
484 the Compact Commission shall be immune fr om suit and liability , both personally and
485 in their official capacity , for any claim for damage to or loss of pr operty or personal
486 injury or other civil liability caused by or arising out of any actual or alleged act, error ,
487 or omission that occurr ed, or that the person against whom the claim is made had a
488 r easonable basis for believing occurr ed within the scope of Compact Commission
489 employment, duties, or res ponsibilities; pr ovided that nothing in this paragraph shall be
490 construed to pr otect any such person fro m suit or liability for any damage, loss, injury ,
491 or liability caused by the intentional or willful or wanton misconduct of that person.
492 The pr ocurement of insurance of any type by the Compact Commission shall not in any
493 way compr omise or limit the immunity granted hereu nder .
494 2. The Compact Commission shall defend any member , officer , executive
495 dir ector , employee, and r epresent ative of the Compact Commission in any civil action
496 seeking to impose liability arising out of any actual or alleged act, error , or omission that
497 occurr ed within the scope of Compact Commission employment, duties, or
4 9 8 r esponsibilities, or as determined by the Compact Commission that the person
499 against whom the claim is made had a rea sonable basis for believing occurr ed within the
500 scope of Compact Commission employment, duties, or r esponsibilities; pr ovided that
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501 nothing her ein shall be construed to pro hibit that person fr om ret aining their own
502 counsel at their own expense; and pr ovided further , that the actual or alleged act, error ,
503 or omission did not res ult fr om that person's intentional or willful or wanton
504 misconduct.
505 3. The Compact Commission shall indemnify and hold harmless any member ,
506 officer , executive dir ector , employee, and repr esentative of the Compact Commission for
507 the amount of any settlement or judgment obtained against that person arising out of
508 any actual or alleged act, erro r , or omission that occurr ed within the scope of Compact
509 Commission employment, duties, or r esponsibilities, or that such person had a
510 r easonable basis for believing occurr ed within the scope of Compact Commission
511 employment, duties, or r esponsibilities, pro vided that the actual or alleged act, error , or
512 omission did not r esult fr om the intentional or willful or wanton misconduct of that
513 person.
514 4. Nothing her ein shall be construed as a limitation on the liability of any
515 Licensee for profes sional malpractice or misconduct, which shall be governed solely by
516 any other applicable State laws.
517 5. Nothing in this Compact shall be interpret ed to waive or otherwise abro gate a
518 Member State's state action immunity or state action affirmative defense with res pect to
519 antitrust claims under the Sherman Act, Clayton Act, or any other State or federal
520 antitrust or anticompetitive law or regu lation.
521 6. Nothing in this Compact shall be construed to be a waiver of soverei gn
522 immunity by the Member States or by the Compact Commission.
523 SECTION 9. DA T A SYSTEM
524 A. The Compact Commission shall prov ide for the development, maintenance,
525 operation, and utilization of a coordinated Data System.
526 B. The Compact Commission shall assign each applicant for a Compact
527 Privilege a unique identifier , as determined by the Rules.
528 C. Notwithstanding any other pr ovision of State law to the contrary , a Member
529 State shall submit a uniform data set to the Data System on all individuals to whom this
530 Compact is applicable as r equir ed by the Rules of the Compact Commission, including:
531 1. Identifying information;
532 2. Licensure data;
533 3. Adverse Actions against a License or Compact Privilege and information
534 r elated ther eto;
535 4. Non-confidential information rel ated to Alternative Pr ogram participation,
536 the beginning and ending dates of such participation, and other information rel ated to
537 such participation not made confidential under Member State law;
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538 5. Any denial of application for licensur e, and the reas on(s) for such denial;
539 6. The pr esence of Curren t Significant Investigative Information; and
540 7. Other information that may facilitate the administration of this Compact or
541 the pro tection of the public, as determined by the Rules of the Compact Commission.
542 D. The re cords and information pr ovided to a Member State pursuant to this
543 Compact or thr ough the Data System, when certified by the Compact Commission or an
544 agent ther eof, shall constitute the authenticated business rec ords of the Compact
545 Commission, and shall be entitled to any associated hearsay exception in any r elevant
546 judicial, quasi-judicial, or administrative proceed ings in a Member State.
547 E. Curren t Significant Investigative Information pertaining to a Licensee in any
548 Member State will only be available to other Member States.
549 F . It is the r esponsibility of the Member States to rep ort any Adverse Action
550 against a Licensee and to monitor the Data System to determine whether any Adverse
551 Action has been taken against a Licensee. Adverse Action information pertaining to a
552 Licensee in any Member State will be available to any other Member State.
553 G. Member States contributing information to the Data System may designate
554 information that may not be shared with the public without the express permission of
555 the contributing State.
556 H. Any information submitted to the Data System that is subsequently expunged
557 pursuant to federal law or the laws of the Member State contributing the information
558 shall be re moved fr om the Data System.
559 SECTION 10. RULEMAKING
560 A. The Compact Commission shall promul gate reas onable Rules in order to
561 effectively and efficiently implement and administer the purposes and pro visions of the
562 Compact. A Rule shall be invalid and have no for ce or effect only if a court of
563 competent jurisdiction holds that the Rule is invalid because the Compact Commission
564 exer cised its rulemaking authority in a manner that is beyond the scope and purposes of
565 the Compact, or the powers granted her eunder , or based upon another applicable
566 standard of r eview .
567 B. The Rules of the Compact Commission shall have the for ce of law in each
568 Member State, pr ovided however that where the Rules conflict with the laws or
569 r egulations of a Member State that relat e to the pr ocedur es, actions, and proce sses a
570 Licensed Dietitian is permitted to undertake in that State and the cir cumstances under
571 which they may do so, as held by a court of competent jurisdiction, the Rules of the
572 Compact Commission shall be ineffective in that State to the extent of the conflict.
573 C. The Compact Commission shall exer cise its rulemaking powers pursuant to
574 the criteria set forth in this Section and the Rules adopted ther eunder . Rules shall
SS HCS HB 2974 19
575 become binding on the day following adoption or as of the date specified in the Rule or
576 amendment, whichever is later .
577 D. If a majority of the legislatur es of the Member States re jects a Rule or portion
578 of a Rule, by enactment of a statute or res olution in the same manner used to adopt the
579 Compact within four (4) years of the date of adoption of the Rule, then such Rule shall
580 have no further for ce and effect in any Member State.
581 E. Rules shall be adopted at a regu lar or special meeting of the Compact
582 Commission.
583 F . Prior to adoption of a pr oposed Rule, the Compact Commission shall hold a
584 public hearing and allow persons to prov ide oral and written comments, data, facts,
585 opinions, and arguments.
586 G. Prior to adoption of a prop osed Rule by the Compact Commission, and at
587 least thirty (30) days in advance of the meeting at which the Compact Commission will
588 hold a public hearing on the pr oposed Rule, the Compact Commission shall pro vide a
589 Notice of Pr oposed rulemaking:
590 1. On the website of the Compact Commission or other publicly accessible
591 platform;
592 2. T o persons who have reque sted notice of the Compact Commission's notices of
593 pr oposed rulemaking; and
594 3. In such other way(s) as the Compact Commission may by Rule specify .
595 H. The Notice of Pr oposed rulemaking shall include:
596 1. The time, date, and location of the public hearing at which the Compact
597 Commission will hear public comments on the pro posed Rule and, if differe nt, the time,
598 date, and location of the meeting wher e the Compact Commission will consider and vote
599 on the prop osed Rule;
600 2. If the hearing is held via telecommunication, video confere nce, or other means
601 of communication, the Compact Commission shall include the mechanism for access to
602 the hearing in the Notice of Pr oposed rulemaking;
603 3. The text of the pr oposed Rule and the reas on ther efor e;
604 4. A r equest for comments on the pr oposed Rule fr om any inter ested person;
605 and
606 5. The manner in which interes ted persons may submit written comments.
607 I. All hearings will be r ecorded. A copy of the record ing and all written
608 comments and documents receiv ed by the Compact Commission in res ponse to the
609 pr oposed Rule shall be available to the public.
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610 J. Nothing in this Section shall be construed as requ iring a separate hearing on
611 each Rule. Rules may be gr ouped for the convenience of the Compact Commission at
612 hearings requ ired by this Section.
613 K. The Compact Commission shall, by majority vote of all members, take final
614 action on the prop osed Rule based on the rulemaking record and the full text of the
615 Rule.
616 1. The Compact Commission may adopt changes to the prop osed Rule pr ovided
617 the changes do not enlarge the original purpose of the pr oposed Rule.
618 2. The Compact Commission shall prov ide an explanation of the re asons for
619 substantive changes made to the prop osed Rule as well as reas ons for substantive
620 changes not made that were recommended by commenters.
621 3. The Compact Commission shall determine a rea sonable effective date for the
622 Rule. Except for an emergency as pr ovided in Section 10(L), the effective date of the
623 Rule shall be no sooner than 30 days after issuing the notice that it adopted or amended
624 the Rule.
625 L. Upon determination that an emergency exists, the Compact Commission may
626 consider and adopt an emergency Rule with 24 hours' notice, with opportunity to
627 comment, pr ovided that the usual rulemaking pr ocedur es pro vided in the Compact and
628 in this Section shall be retr oactively applied to the Rule as soon as reas onably possible,
629 in no event later than ninety (90) days after the effective date of the Rule. For the
630 purposes of this pro vision, an emergency Rule is one that must be adopted immediately
631 in order to:
632 1. Meet an imminent thr eat to public health, safety , or welfare;
633 2. Pr event a loss of Compact Commission or Member State funds;
634 3. Meet a deadline for the pr omulgation of a Rule that is established by federal
635 law or rule; or
636 4. Pr otect public health and safety .
637 M. The Compact Commission or an authorized committee of the Compact
638 Commission may dir ect r evision to a pr eviously adopted Rule for purposes of corr ecting
639 typographical erro rs, err ors in format, erro rs in consistency , or grammatical errors.
640 Public notice of any revision shall be posted on the website of the Compact Commission.
641 The revision shall be subject to challenge by any person for a period of thirty (30) days
642 after posting. The revision may be challenged only on grou nds that the rev ision r esults
643 in a material change to a Rule. A challenge shall be made in writing and deliver ed to the
644 Compact Commission prior to the end of the notice period. If no challenge is made, the
645 r evision will take effect without further action. If the r evision is challenged, the rev ision
646 may not take effect without the appr oval of the Compact Commission.
SS HCS HB 2974 21
647 N. No Member State's rulemaking r equir ements shall apply under this
648 Compact.
649 SECTION 1 1. OVERSIGHT , DISPUTE RESOLUTION, AND ENFORCEMENT
650 A. Oversight
651 1. The executive and judicial branches of State government in each Member
652 State shall enforce this Compact and take all actions necessary and appr opriate to
653 implement this Compact.
654 2. Except as otherwise provi ded in this Compact, venue is pr oper and judicial
655 pr oceedings by or against the Compact Commission shall be brou ght solely and
656 exclusively in a court of competent jurisdiction wher e the principal office of the
657 Compact Commission is located. The Compact Commission may waive venue and
658 jurisdictional defenses to the extent it adopts or consents to participate in alternative
659 dispute reso lution pr oceedings. Nothing herei n shall affect or limit the selection or
660 pr opriety of venue in any action against a Licensee for profes sional malpractice,
661 misconduct, or any such similar matter .
662 3. The Compact Commission shall be entitled to receive service of pr ocess in any
663 pr oceeding r egarding the enforcem ent or interpr etation of the Compact and shall have
664 standing to intervene in such a proceed ing for all purposes. Failur e to pr ovide the
665 Compact Commission service of pr ocess shall rend er a judgment or order void as to the
666 Compact Commission, this Compact, or promulg ated Rules.
667 B. Default, T echnical Assistance, and T ermination
668 1. If the Compact Commission determines that a Member State has defaulted in
669 the performance of its obligations or res ponsibilities under this Compact or the
670 pr omulgated Rules, the Compact Commission shall pro vide written notice to the
671 defaulting State. The notice of default shall describe the default, the pr oposed means of
672 curing the default, and any other action that the Compact Commission may take and
673 shall offer training and specific technical assistance reg arding the default.
674 2. The Compact Commission shall pr ovide a copy of the notice of default to the
675 other Member States.
676 C. If a State in default fails to cur e the default, the defaulting State may be
677 terminated fro m the Compact upon an affirmative vote of a majority of the delegates of
678 the Member States, and all rights, privileges, and benefits conferr ed on that State by
679 this Compact may be terminated on the effective date of termination. A cur e of the
680 default does not reliev e the offending State of obligations or liabilities incurr ed during
681 the period of default.
682 D. T ermination of membership in the Compact shall be imposed only after all
683 other means of securing compliance have been exhausted. Notice of intent to suspend or
SS HCS HB 2974 22
684 terminate shall be given by the Compact Commission to the governor , the majority and
685 minority leaders of the defaulting State's legislature, the defaulting State's Licensing
686 Authority , and each of the Member States' Licensing Authority .
687 E. A State that has been terminated is res ponsible for all assessments,
688 obligations, and liabilities incurr ed thr ough the effective date of termination, including
689 obligations that extend beyond the effective date of termination.
690 F . Upon the termination of a State's membership fr om this Compact, that State
691 shall immediately pr ovide notice to all Licensees within that State of such termination.
692 The terminated State shall continue to recog nize all Compact Privileges granted
693 pursuant to this Compact for a minimum of six months after the date of said notice of
694 termination.
695 G. The Compact Commission shall not bear any costs relat ed to a State that is
696 found to be in default or that has been terminated fr om the Compact, unless agr eed
697 upon in writing between the Compact Commission and the defaulting State.
698 H. The defaulting State may appeal the action of the Compact Commission by
699 petitioning the United States District Court for the District of Columbia or the federal
700 district wher e the Compact Commission has its principal offices. The pr evailing party
701 shall be awarded all costs of such litigation, including reas onable attorney's fees.
702 I. Dispute Resolution
703 1. Upon r equest by a Member State, the Compact Commission shall attempt to
704 r esolve disputes relat ed to the Compact that arise among Member States and between
705 Member and non-Member States.
706 2. The Compact Commission shall promulg ate a Rule pro viding for both
707 mediation and binding dispute r esolution for disputes as appr opriate.
708 J. Enfor cement
709 1. By supermajority vote, the Compact Commission may initiate legal action
710 against a Member State in default in the United States District Court for the District of
711 Columbia or the federal district wher e the Compact Commission has its principal
712 offices to enforce compliance with the pr ovisions of the Compact and its pr omulgated
713 Rules. The reli ef sought may include both injunctive rel ief and damages. In the event
714 judicial enfor cement is necessary , the prev ailing party shall be awarded all costs of such
715 litigation, including r easonable attorney's fees. The r emedies herei n shall not be the
716 exclusive r emedies of the Compact Commission. The Compact Commission may pursue
717 any other rem edies available under federal or the defaulting Member State's law .
718 2. A Member State may initiate legal action against the Compact Commission in
719 the United States District Court for the District of Columbia or the federal district
720 wher e the Compact Commission has its principal offices to enfor ce compliance with the
SS HCS HB 2974 23
721 pr ovisions of the Compact and its pro mulgated Rules. The r elief sought may include
722 both injunctive relief and damages. In the event judicial enfor cement is necessary , the
723 pr evailing party shall be awarded all costs of such litigation, including reas onable
724 attorney's fees.
725 3. No party other than a Member State shall enfor ce this Compact against the
726 Compact Commission.
727 SECTION 12. EFFECTIVE DA TE, WITHDRA W AL, AND AMENDMENT
728 A. The Compact shall come into effect on the date on which the Compact statute
729 is enacted into law in the seventh Member State.
730 1. On or after the effective date of the Compact, the Compact Commission shall
731 convene and rev iew the enactment of each of the first seven Member States ("Charter
732 Member States") to determine if the statute enacted by each such Charter Member
733 State is materially differen t than the model Compact statute.
734 a. A Charter Member State whose enactment is found to be materially differ ent
735 fr om the model Compact statute shall be entitled to the default process set forth in
736 Section 1 1.
737 b. If any Member State is later found to be in default, or is terminated, or
738 withdraws fr om the Compact, the Compact Commission shall r emain in existence and
739 the Compact shall rem ain in effect even if the number of Member States should be less
740 than seven.
741 2. Member States enacting the Compact subsequent to the seven initial Charter
742 Member States shall be subject to the pr ocess set forth in Section 8(C)(21) to determine
743 if their enactments ar e materially differ ent fr om the model Compact statute and
744 whether they qualify for participation in the Compact.
745 3. All actions taken for the benefit of the Compact Commission or in furtherance
746 of the purposes of the administration of the Compact prior to the effective date of the
747 Compact or the Compact Commission coming into existence shall be consider ed to be
748 actions of the Compact Commission unless specifically repud iated by the Compact
749 Commission.
750 4. Any State that joins the Compact subsequent to the Compact Commission's
751 initial adoption of the Rules and bylaws shall be subject to the Rules and bylaws as they
752 exist on the date on which the Compact becomes law in that State. Any Rule that has
753 been pr eviously adopted by the Compact Commission shall have the full for ce and effect
754 of law on the day the Compact becomes law in that State.
755 B. Any Member State may withdraw fro m this Compact by enacting a statute
756 r epealing the same.
SS HCS HB 2974 24
757 1. A Member State's withdrawal shall not take effect until 180 days after
758 enactment of the rep ealing statute.
759 2. Withdr awal shall not affect the continuing r equir ement of the withdrawing
760 State's Licensing Authority to comply with the investigative and Adverse Action
761 r eporting req uirements of this Compact prior to the effective date of withdrawal.
762 3. Upon the enactment of a statute withdrawing fr om this Compact, a State shall
763 immediately provi de notice of such withdrawal to all Licensees within that State.
764 Notwithstanding any subsequent statutory enactment to the contrary , such withdrawing
765 State shall continue to recog nize all Compact Privileges granted pursuant to this
766 Compact for a minimum of 180 days after the date of such notice of withdrawal.
767 C. Nothing contained in this Compact shall be construed to invalidate or pr event
768 any licensur e agr eement or other cooperative arrangement between a Member State
769 and a non-Member State that does not conflict with the provi sions of this Compact.
770 D. This Compact may be amended by the Member States. No amendment to this
771 Compact shall become effective and binding upon any Member State until it is enacted
772 into the laws of all Member States.
773 SECTION 13. CONSTRUCTION AND SEVERABILITY
774 A. This Compact and the Compact Commission's rulemaking authority shall be
775 liberally construed so as to effectuate the purposes and the implementation and
776 administration of the Compact. Pr ovisions of the Compact expr essly authorizing or
777 r equiring the pr omulgation of Rules shall not be construed to limit the Compact
778 Commission's rulemaking authority solely for those purposes.
779 B. The pr ovisions of this Compact shall be severable and if any phrase, clause,
780 sentence, or prov ision of this Compact is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be
781 contrary to the constitution of any Member State, a State seeking participation in the
782 Compact, or of the United States, or the applicability ther eof to any government,
783 agency , person, or cir cumstance is held to be unconstitutional by a court of competent
784 jurisdiction, the validity of the rem ainder of this Compact and the applicability ther eof
785 to any other government, agency , person, or circu mstance shall not be affected ther eby .
786 C. Notwithstanding Section 13(B), the Compact Commission may deny a State's
787 participation in the Compact or , in accordance with the requi rem ents of Section 1 1(B),
788 terminate a Member State's participation in the Compact, if it determines that a
789 constitutional r equir ement of a Member State is a material departur e fr om the
790 Compact. Otherwise, if this Compact shall be held to be contrary to the constitution of
791 any Member State, the Compact shall rem ain in full for ce and effect as to the rem aining
792 Member States and in full forc e and effect as to the Member State affected as to all
793 severable matters.
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794 SECTION 14. CONSISTENT EFFECT AND CONFLICT WITH OTHER ST A TE
795 LA WS
796 A. Nothing herei n shall preven t or inhibit the enforcem ent of any other law of a
797 Member State that is not inconsistent with the Compact.
798 B. Any laws, statutes, regula tions, or other legal r equir ements in a Member State
799 in conflict with the Compact ar e superseded to the extent of the conflict.
800 C. All permissible agr eements between the Compact Commission and the
801 Member States are binding in accordance with their terms.
334.730 . SECTION 1. TITLE AND PURPOSE
2 This statute shall be known and cited as the Athletic T rainer Compact. The
3 purposes of this compact ar e to expand mobility of Athletic T raining practice and
4 impr ove public access to services by provi ding qualified Licensed Athletic T rainers the
5 ability to practice in other Member States. This compact pr eserves the reg ulatory
6 authority of States to pro tect public health and safety thr ough the curr ent system of
7 State licensur e.
8 This compact is designed to achieve the following objectives:
9 A. Increas e public access to Athletic T raining and enhance continuity of car e by
10 pr oviding for the mutual reco gnition of other Licenses issued by Member States;
11 B. Pr ovide an additional str eamlined opportunity for interstate practice by
12 Licensed Athletic T rainers who meet compact uniform requ irem ents;
13 C. Pr omote mobility and workfor ce development by eliminating the necessity for
14 Licenses in multiple States by pro viding for the mutual r ecognition of other Licenses
15 issued by Member States;
16 D. Reduce administrative burdens on Licensed Athletic T rainers and Member
17 States;
18 E. Enhance the States' ability to pr otect the public's health and safety;
19 F . Encourage the cooperation of Member States in r egulating interstate practice
20 of Licensed Athletic T rainers;
21 G. Support rel ocating Active Military Members and their spouses;
22 H. Enhance the exchange of licensur e, investigative, and disciplinary
2 3 information among Member States;
24 I. Allow for the use of telehealth to facilitate increa sed access to Athletic
25 T raining services;
26 J. Support the uniformity of Licensed Athletic T rainer licensur e r equir ements
27 thr oughout the States;
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28 K. Affirm the authority of all Member States to hold a Licensed Athletic T rainer
29 accountable for abiding by the Scope of Practice in the State in which the patient is
30 located at the time of care; and
31 L. Require adher ence to the Model Compact Language in order to pro mote
32 uniformity and ensure that all Member States have accepted and are mutually obligated
33 to the same terms.
34 SECTION 2. DEFINITIONS
35 As used in this compact, unless the context requ ires otherwise, the following
36 definitions shall apply:
37 A. "Active Military Member" means any individual with full-time duty status in
38 the active armed for ces of the United States, including members of the National Guard
39 and Reserve.
40 B. "Adverse Action" means any administrative, civil, equitable or criminal
41 action permitted by a State's laws which is imposed by a Licensing Authority or other
42 authority against a Licensee, including actions against an individual's License or
43 Compact Privilege such as revocation , suspension, pr obation, monitoring of the
44 Licensee, limitation on the Licensee's practice, or any other Encumbrance on licensur e
45 affecting a Licensee's authorization to practice.
46 C. "Alternative Pr ogram" means a non-disciplinary monitoring or practice
47 r emediation pr ocess applicable to an Athletic T rainer appr oved by a State Licensing
48 Authority of a Member State in which the Athletic T rainer is licensed. This includes,
49 but is not limited to, pr ograms to which Licensees with substance use, addiction, or
50 mental health conditions are ref erred in lieu of Adverse Action.
51 D. "Athletic T raining" means the preve ntion, examination, assessment,
52 tr eatment and r ehabilitation of emergent, acute, or chron ic injuries and medical
53 conditions as defined by applicable Member State laws and regu lations.
54 E. "Athletic T rainer Compact Commission" or "Compact Commission" means
55 the government agency whose membership consists of all States that have enacted this
56 compact, as described her ein and which shall operate as an instrumentality of the
57 Member States to administer and implement the compact according to its terms.
58 F . "BOC" means the Board of Certification, Inc. or any successor organization
59 ther eto.
60 G. "CAA TE" means the Commission on Accredi tation of Athletic T raining
61 Education or any successor organization ther eto.
62 H. "Charter Member State" means any Member State which enacted and made
63 effective this compact by law befor e the compact effective date specified herein .
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64 I. "Commissioner" means the individual appointed by a Member State to serve
65 as the member of the Commission for that Member State.
66 J. "Compact Privilege" means the legal authorization granted by a Remote
67 State, equivalent to a License, allowing a Licensee fr om another Member State to
68 pr ovide Athletic T raining services in a Remote State.
69 K. "Compact Qualifying License" means a License that is not an Encumber ed
70 License issued by a Member State to practice Athletic T raining which qualifies the
71 Licensee to exer cise a Compact Privilege pursuant to Section 4 of this compact.
72 L. "Continuing Competence" means a requ irem ent, as a condition of License
73 r enewal, to pr ovide evidence of successful participation, and completion of, educational
74 and pr ofessional activities releva nt to practice or area of work. For purposes of this
75 compact, evidence of active BOC certification may satisfy the meaning of Continuing
76 Competence as set forth her ein.
77 M. "Current Significant Investigative Information" means the existence of:
78 1. Investigative Information that a Licensing Authority , after a pr eliminary
79 inquiry that includes notification and an opportunity for the subject Licensee to
80 r espond, if requi red by State law , has rea son to believe is not gr oundless and, if prov en
81 true, would indicate mor e than a minor infraction; or
82 2. Investigative Information that indicates that the subject Licensee rep res ents
83 an immediate thr eat to public health and safety r egardless of whether the subject
84 Licensee has been notified and had an opportunity to res pond.
85 N. "Criminal Backgr ound Check" means the submission of fingerprints or other
86 biometric-based information for a License applicant for the purpose of obtaining that
87 applicant's criminal history re cord information, as defined in 28 C.F .R. § 20.3(d) fr om
88 the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the State's criminal history reco rd r epository as
89 defined in 28 C.F .R. § 20.3(f).
90 O. "Data System" means the Commission's rep ository of information about
91 Licensees, including but not limited to examination, licensur e, investigative, Compact
92 Privilege, Adverse Action, and Alternative Pro gram.
93 P . "Encumbrance" or "Encumber ed" means a revoc ation or suspension of, or
94 any limitation or condition on, the full and unr estricted practice of Athletic T raining.
95 Q. "Executive Committee" means a gr oup of commissioners elected or
96 appointed to act on behalf of, and within the powers granted to them by , the compact
97 and Commission.
98 R. "Investigative Information" means information, record s, and documents
99 r eceived or generated by a Licensing Authority pursuant to an investigation.
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100 S. "Jurisprudence Requirem ent" means the assessment of an individual's
101 knowledge of the laws and Rules governing the practice of Athletic T raining, as
102 applicable, in a State.
103 T . "License" means curren t authorization by a Member State to engage in the
104 practice of Athletic T raining.
105 U. "Licensee" or "Licensed Athletic T rainer" means an individual who
106 curr ently holds an active, unr estricted License and who meets all of the r equir ements
107 outlined in Section 4 of this compact.
108 V . "Licensing Authority" means the board or agency of a State, or equivalent,
109 that is res ponsible for the licensing and r egulation of Athletic T rainers.
110 W . "Model Compact Language" means the model language for the Athletic
111 T rainer Compact on file with The Council of State Governments or other entity as
112 designated by the Commission to which all Member States must substantively adher e
113 and adopt.
114 X. "Member State" means a State that has enacted the compact.
115 Y . "Remote State" means a Member State other than the State of Qualifying
116 Licensur e.
117 Z. "Rule" means a regul ation pr omulgated by an authorized entity that has the
118 for ce of law .
119 AA. "Scope of Practice" means the pr ocedur es, actions, and pr ocesses an
120 Athletic T rainer licensed in a State is permitted to undertake in that State and the
121 cir cumstances under which the Licensee is permitted to undertake those proced ures,
122 actions and process es. Such proc edures, actions and pr ocesses and the cir cumstances
123 under which they may be undertaken may be established thr ough means, including, but
124 not limited to, statute, r egulations, case law , and other pr ocesses available to the State
125 Licensing Authority or other government agency . Scope of Practice shall include any
126 State requ irem ents regar ding supervision or dir ection, if r equir ed by such State and as
127 further defined by such State's statutes and reg ulations.
128 BB. "Single State License" means a License issued by any State that authorizes
129 practice only within the issuing State.
130 CC. "State" means any state, commonwealth, district, or territory of the United
131 States of America.
132 DD. "State of Qualifying Licensur e" means the Member State who has issued a
133 Compact Qualifying License to a Licensee pursuant to this compact.
134 EE. "Unencumber ed License" means a License that authorizes a Licensee to
135 engage in the full and unr estricted practice of Athletic T raining.
136 SECTION 3. ST A TE P AR TICIP A TION IN THE COMP ACT
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137 A. T o be eligible to join this compact and to maintain eligibility as a Member
138 State, a State must:
139 1. Enact and maintain a statute that is not materially differ ent fr om the Model
140 Compact Language;
141 2. License and r egulate the practice of Athletic T raining;
142 3. Require that Licensees in that State maintain Continuing Competence
143 standards as part of their State practice act or Rules;
144 4. Have a mechanism in place for recei ving and investigating complaints about
145 Licensees;
146 5. Grant the Compact Privilege to a Licensee who meets all the requi rem ents
147 outlined in Section 4 in accordance with the terms of the compact and any Rules
148 pr omulgated ther eunder;
149 6. Participate fully in the Compact Commission's Data System, including using
150 the unique identifier as defined in Rules;
151 7. Notify the Compact Commission, in compliance with the terms of the compact
152 and Rules, of any Adverse Action or the availability of Curr ent Significant Investigative
153 Information regard ing a Licensee;
154 8. W ithin a time frame established by Rule, implement or utilize pr ocedur es for
155 considering the criminal history reco rds of applicants for a Compact Qualifying License
156 which includes r eceiving the res ults of the Federal Bur eau of Investigation record sear ch
157 and shall use those res ults in making licensur e decisions. These pr ocedur es shall include
158 the submission of fingerprints or other biometric-based information by applicants for
159 the purpose of obtaining an applicant's criminal history reco rd information fr om the
160 Federal Bure au of Investigation and the agency res ponsible for ret aining that State's
161 criminal record s; and
162 a. A Member State must fully implement a Criminal Backgr ound Check
163 r equir ement in order to participate in the issuance and acceptance of Compact
164 Privileges.
165 b. Communication between a Member State and the Compact Commission or
166 among Member States r egarding the verification of eligibility for licensur e thr ough the
167 compact shall not include any information receiv ed fr om the Federal Bur eau of
168 Investigation r elating to a federal criminal rec ords check performed by a Member State.
169 9. Comply with and enforce the Rules of the Compact Commission.
170 B. Member States may set and collect a fee for issuance and ren ewal of a
171 Compact Privilege to applicants.
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172 C. Individuals without a Compact Qualifying License shall continue to be able to
173 apply for a Member State's Single-State License as pr ovided under the laws of each
174 Member State.
175 D. Nothing in this compact shall affect the r equir ements established by a
176 Member State for the issuance of a Single State License.
177 E. A Compact Qualifying License shall be recogn ized by each Remote State as
178 authorizing that Licensee to engage in the practice of Athletic T raining, under a
179 Compact Privilege, in another Member State in accordance with the req uire ments in
180 Section 4.
181 SECTION 4. COMP ACT PRIVILEGE
182 A. T o be eligible for a Compact Privilege under the terms and pr ovisions of the
183 compact, the Licensee shall complete a Criminal Backgr ound Check performed by the
184 Licensing Authority in the State of Qualifying Licensur e prior to entry in the compact
185 and shall:
186 1. Satisfy one of the following two pathways:
187 a. Hold a valid curren t active certification thr ough the BOC, or its successor
188 organization; or
189 b. If a Licensee does not meet the requ irem ents of 4.A.1.a., the following must be
190 completed:
191 i. An education pr ogram which is either:
192 1. At least a bachelor's degr ee with a major course of study in Athletic T raining,
193 or an equivalent course of study fro m a college or university accr edited at the time of
194 graduation by CAA TE, or its successor organization;
195 2. An academic degr ee fr om a college or university in a for eign country
196 equivalent to the degr ee described in subparagraph 1 of this subsection with a major
197 course of study as described in subparagraph 1 of this subsection that is accre dited by
198 CAA TE, or its successor organization; or
199 3. The substantial equivalent of the for egoing which the Commission may
200 determine by Rule.
201 ii. Successful completion of the exam administered by the BOC, or its successor
202 organization, pr eceding the date of the Licensee's application for Licensure in their
203 State of Qualifying Licensur e or the substantial equivalent of the for egoing req uirement
204 which the Commission may determine by Rule.
205 2. Hold a Compact Qualifying License;
206 3. Have not had any Encumbrance against any license or Compact Privilege to
207 practice Athletic T raining within the pr evious two (2) years;
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208 4. Be eligible for a Compact Privilege in any Member State in accordance with
209 Section 4;
210 5. Notify the Compact Commission that the Licensee is seeking the Compact
211 Privilege within a Remote State(s);
212 6. Pay any applicable fees, including any State fee, for the Compact Privilege;
213 7. Meet only the Continuing Competence requi rem ents established by the State
214 of Qualifying Licensure;
215 8. Comply with any requi rem ents of the State of Qualifying Licensure as set
216 forth in Section 3;
217 9. Meet any Jurisprudence Requirem ents established by the Remote State(s) in
218 which the Licensee is seeking a Compact Privilege; and
219 10. Report to the Compact Commission any Adverse Action, Encumbrance, or
220 r estriction on a license taken by any non-Member State within 30 days from the date the
221 action is taken.
222 B. The Compact Privilege is valid until the expiration date of the Compact
223 Qualifying License. T o maintain a Compact Privilege, r enewal of the Compact Privilege
224 shall be congruent with the ren ewal of the Compact Qualifying License as the Compact
225 Commission may define by Rule. The Licensee must comply with the requi rem ents of
226 this section to maintain the Compact Privilege in the Remote State. A Licensee may
227 apply for and hold Compact Privileges in multiple Member States.
228 C. A Licensed Athletic T rainer must follow the Scope of Practice of the Member
229 State where the patient is located. A Licensee engaging in the practice of Athletic
230 T raining in a Remote State under the Compact Privilege shall adher e to the Scope of
231 Practice laws and regul ations of the Remote State. Licensees shall be res ponsible for
232 educating themselves on, and complying with, any and all Scope of Practice laws and
233 r egulations and State laws relat ing to the re mote practice of Athletic T raining, as
234 applicable.
235 D. A Licensee engaging in the practice of Athletic T raining in a Remote State is
236 subject to that State's r egulatory authority . A Remote State may , in accordance with
237 due pro cess and that State's laws, rem ove a Licensee's Compact Privilege in the Remote
238 State for a specific period of time, impose fines, or take any other necessary actions to
239 pr otect the health and safety of its citizens. Any Member State which undertakes such
240 an action shall pr omptly notify the Member State and the Commission as specified in
241 the Rules. The Licensee may be deemed to be ineligible to exer cise the Compact
242 Privilege by any Member State until the specific time for r emoval has passed and all
243 fines are paid.
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244 E. All Member State disciplinary orders that impose Adverse Action against a
245 Compact Qualifying License shall res ult in deactivation of the Licensee's Compact
246 Privilege in all Member States during the pendency of the order . If a Compact
247 Qualifying License is Encumber ed, the Licensee shall lose the Compact Privilege in any
248 Remote State until the following occur:
249 1. The Compact Qualifying License is no longer Encumbere d; and
250 2. The Licensee has not had any Encumbrance or res triction against any
251 License, Compact Qualifying License or Compact Privilege within the previ ous two (2)
252 years.
253 F . Once an Encumber ed License is res tore d to good standing as a Compact
254 Qualifying License (as certified by the Licensing Authority), the Licensee must meet the
255 r equir ements of this section to obtain a Compact Privilege in any Remote State.
256 G. If a Licensee's Compact Privilege in any Remote State is rem oved, that
257 Licensee may also lose the Compact Privilege in other Remote States, as each Member
258 State shall determine in its sole authority , until the following occur:
259 1. The specific period of time for which the Compact Privilege was rem oved has
260 ended;
261 2. All fines have been paid; and
262 3. Have not had any Encumbrance or res triction against any License or
263 Compact Privilege within the previ ous two (2) years.
264 H. Once the r equir ements of Section 4.G have been met, the Licensee must meet
265 the requ irem ents in Section 4.A to obtain a Compact Privilege in a Remote State.
266 SECTION 5. COMP ACT QUALIFYING LICENSE
267 A. A Licensee may only designate one License as their Compact Qualifying
268 License at a time. The pr ocedur es for such designation may be further defined by
269 Compact Commission Rule.
270 B. Nothing in this Section shall req uire that the State of Qualifying Licensure be
271 the State of primary res idence or State of primary practice for the Licensee.
272 C. Nothing in this compact shall interfer e with a Licensee's ability to hold a
273 Single State License in multiple States.
274 D. Nothing in this compact shall affect the r equir ements established by a
275 Member State for the issuance of a Single State License.
276 SECTION 6. ACTIVE MILIT AR Y MEMBER OR THEIR SPOUSES
277 An Active Military Member or their spouse shall not be requ ired to pay a fee to
278 the Commission for a Compact Privilege. If a Member State chooses to charge a
279 Member State fee, it may choose to charge a r educed fee or no fee to an Active Military
280 Member or their spouse for a Compact Privilege.
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281 SECTION 7. ADVERSE ACTIONS
282 A. A Member State in which a Licensee is issued a Compact Qualifying License
283 shall have the exclusive authority to impose Adverse Action against the Compact
284 Qualifying License issued by that Member State.
285 B. A Member State may take Adverse Action based on Curr ent Significant
286 Investigative Information of a Remote State, so long as the Member State follows its
287 own proced ures for imposing Adverse Action.
288 C. Nothing in this compact shall override a Member State's decision that
289 participation in an Alternative Pr ogram may be used in lieu of Adverse Action and that
290 such participation shall re main non-public if req uired by the Member State's laws or
291 Rules.
292 D. A Remote State shall have the authority to:
293 1. T ake Adverse Actions as set forth herein against a Licensee's Compact
294 Privilege in that State; and
295 2. Issue subpoenas for both hearings and investigations that requ ire the
296 attendance and testimony of witnesses as well as the prod uction of evidence.
297 a. Subpoenas may be issued by a Member State Athletic T raining Licensing
298 Authority for the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the pro duction of evidence.
299 b. A Member State which issues a subpoena may re quest service of that
300 subpoena by another Member State. The Member State receivi ng the r equest to serve a
301 subpoena shall serve the subpoena if it is deemed enforceabl e by a court of competent
302 jurisdiction according to the practice and proced ure in the recei ving Member State.
303 c. The issuing authority shall pay any witness fees, travel expenses, mileage, and
304 other fees requ ired by the service statutes of the State where the witnesses or evidence
305 ar e located.
306 E. For purposes of taking Adverse Action, a Member State shall give the same
307 priority and effect to r eported conduct receiv ed fr om another Member State as it would
308 if the conduct had occurr ed within that State. In so doing, the investigating Member
309 State shall apply its own State laws to determine appr opriate action.
310 F . A Member State, if otherwise permitted by State law , may r ecover fr om the
311 affected Licensee the costs of investigations and dispositions of cases res ulting fr om any
312 Adverse Action taken against that Licensee.
313 G. Joint Investigations:
314 1. In addition to the authority granted to a Member State by its res pective State
315 law , any Member State may participate with other Member States in joint investigations
316 of Licensees.
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317 2. Member States shall share any Curr ent Significant Investigative Information,
318 litigation, or compliance materials in furtherance of any joint or individual investigation
319 initiated under the compact. In sharing such information between Member State
320 Athletic T rainer Licensing Authorities, all information obtained shall be kept
3 2 1 confidential, except as otherwise mutually agreed upon by the sharing and receivi ng
322 Member State(s).
323 3. A Remote State may issue subpoenas on behalf of a Member State for both
324 hearings and investigations that req uire the attendance and testimony of witnesses as
325 well as the pr oduction of evidence.
326 H. If a Member State takes Adverse Action, it shall prompt ly notify the
327 administrator of the Data System. The administrator of the Data System shall pr omptly
328 notify all Member States of any Adverse Actions by Remote States.
329 I. Nothing in this compact may permit a Member State to take any Adverse
330 Action against a Licensee or holder of a Compact Privilege for conduct or practice
331 occurring in another Member State that was legal in the Member State at the time it
332 was undertaken.
333 SECTION 8. EST ABLISHMENT AND OPERA TION OF THE COMMISSION
334 A. The compact Member States her eby cr eate and establish a joint government
335 agency whose membership consists of all Member States that have enacted the compact
336 known as the Athletic T rainer Licensur e Compact Commission. The Compact
337 Commission is an instrumentality of the Member States acting jointly and not an
338 instrumentality of any one State. The Compact Commission shall come into existence
339 on or after the effective date of the compact as set forth in Section 12.
340 B. Membership, V oting, and Meetings:
341 1. Each Member State shall have and be limited to one (1) Commissioner
342 selected by that Member State's Licensing Authority within 60 days of the Member
343 State's effective date.
344 2. The Commissioner shall be an administrator or their designated staff or
345 curr ent board member of the Licensing Authority .
346 3. The Compact Commission may reco mmend rem oval or suspension of any
347 Commissioner fr om office.
348 4. A Member State's Licensing Authority shall fill any vacancy of its
349 Commissioner occurring on the Compact Commission within 60 days of the vacancy .
350 5. Each Commissioner shall be entitled to one vote on all matters befor e the
351 Compact Commission req uiring a vote by the Commissioners.
352 6. The Compact Commission shall meet at least once during each calendar year .
353 Additional meetings may be held as set forth in the Commission bylaws. A
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354 Commissioner shall vote in person or by such other means as prov ided in the bylaws.
355 The bylaws may prov ide for Commissioners to meet by telecommunication,
3 5 6 videoconfer ence, or other means of communication.
357 C. The Compact Commission shall have the following powers:
358 1. Pr omulgate, adopt, and amend Rules and bylaws;
359 2. Establish code of conduct, confidentiality , and conflict of interes t policies for
360 Commissioners;
361 3. Establish the fiscal year of the Compact Commission;
362 4. Maintain its financial r ecords in accordance with the bylaws;
363 5. Purchase and maintain insurance and insurance bonds;
364 6. Accept, or contract for services of personnel, including, but not limited to,
365 employees of a Member State;
366 7. Conduct a financial revi ew or audit;
367 8. Hir e employees, elect or appoint officers, fix compensation, define duties,
368 grant such individuals appr opriate authority to carry out the purposes of the compact,
369 and establish the Compact Commission's personnel policies and pr ograms relat ing to
370 conflicts of interes t, qualifications of personnel, and other r elated personnel matters;
371 9. Enter into contracts or arrangements for the management of the affairs of the
372 Commission;
373 10. Assess and collect fees;
374 1 1. Accept any and all appr opriate gifts, donations, grants of money , other
375 sour ces of r evenue, equipment, supplies, materials, and services, and receive, utilize, and
376 dispose of the same; pr ovided that at all times the Compact Commission shall avoid any
377 appearance of improp riety or conflict of inter est;
378 12. Lease, pur chase, ret ain, own, hold, improve, invest, or use any pro perty , re al,
379 personal, or mixed, or any undivided interes t ther ein;
380 13. Sell, convey , mortgage, pledge, lease, exchange, abandon, or otherwise
381 dispose of any pr operty real, personal, or mixed;
382 14. Establish a budget and make expenditur es;
383 15. Borrow and invest money;
384 16. Meet and take such actions as are consistent with the prov isions of this
385 compact, the Compact Commission's Rules, and the bylaws;
386 17. Initiate and conclude legal procee dings or actions in the name of the
387 Compact Commission, prov ided that the standing of any Licensing Authority to sue or
388 be sued under applicable law shall not be affected;
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389 18. Maintain and certify rec ords and information pro vided to a Member State as
390 the authenticated business records of the Compact Commission, and designate an agent
391 to do so on the Compact Commission's behalf;
392 19. Pr ovide and r eceive information fr om, and cooperate with, law enforcem ent
393 agencies;
394 20. Determine whether a State's adopted language is materially differ ent fr om
395 the Model Compact Language such that the State would not qualify for participation in
396 the compact;
397 21. Establish and elect an Executive Committee, including a chair and a vice
398 chair , secr etary , tr easur er , and such other offices as the Commission shall establish by
399 Rule or bylaw;
400 22. Appoint committees, including standing committees, composed of Member
401 State Commissioners, State regu lators, State legislators or their repr esentatives, and
402 consumer r epresent atives, and such other interes ted persons as may be designated in
403 this compact and the bylaws; and
404 23. Perform such other functions as may be necessary or appr opriate to achieve
405 the purposes of this compact.
406 D. The Executive Committee:
407 1. The Executive Committee shall have the power to act on behalf of the
408 Compact Commission according to the terms of this compact. The powers, duties, and
409 r esponsibilities of the Executive Committee shall include:
410 a. Exercis e the powers and duties of the Compact Commission during the
411 interim between Compact Commission meetings, except for adopting or amending
412 Rules, adopting or amending bylaws, and exerci sing any other powers and duties
413 expr essly r eserved to the Compact Commission by Rule or bylaw;
414 b. Oversee the day-to-day activities of the administration of the compact
415 including enforcem ent and compliance with the prov isions of the compact, its Rules and
416 bylaws, and other such duties as deemed necessary;
417 c. Recommend to the Compact Commission changes to the Rules or bylaws,
418 changes to this compact legislation, fees charged to Compact Member States, fees
419 charged to Licensees, and other fees;
420 d. Ensure compact administration services ar e appropriately pr ovided,
4 2 1 including by contract;
422 e. Pr epare and recomm end the budget;
423 f. Maintain financial reco rds on behalf of the Compact Commission;
424 g. Monitor compact compliance of Member States and pr ovide compliance
425 r eports to the Compact Commission;
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426 h. Establish additional committees as necessary; and
427 i. Other duties as pr ovided in the Rules or bylaws of the Compact Commission.
428 2. The Executive Committee shall be composed of five voting members, elected
429 by the Compact Commission:
430 a. The chair and vice chair of the Compact Commission, shall be voting
431 members of the Executive Committee;
432 b. The Compact Commission shall elect up to thr ee additional voting members
433 fr om the curr ent membership of the Compact Commission to include the offices of
434 tr easur er , secr etary , and one member -at-large; and
435 c. Up to four (4) ex-officio, nonvoting members fr om r ecognized national athletic
436 trainer organizations.
437 3. The Compact Commission may r emove any member of the Executive
438 Committee as pr ovided in the Compact Commission's bylaws.
439 4. The Executive Committee shall meet at least annually:
440 a. Executive Committee meetings shall be open to the public, except that the
441 Executive Committee may meet in a closed, non-public meeting as prov ided in this
442 section.
443 b. The Executive Committee shall give advance notice of its meetings, posted on
444 its website and as determined by rule or bylaw to pr ovide notice to persons with an
445 inter est in the business of the Compact Commission.
446 c. The Executive Committee may hold a special meeting in accordance with this
447 section.
448 E. The Compact Commission shall adopt and pr ovide to the Member States an
449 annual r eport.
450 F . Meetings of the Compact Commission:
451 1. All meetings shall be open to the public, except that the Compact Commission
452 may meet in a closed, non-public meeting as pro vided in this section.
453 2. Public notice for all meetings of the full Compact Commission of meetings
454 shall be given in the same manner as requ ired under the rulemaking pro visions in this
455 compact, except that the Compact Commission may hold a special meeting as pr ovided
456 in this section.
457 3. The Compact Commission may hold a special meeting when it must meet to
458 conduct emergency business by giving 24 hours' notice to all Commissioners, on the
459 Compact Commission's website, and other means as pro vided in the Compact
460 Commission's Rules. The Compact Commission's legal counsel shall certify that the
461 Compact Commission's need to meet qualifies as an emergency .
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462 4. The Compact Commission or the Executive Committee or other committees of
463 the Compact Commission may convene in a closed, non-public meeting for the Compact
464 Commission or Executive Committee or other committees of the Compact Commission
465 to receive legal advice or to discuss:
466 a. Non-compliance of a Member State with its obligations under the compact;
467 b. The employment, compensation, discipline or other matters, practices or
468 pr ocedur es r elated to specific employees;
469 c. Curr ent or thr eatened discipline of a Licensee by a Member State's Licensing
470 Authority;
471 d. Curr ent, thr eatened, or reas onably anticipated litigation;
472 e. Negotiation of contracts for the purch ase, lease, or sale of goods, services, or
473 r eal estate;
474 f. Accusing any person of a crime or formally censuring any person;
475 g. T rade secr ets or commer cial or financial information that is privileged or
476 confidential;
477 h. Information of a personal natur e wher e disclosur e would constitute a clearly
478 unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
479 i. Investigative record s compiled for law enfor cement purposes;
480 j. Information re lated to any investigative r eports prep ared by or on behalf of or
481 for use of the Compact Commission or other committee charged with r esponsibility of
482 investigation or determination of compliance issues pursuant to the compact;
483 k. Matters specifically exempted fr om disclosur e by federal or Member State
484 law; or
485 l. Other matters as specified in Rules of the Compact Commission.
486 5. If a meeting, or portion of a meeting, is closed, the Compact Commission's
487 legal counsel or designee shall certify that the meeting will be closed and re feren ce each
488 r elevant exempting pro vision, and such r efer ence shall be record ed in the minutes. All
489 minutes and documents of a closed meeting shall rem ain under seal, subject to release
490 only by a majority vote of the Compact Commission or order of a court of competent
491 jurisdiction.
492 G. Financing of the Compact Commission:
493 1. The Compact Commission shall pay , or pr ovide for the payment of, the
494 r easonable expenses of its establishment, organization, and ongoing activities.
495 2. The Compact Commission may accept any and all appr opriate reven ue
496 sour ces as pr ovided in this section.
497 3. The Compact Commission may levy on and collect an annual assessment fr om
498 each Member State and impose fees on Licensees of Member States to whom it grants a
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499 Compact Privilege to cover the cost of the operations and activities of the Compact
500 Commission and its staff, which must be in a total amount sufficient to cover its annual
501 budget as appr oved each year for which rev enue is not pr ovided by other sources . The
502 aggr egate annual assessment amount for Member States shall be allocated based upon a
503 formula that the Compact Commission shall pro mulgate by Rule.
504 4. The Compact Commission shall not incur obligations of any kind prior to
505 securing the funds or a loan adequate to meet the same; nor shall the Compact
506 Commission pledge the credit of any of the Member States, except by and with the
507 authority of the Member State.
508 5. The Compact Commission shall keep accurate accounts of all r eceipts and
509 disbursements. The r eceipts and disbursements of the Compact Commission shall be
510 subject to the financial revie w or audit and accounting pr ocedur es established under its
511 bylaws. However , all r eceipts and disbursements of funds handled by the Compact
512 Commission shall be subject to an annual financial review or audit by a certified or
513 licensed public accountant, and the r eport of the financial r eview or audit shall be
514 included in and become part of the annual rep ort of the Compact Commission.
515 H. Qualified Immunity , Defense, and Indemnification:
516 1. The members, officers, executive dir ector , employees and rep res entatives of
517 the Compact Commission shall be immune fr om suit and liability , both personally and
518 in their official capacity , for any claim for damage to or loss of pr operty or personal
519 injury or other civil liability caused by or arising out of any actual or alleged act, error ,
520 or omission that occurr ed, or that the person against whom the claim is made had a
521 r easonable basis for believing occurr ed within the scope of Compact Commission
522 employment, duties or r esponsibilities; pr ovided that nothing in this paragraph shall be
523 construed to pr otect any such person fro m suit or liability for any damage, loss, injury ,
524 or liability caused by the intentional or willful or wanton misconduct of that person.
525 The pr ocurement of insurance of any type by the Compact Commission shall not in any
526 way compr omise or limit the immunity granted hereu nder .
527 2. The Compact Commission shall defend any member , officer , executive
528 dir ector , employee, and r epresent ative of the Compact Commission in any civil action
529 seeking to impose liability arising out of any actual or alleged act, error , or omission that
530 occurr ed within the scope of Compact Commission employment, duties, or
5 3 1 r esponsibilities, or as determined by the Compact Commission that the person
532 against whom the claim is made had a rea sonable basis for believing occurr ed within the
533 scope of Compact Commission employment, duties, or r esponsibilities; pr ovided that
534 nothing her ein shall be construed to pro hibit that person fr om ret aining their own
535 counsel at their own expense; and pr ovided further , that the actual or alleged act, error ,
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536 or omission did not res ult fr om that person's intentional or willful or wanton
537 misconduct.
538 3. The Compact Commission shall indemnify and hold harmless any member ,
539 officer , executive dir ector , employee, and repr esentative of the Compact Commission for
540 the amount of any settlement or judgment obtained against that person arising out of
541 any actual or alleged act, erro r , or omission that occurr ed within the scope of Compact
542 Commission employment, duties, or r esponsibilities, or that such person had a
543 r easonable basis for believing occurr ed within the scope of Compact Commission
544 employment, duties, or r esponsibilities, pro vided that the actual or alleged act, error , or
545 omission did not r esult fr om the intentional or willful or wanton misconduct of that
546 person.
547 4. Nothing her ein shall be construed as a limitation on the liability of any
548 Licensee for profes sional malpractice or misconduct, which shall be governed solely by
549 any other applicable State laws.
550 5. Nothing in this compact shall be interpr eted to waive or otherwise abr ogate a
551 Member State's state action immunity or state action affirmative defense with res pect to
552 antitrust claims under the Sherman Act, Clayton Act, or any other State or federal
553 antitrust or anticompetitive law or regu lation.
554 6. Nothing in this compact shall be construed to be a waiver of soverei gn
555 immunity by the Member States or by the Compact Commission.
556 SECTION 9. DA T A SYSTEM
557 A. The Commission shall pr ovide for the development, maintenance, operation,
558 and utilization of a coordinated Data System and r eporting system containing licensur e,
559 Compact Privileges, Adverse Action, and the presen ce of Curr ent Significant
5 6 0 Investigative Information on all Licensees and applicants for a License in Member
561 States.
562 B. Notwithstanding any other pr ovision of State law to the contrary , a Member
563 State shall submit a uniform data set to the Data System on all Licensees, applicants,
564 and others to whom this compact is applicable as req uired by the Rules of the Compact
565 Commission, including:
566 1. Personally identifying information;
567 2. Licensure data;
568 3. Adverse Actions against a Licensee, License applicant or Compact Privilege
569 and information r elated ther eto;
570 4. Non-confidential information rel ated to Alternative Pr ogram participation,
571 the beginning and ending dates of such participation, and other information rel ated to
572 such participation;
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573 5. Any denial of an application for licensur e and the reas on(s) for such denial
574 (excluding the r eporting of any criminal history r ecord information wher e pr ohibited by
575 law);
576 6. A binary determination regard ing the pr esence of Curren t Significant
577 Investigative Information; and
578 7. Other information that may facilitate the administration of this compact or
579 the pro tection of the public, as determined by the Rules of the Commission.
580 C. The re cords and information pr ovided to a Member State pursuant to this
581 compact or thr ough the Data System, when certified by the Commission or an agent
582 ther eof, shall constitute the authenticated business rec ords of the Commission, and shall
583 be entitled to any associated hearsay exception in any rele vant judicial, quasi-judicial or
584 administrative pr oceedings in a Member State.
585 D. Curr ent Significant Investigative Information pertaining to a Licensee in any
586 Member State will only be available to other Member States.
587 E. It is the res ponsibility of the Member States to monitor the Data System to
588 determine whether Adverse Action has been taken against a Licensee or License
589 applicant. Adverse Action information pertaining to a Licensee or License applicant in
590 any Member State will be available to any other Member State.
591 F . Member States contributing information to the Data System may designate
592 information that may not be shared with the public without the express permission of
593 the contributing State.
594 G. Any information submitted to the Data System that is subsequently expunged
595 pursuant to federal law or the laws of the Member State contributing the information
596 shall be re moved fr om the Data System.
597 SECTION 10. RULEMAKING
598 A. The Compact Commission shall promul gate reas onable Rules in order to
599 effectively and efficiently implement and administer the purposes and pro visions of the
600 compact. A Rule shall be invalid and have no for ce or effect only if a court of competent
601 jurisdiction holds that the Rule is invalid because the Compact Commission exer cised its
602 rulemaking authority in a manner that is beyond the scope and purposes of the
603 compact, or the powers granted hereu nder , or based upon another applicable standard
604 of review .
605 B. The Rules of the Compact Commission shall have the for ce of law in each
606 Member State, pr ovided however that where the Rules conflict with the laws or
607 r egulations of a Member State that r elate to the Scope of Practice a Licensed Athletic
608 T rainer is permitted to undertake in that State and the circu mstances under which they
SS HCS HB 2974 42
609 may do so, as held by a court of competent jurisdiction, the Rules of the Compact
610 Commission shall be ineffective in that State to the extent of the conflict.
611 C. The Compact Commission shall exer cise its rulemaking powers pursuant to
612 the criteria set forth in this section and the Rules adopted ther eunder . Rules of this
613 compact shall become binding on the day following adoption or as of the date specified
614 in the Rule or amendment, whichever is later .
615 D. If a majority of the legislatur es of the Member States re jects a Rule or portion
616 of a Rule, by enactment of a statute or res olution in the same manner used to adopt the
617 compact within four (4) years of the date of adoption of the Rule, then such Rule shall
618 have no further for ce and effect in any Member State.
619 E. Rules shall be adopted at a regu lar or special meeting of the Compact
620 Commission.
621 F . Prior to adoption of a pr oposed Rule, the Compact Commission shall hold a
622 public hearing and allow persons to prov ide oral and written comments, data, facts,
623 opinions, and arguments. At least thirty (30) days in advance of the public hearing on
624 the pr oposed Rule, the Compact Commission shall pr ovide a notice of pro posed
625 rulemaking:
626 1. On the website of the Compact Commission or other publicly accessible
627 platform;
628 2. T o persons who have reque sted notice of the Compact Commission's notices of
629 pr oposed rulemaking; and
630 3. In such other way(s) as the Compact Commission may by Rule specify .
631 G. The notice of pr oposed rulemaking shall include:
632 1. The time, date, and location of the public hearing at which the Compact
633 Commission will hear public comments on the pro posed Rule and, if differe nt, the time,
634 date, and location of the meeting wher e the Compact Commission will consider and vote
635 on the prop osed Rule;
636 2. If the hearing is held via telecommunication, video confer ence, or other
637 electr onic means, the Compact Commission shall include the mechanism for access to
638 the hearing in the notice of prop osed rulemaking;
639 3. The text of the pr oposed Rule and the reas on ther efor;
640 4. A r equest for comments on the pr oposed Rule fr om any inter ested person;
641 and
642 5. The manner in which interes ted persons may submit written comments.
643 H. All hearings will be recor ded. A copy of the rec ording and all written
644 comments and documents receiv ed by the Compact Commission in res ponse to the
645 pr oposed Rule shall be available to the public.
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646 I. Nothing in this section shall be construed as r equiring a separate hearing on
647 each Rule. Rules may be gr ouped for the convenience of the Compact Commission at
648 hearings requ ired by this section.
649 J. The Compact Commission shall, by majority vote of all members, take final
650 action on the prop osed Rule based on the rulemaking record and the full text of the
651 Rule.
652 1. The Compact Commission may adopt changes to the prop osed Rule pr ovided
653 the changes do not enlarge the original purpose of the pr oposed Rule.
654 2. The Compact Commission shall prov ide an explanation of the re asons for
655 substantive changes made to the prop osed Rule as well as reas ons for substantive
656 changes not made that were recommended by commenters.
657 3. The Compact Commission shall determine a rea sonable effective date for the
658 Rule. Except for an emergency as pr ovided in this section, the effective date of the Rule
659 shall be no sooner than 30 days after issuing the notice that it adopted or amended the
660 Rule.
661 K. Upon determination that an emergency exists, the Compact Commission may
662 consider and adopt an emergency Rule with 24 hours' notice, with opportunity to
663 comment, prov ided that the usual rulemaking pr ocedur es pr ovided in the compact and
664 in this section shall be r etro actively applied to the Rule as soon as reas onably possible, in
665 no event later than ninety (90) days after the effective date of the Rule. For the purposes
666 of this pro vision, an emergency Rule is one that must be adopted immediately in order
667 to:
668 1. Meet an imminent thr eat to public health, safety , or welfare;
669 2. Pr event a loss of Compact Commission or Member State funds;
670 3. Meet a deadline for the pr omulgation of a Rule that is established by federal
671 law or rule; or
672 4. Pr otect public health and safety .
673 L. The Compact Commission or an authorized committee of the Compact
674 Commission may dir ect revi sions to a previ ously adopted Rule for purposes of
675 corr ecting typographical erro rs, errors in format, errors in consistency , or grammatical
676 err ors. Public notice of any r evisions shall be posted on the website of the Compact
677 Commission. The revision shall be subject to challenge by any person for a period of
678 thirty (30) days after posting. The revision may be challenged only on gro unds that the
679 r evision res ults in a material change to a Rule. A challenge shall be made in writing and
680 deliver ed to the Compact Commission prior to the end of the notice period. If no
681 challenge is made, the revision will take effect without further action. If the r evision is
SS HCS HB 2974 44
682 challenged, the revision may not take effect without the appr oval of the Compact
683 Commission.
684 M. No Member State's rulemaking r equir ements shall apply under this compact.
685 SECTION 1 1. OVERSIGHT , DISPUTE RESOLUTION, AND ENFORCEMENT
686 A. Oversight:
687 1. The executive and judicial branches of State government in each Member
688 State shall enforce this compact and take all actions necessary and appr opriate to
689 implement the compact.
690 2. Except as otherwise pro vided in this compact, venue is prop er and judicial
691 pr oceedings by or against the Compact Commission shall be brou ght solely and
692 exclusively in a court of competent jurisdiction wher e the principal office of the
693 Compact Commission is located. The Compact Commission may waive venue and
694 jurisdictional defenses to the extent it adopts or consents to participate in alternative
695 dispute reso lution pr oceedings. Nothing herei n shall affect or limit the selection or
696 pr opriety of venue in any action against a Licensee for profes sional malpractice,
697 misconduct or any such similar matter .
698 3. The Compact Commission shall be entitled to receive service of pr ocess in any
699 pr oceeding rega rding the enforcem ent or interpr etation of the compact and shall have
700 standing to intervene in such a proceed ing for all purposes. Failur e to pr ovide the
701 Compact Commission service of pr ocess shall rend er a judgment or order void as to the
702 Compact Commission, this compact, or pr omulgated Rules.
703 B. Default, T echnical Assistance, and T ermination:
704 1. If the Compact Commission determines that a Member State has defaulted in
705 the performance of its obligations or r esponsibilities under this compact or the
706 pr omulgated Rules, the Commission shall pro vide written notice to the defaulting State.
707 The notice of default shall describe the default, the prop osed means of curing the
708 default, and any other action that the Compact Commission may take, and shall offer
709 training and specific technical assistance r egarding the default.
710 2. The Compact Commission shall pr ovide a copy of the notice of default to the
711 other Member States.
712 C. If a State in default fails to cur e the default, the defaulting State may be
713 terminated fr om the compact upon an affirmative vote of a majority of the
7 1 4 Commissioners of the Member States, and all rights, privileges and benefits conferr ed
715 on that State by this compact may be terminated on the effective date of termination. A
716 cur e of the default does not reli eve the offending State of obligations or liabilities
717 incurr ed during the period of default.
SS HCS HB 2974 45
718 D. T ermination of membership in the compact shall be imposed only after all
719 other means of securing compliance have been exhausted. Notice of intent to suspend or
720 terminate shall be given by the Compact Commission to the governor , the majority and
721 minority leaders of the defaulting State's legislature, the defaulting State's Licensing
722 Authority and each of the Member States' Licensing Authority .
723 E. A State that has been terminated is res ponsible for all assessments,
724 obligations, and liabilities incurr ed thr ough the effective date of termination, including
725 obligations that extend beyond the effective date of termination.
726 F . Upon the termination of a State's membership fro m this compact, that State
727 shall immediately pr ovide notice to all Licensees within that State of such termination.
728 The terminated State shall continue to reco gnize all Licenses and Compact Privileges
729 granted pursuant to this compact for a minimum of 180 days after the date of said
730 notice of termination.
731 G. The Compact Commission shall not bear any costs relat ed to a State that is
732 found to be in default or that has been terminated fr om the compact, unless agr eed upon
733 in writing between the Compact Commission and the defaulting State.
734 H. The defaulting State may appeal the action of the Compact Commission by
735 petitioning the United States District Court for the District of Columbia or the federal
736 district wher e the Compact Commission has its principal offices. The pr evailing party
737 shall be awarded all costs of such litigation, including reas onable attorney's fees.
738 I. Dispute Resolution:
739 1. Upon r equest by a Member State, the Compact Commission shall attempt to
740 r esolve disputes rela ted to the compact that arise among Member States and between
741 Member and non-Member States.
742 2. The Compact Commission shall promulg ate a Rule pro viding for both
743 mediation and binding dispute r esolution for disputes as appr opriate.
744 J. Enfor cement:
745 1. By two-thirds majority (2/3) vote, the Compact Commission may initiate legal
746 action against a Member State in default in the United States District Court for the
747 District of Columbia or the federal district wher e the Compact Commission has its
748 principal offices to enfor ce compliance with the prov isions of the compact and its
749 pr omulgated Rules. The rel ief sought may include both injunctive re lief and damages.
750 In the event judicial enforcem ent is necessary , the pr evailing party shall be awarded all
751 costs of such litigation, including reas onable attorney's fees. The rem edies herei n shall
752 not be the exclusive rem edies of the Compact Commission. The Compact Commission
753 may pursue any other rem edies available under federal or the defaulting Member
754 State's law .
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755 2. A Member State may initiate legal action against the Compact Commission in
756 the United States District Court for the District of Columbia or the federal district
757 wher e the Compact Commission has its principal offices to enfor ce compliance with the
758 pr ovisions of the compact and its promul gated Rules. The rel ief sought may include
759 both injunctive relief and damages. In the event judicial enfor cement is necessary , the
760 pr evailing party shall be awarded all costs of such litigation, including reas onable
761 attorney's fees.
762 3. No person other than a Member State shall enforce this compact against the
763 Compact Commission.
764 SECTION 12. EFFECTIVE DA TE, WITHDRA W AL, AND AMENDMENT
765 A. The compact shall come into effect on the date on which the compact statute
766 is enacted into law in the seventh Member State.
767 1. On or after the effective date of the compact, the Compact Commission shall
768 convene and rev iew the enactment of each of the first seven Member States ("Charter
769 Member States") to determine if the statute enacted and made effective by each such
770 Charter Member State is materially differ ent than the model compact statute.
771 a. A Charter Member State whose enactment is found to be materially differ ent
772 fr om the Model Compact Language shall be entitled to the default pro cess set forth in
773 Section 1 1.
774 b. If any Member State is later found to be in default, or is terminated or
775 withdraws fr om the compact, the Compact Commission shall r emain in existence and
776 the compact shall rem ain in effect even if the number of Member States should be less
777 than seven.
778 2. Member States enacting the compact subsequent to the seven initial Charter
779 Member States shall be subject to the pr ocess set forth in this section to determine if
780 their enactments ar e materially differ ent fr om the model compact statute and whether
781 they qualify for participation in the compact.
782 3. All actions taken for the benefit of the Compact Commission or in furtherance
783 of the purposes of the administration of the compact prior to the effective date of the
784 compact or the Compact Commission coming into existence shall be consider ed to be
785 actions of the Compact Commission unless specifically repud iated by the Compact
786 Commission.
787 4. Any State that joins the compact subsequent to the Compact Commission's
788 initial adoption of the Rules and bylaws shall be subject to the Rules and bylaws as they
789 exist on the date on which the compact becomes law in that State. Any Rule that has
790 been pr eviously adopted by the Compact Commission shall have the full for ce and effect
791 of law on the day the compact becomes law in that State.
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792 B. Any Member State may withdraw fr om this compact by enacting a statute
793 r epealing the same.
794 1. A Member State's withdrawal shall not take effect until 180 days after
795 enactment of the rep ealing statute.
796 2. Withdr awal shall not affect the continuing r equir ement of the withdrawing
797 State's Licensing Authority to comply with the investigative and Adverse Action
798 r eporting req uirements of this compact prior to the effective date of withdrawal.
799 3. Upon the enactment of a statute withdrawing fr om this compact, a State shall
800 immediately pr ovide notice of such withdrawal to all Licensees and privilege holders
801 within that State. Notwithstanding any subsequent statutory enactment to the contrary ,
802 such withdrawing State shall continue to reco gnize all Compact Privileges granted
803 pursuant to this compact for a minimum of 180 days after the date of such notice of
804 withdrawal.
805 4. Nothing contained in this compact shall be construed to invalidate or pr event
806 any licensur e agr eement or other cooperative arrangement between a Member State
807 and a non-Member State that does not conflict with the provi sions of this compact.
808 5. This compact may be amended by the Member States. No amendment to this
809 compact shall become effective and binding upon any Member State until it is enacted
810 into the laws of all Member States.
811 SECTION 13. CONSTRUCTION AND SEVERABILITY
812 A. This compact and the Compact Commission's rulemaking authority shall be
813 liberally construed so as to effectuate the purposes, and the implementation and
814 administration of the compact. Pr ovisions of the compact express ly authorizing or
815 r equiring the pr omulgation of Rules shall not be construed to limit the Compact
816 Commission's rulemaking authority solely for those purposes.
817 B. The prov isions of this compact shall be severable and if any phrase, clause,
818 sentence or prov ision of this compact is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be
819 contrary to the constitution of any Member State, a State seeking participation in the
820 compact, or of the United States, or the applicability ther eof to any government, agency ,
821 person or cir cumstance is held to be unconstitutional by a court of competent
822 jurisdiction, the validity of the r emainder of this compact and the applicability ther eof
823 to any other government, agency , person or circu mstance shall not be affected ther eby .
824 C. Notwithstanding the for egoing, the Compact Commission may deny a State's
825 participation in the compact or terminate a Member State's participation in the
826 compact if it determines that a constitutional req uirement of a Member State is a
827 material departur e fr om the compact. Otherwise, if this compact shall be held to be
828 contrary to the constitution of any Member State, the compact shall rem ain in full for ce
SS HCS HB 2974 48
829 and effect as to the r emaining Member States and in full for ce and effect as to the
830 Member State affected as to all severable matters.
831 SECTION 14. CONSISTENT EFFECT AND CONFLICT WITH OTHER ST A TE
832 LA WS
833 A. Nothing herei n shall preven t or inhibit the enforcem ent of any other law of a
834 Member State that is not inconsistent with the compact.
835 B. Any laws, statutes, regula tions, or other legal r equir ements in a Member State
836 in conflict with the compact ar e superseded to the extent of the conflict.
837 C. All permissible agr eements between the Compact Commission and the
838 Member States are binding in accordance with their terms.
334.1800 . This section shall be known and may be cited as the "P A Licensur e
2 Compact".
3 SECTION 1. PURPOSE
4 In order to stren gthen access to Medical Services, and in recog nition of the
5 advances in the delivery of Medical Services, the Participating States of the P A
6 Licensur e Compact have allied in common purpose to develop a compr ehensive pro cess
7 that complements the existing authority of State Licensing Boards to license and
8 discipline Physician Assistants and seeks to enhance the portability of a License to
9 practice as a Physician Assistant while safeguarding the safety of patients. This
10 Compact allows Medical Services to be pr ovided by Physician Assistants, via the mutual
11 r ecognition of the Licensee's Qualifying License by other Compact Participating States.
12 This Compact also adopts the pr evailing standard for Physician Assistant licensur e and
13 affirms that the practice and delivery of Medical Services by the Physician Assistant
14 occurs wher e the patient is located at the time of the patient encounter , and ther efor e
15 r equir es the Physician Assistant to be under the jurisdiction of the State Licensing
16 Board wher e the patient is located. State Licensing Boards that participate in this
17 Compact ret ain the jurisdiction to impose Adverse Action against a Compact Privilege
18 in that State issued to a Physician Assistant thr ough the pro cedures of this Compact.
19 The P A Licensur e Compact will alleviate burdens for military families by allowing
20 active duty military personnel and their spouses to obtain a Compact Privilege based on
21 having an unr estricted License in good standing fr om a Participating State.
22 SECTION 2. DEFINITIONS
23 In this Compact:
24 A. "Adverse Action" means any administrative, civil, equitable, or criminal
25 action permitted by a State's laws which is imposed by a Licensing Board or other
26 authority against a Physician Assistant License or License application or Compact
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27 Privilege such as License denial, censure, revo cation, suspension, pr obation, monitoring
28 of the Licensee, or r estriction on the Licensee's practice.
29 B. "Compact Privilege" means the authorization granted by a Remote State to
30 allow a Licensee fr om another Participating State to practice as a Physician Assistant to
31 pr ovide Medical Services and other licensed activity to a patient located in the Remote
32 State under the Remote State's laws and regu lations.
33 C. "Conviction" means a finding by a court that an individual is guilty of a
34 felony or misdemeanor offense thr ough adjudication or entry of a plea of guilt or no
35 contest to the charge by the offender .
36 D. "Criminal Backgr ound Check" means the submission of fingerprints or other
37 biometric-based information for a License applicant for the purpose of obtaining that
38 applicant's criminal history r ecord information, as defined in 28 C.F .R. § 20.3(d), fr om
39 the State's criminal history r ecord reposit ory as defined in 28 C.F .R. § 20.3(f).
40 E. "Data System" means the r epository of information about Licensees,
41 including but not limited to License status and Adverse Actions, which is creat ed and
42 administer ed under the terms of this Compact.
43 F . "Executive Committee" means a grou p of dir ectors and ex-officio individuals
44 elected or appointed pursuant to Section 7.F .2.
45 G. "Impair ed Practitioner" means a Physician Assistant whose practice is
46 adversely affected by health-re lated condition(s) that impact their ability to practice.
47 H. "Investigative Information" means information, records, or documents
48 r eceived or generated by a Licensing Board pursuant to an investigation.
49 I. "Jurisprudence Requir ement" means the assessment of an individual's
50 knowledge of the laws and Rules governing the practice of a Physician Assistant in a
51 State.
52 J. "License" means curr ent authorization by a State, other than authorization
53 pursuant to a Compact Privilege, for a Physician Assistant to pro vide Medical Services,
54 which would be unlawful without curr ent authorization.
55 K. "Licensee" means an individual who holds a License fro m a State to provi de
56 Medical Services as a Physician Assistant.
57 L. "Licensing Board" means any State entity authorized to license and otherwise
58 r egulate Physician Assistants.
59 M. "Medical Services" means health car e services prov ided for the diagnosis,
60 pr evention, tr eatment, cur e or relief of a health condition, injury , or disease, as defined
61 by a State's laws and regu lations. The Medical Services pr ovided by a Physician
62 Assistant to a patient located in Missouri are defined by Missouri's state laws and
63 r egulations.
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64 N. "Model Compact" means the model for the P A Licensure Compact on file
65 with The Council of State Governments or other entity as designated by the
66 Commission.
67 O. "Participating State" means a State that has enacted this Compact.
68 P . "P A" or "Physician Assistant" means an individual who is licensed as a
69 physician assistant in a State. For purposes of this Compact, any other title or status
70 adopted by a State to repla ce the term "Physician Assistant" shall be deemed
71 synonymous with "Physician Assistant" and shall confer the same rights and
72 r esponsibilities to the Licensee under the pr ovisions of this Compact at the time of its
73 enactment.
74 Q. "P A Licensure Compact Commission," "Compact Commission," or
7 5 "Commission" mean the national administrative body crea ted pursuant to Section
76 7.A of this Compact.
77 R. "Qualifying License" means an unrest ricted License issued by a Participating
78 State to provi de Medical Services as a Physician Assistant.
79 S. "Remote State" means a Participating State wher e a Licensee who is not
80 licensed as a Physician Assistant is exer cising or seeking to exer cise the Compact
81 Privilege.
82 T . "Rule" means a re gulation pr omulgated by an entity that has the for ce and
83 effect of law .
84 U. "Significant Investigative Information" means Investigative Information that
85 a Licensing Board, after an inquiry or investigation that includes notification and an
86 opportunity for the Physician Assistant to r espond if r equir ed by State law , has r eason
87 to believe is not gr oundless and, if prov en true, would indicate mor e than a minor
88 infraction.
89 V . "State" means any state, commonwealth, district, or territory of the United
90 States.
91 SECTION 3. ST A TE P AR TICIP A TION IN THIS COMP ACT
92 A. T o participate in this Compact, a Participating State shall:
93 1. License Physician Assistants;
94 2. Participate in the Compact Commission's Data System;
95 3. Have a mechanism in place for re ceiving and investigating complaints against
96 Licensees and License applicants;
97 4. Notify the Commission, in compliance with the terms of this Compact and
98 Commission Rules, of any Adverse Action against a Licensee or License applicant and
99 the existence of Significant Investigative Information regard ing a Licensee or License
100 applicant;
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101 5. Fully implement a Criminal Backgrou nd Check req uir ement, within a time
102 frame established by Commission Rule, by its Licensing Board r eceiving the results of a
103 Criminal Backgr ound Check and reporting to the Commission whether the License
104 applicant has been granted a License;
105 6. Comply with the Rules of the Compact Commission;
106 7. Utilize passage of a recogn ized national exam such as the NCCP A P ANCE as a
107 r equir ement for Physician Assistant licensur e;
108 8. Grant the Compact Privilege to a holder of a Qualifying License in a
109 Participating State.
110 B. Nothing in this Compact pr ohibits a Participating State fro m charging a fee
111 for granting the Compact Privilege.
112 SECTION 4. COMP ACT PRIVILEGE
113 A. T o exercise the Compact Privilege, a Licensee must:
114 1. Have graduated fr om a Physician Assistant progra m accred ited by the
115 Accr editation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc. or
116 other pr ograms authorized by Commission Rule;
117 2. Hold curr ent NCCP A certification;
118 3. Have no felony or misdemeanor Conviction;
119 4. Have never had a controlle d substance license, permit, or regi stration
120 suspended or r evoked by a State or by the United States Drug Enfor cement
12 1 Administration;
122 5. Have a unique identifier as determined by Commission Rule;
123 6. Hold a Qualifying License;
124 7. Have had no revoca tion of a License or limitation or re striction on any
125 License curr ently held due to an Adverse Action;
126 8. If a Licensee has had a limitation or r estriction on a License or Compact
127 Privilege due to an Adverse Action, two years must have elapsed fr om the date on which
128 the License or Compact Privilege is no longer limited or res tricted due to the Adverse
129 Action;
130 9. If a Compact Privilege has been r evoked or is limited or r estricted in a
131 Participating State for conduct that would not be a basis for disciplinary action in a
132 Participating State in which the Licensee is practicing or applying to practice under a
133 Compact Privilege, that Participating State shall have the discret ion not to consider
134 such action as an Adverse Action req uiring the denial or rem oval of a Compact
135 Privilege in that State;
136 10. Notify the Compact Commission that the Licensee is seeking the Compact
137 Privilege in a Remote State;
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138 1 1. Meet any Jurisprudence Requirem ent of a Remote State in which the
139 Licensee is seeking to practice under the Compact Privilege and pay any fees applicable
140 to satisfying the Jurisprudence Requirem ent;
141 12. Report to the Commission any Adverse Action taken by a non-Participating
142 State within thirty (30) days after the action is taken.
143 B. The Compact Privilege is valid until the expiration or revoc ation of the
144 Qualifying License unless terminated pursuant to an Adverse Action. The Licensee
145 must also comply with all of the requ irem ents of Section 4.A above to maintain the
146 Compact Privilege in a Remote State. If the Participating State takes Adverse Action
147 against a Qualifying License, the Licensee shall lose the Compact Privilege in any
148 Remote State in which the Licensee has a Compact Privilege until all of the following
149 occur:
150 1. The License is no longer limited or res tricted; and
151 2. T wo (2) years have elapsed from the date on which the License is no longer
152 limited or res tricted due to the Adverse Action.
153 C. Once a res tricted or limited License satisfies the requi rem ents of Sections
154 4.B.1 and 4.B.2, the Licensee must meet the requi rem ents of Section 4.A to obtain a
155 Compact Privilege in any Remote State.
156 D. For each Remote State in which a Physician Assistant seeks authority to
157 pr escribe contr olled substances, the Physician Assistant shall satisfy all r equir ements
158 imposed by such State in granting or renewi ng such authority .
159 SECTION 5. DESIGNA TION OF THE ST A TE FROM WHICH LICENSEE IS
160 APPL YING FOR A COMP ACT PRIVILEGE
161 A. Upon a Licensee's application for a Compact Privilege, the Licensee shall
162 identify to the Commission the Participating State fr om which the Licensee is applying,
163 in accordance with applicable Rules adopted by the Commission, and subject to the
164 following req uirements :
165 1. When applying for a Compact Privilege, the Licensee shall prov ide the
166 Commission with the addr ess of the Licensee's primary res idence and ther eafter shall
167 immediately r eport to the Commission any change in the addr ess of the Licensee's
168 primary resi dence.
169 2. When applying for a Compact Privilege, the Licensee is requ ired to consent to
170 accept service of pr ocess by mail at the Licensee's primary r esidence on file with the
171 Commission with res pect to any action br ought against the Licensee by the Commission
172 or a Participating State, including a subpoena, with res pect to any action brou ght or
173 investigation conducted by the Commission or a Participating State.
174 SECTION 6. ADVERSE ACTIONS
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175 A. A Participating State in which a Licensee is licensed shall have exclusive
176 power to impose Adverse Action against the Qualifying License issued by that
177 Participating State.
178 B. In addition to the other powers conferred by State law , a Remote State shall
179 have the authority , in accordance with existing State due process law , to do all of the
180 following:
181 1. T ake Adverse Action against a Physician Assistant's Compact Privilege within
182 that State to rem ove a Licensee's Compact Privilege or take other action necessary
183 under applicable law to pr otect the health and safety of its citizens.
184 2. Issue subpoenas for both hearings and investigations that requ ire the
185 attendance and testimony of witnesses as well as the prod uction of evidence. Subpoenas
186 issued by a Licensing Board in a Participating State for the attendance and testimony of
187 witnesses or the prod uction of evidence fro m another Participating State shall be
188 enfor ced in the latter State by any court of competent jurisdiction, according to the
189 practice and pr ocedur e of that court applicable to subpoenas issued in proceed ings
190 pending before it. The issuing authority shall pay any witness fees, travel expenses,
191 mileage and other fees req uired by the service statutes of the State in which the
192 witnesses or evidence are located.
193 3. Notwithstanding Section 6.B.2, subpoenas may not be issued by a
1 9 4 Participating State to gather evidence of conduct in another State that is lawful in
195 that other State for the purpose of taking Adverse Action against a Licensee's Compact
196 Privilege or application for a Compact Privilege in that Participating State.
197 4. Nothing in this Compact authorizes a Participating State to impose discipline
198 against a Physician Assistant's Compact Privilege or to deny an application for a
199 Compact Privilege in that Participating State for the individual's otherwise lawful
200 practice in another State.
201 C. For purposes of taking Adverse Action, the Participating State which issued
202 the Qualifying License shall give the same priority and effect to repo rted conduct
203 r eceived fr om any other Participating State as it would if the conduct had occurr ed
204 within the Participating State which issued the Qualifying License. In so doing, that
205 Participating State shall apply its own State laws to determine appr opriate action.
206 D. A Participating State, if otherwise permitted by State law , may reco ver fr om
207 the affected Physician Assistant the costs of investigations and disposition of cases
208 r esulting from any Adverse Action taken against that Physician Assistant.
209 E. A Participating State may take Adverse Action based on the factual findings
210 of a Remote State, pr ovided that the Participating State follows its own pr ocedur es for
211 taking the Adverse Action.
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212 F . Joint Investigations
213 1. In addition to the authority granted to a Participating State by its res pective
214 State Physician Assistant laws and regu lations or other applicable State law , any
215 Participating State may participate with other Participating States in joint
2 1 6 investigations of Licensees.
217 2. Participating States shall share any investigative, litigation, or compliance
218 materials in furtherance of any joint or individual investigation initiated under this
219 Compact.
220 G. If an Adverse Action is taken against a Physician Assistant's Qualifying
221 License, the Physician Assistant's Compact Privilege in all Remote States shall be
222 deactivated until two (2) years have elapsed after all res trictions have been r emoved
223 fr om the State License. All disciplinary orders by the Participating State which issued
224 the Qualifying License that impose Adverse Action against a Physician Assistant's
225 License shall include a Statement that the Physician Assistant's Compact Privilege is
226 deactivated in all Participating States during the pendency of the order .
227 H. If any Participating State takes Adverse Action, it pr omptly shall notify the
228 administrator of the Data System.
229 SECTION 7. EST ABLISHMENT OF THE P A LICENSURE COMP ACT
230 COMMISSION
231 A. The Participating States her eby crea te and establish a joint government
232 agency and national administrative body known as the P A Licensure Compact
233 Commission. The Commission is an instrumentality of the Compact States acting
234 jointly and not an instrumentality of any one State. The Commission shall come into
235 existence on or after the effective date of the Compact as set forth in Section 1 1.A.
236 B. Membership, V oting, and Meetings
237 1. Each Participating State shall have and be limited to one (1) delegate selected
238 by that Participating State's Licensing Board or , if the State has mor e than one
239 Licensing Board, selected collectively by the Participating State's Licensing Boards.
240 2. The delegate shall be either:
241 a. A curr ent Physician Assistant, physician or public member of a Licensing
242 Board or Physician Assistant council/committee; or
243 b. An administrator of a Licensing Board.
244 3. Any delegate may be rem oved or suspended fro m office as pr ovided by the
245 laws of the State from which the delegate is appointed.
246 4. The Participating State Licensing Board shall fill any vacancy occurring in
247 the Commission within sixty (60) days.
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248 5. Each delegate shall be entitled to one (1) vote on all matters voted on by the
249 Commission and shall otherwise have an opportunity to participate in the business and
250 affairs of the Commission. A delegate shall vote in person or by such other means as
251 pr ovided in the bylaws. The bylaws may prov ide for delegates' participation in
252 meetings by telecommunications, video confer ence, or other means of communication.
253 6. The Commission shall meet at least once during each calendar year .
254 Additional meetings shall be held as set forth in this Compact and the bylaws.
255 7. The Commission shall establish by Rule a term of office for delegates.
256 C. The Commission shall have the following powers and duties:
257 1. Establish a code of ethics for the Commission;
258 2. Establish the fiscal year of the Commission;
259 3. Establish fees;
260 4. Establish bylaws;
261 5. Maintain its financial r ecords in accordance with the bylaws;
262 6. Meet and take such actions as ar e consistent with the pro visions of this
263 Compact and the bylaws;
264 7. Pr omulgate Rules limited to the Commission's authority to facilitate and
265 coordinate implementation and administration of this Compact. The Rules authorized
266 by the Compact shall have the forc e and effect of law and shall be binding in all
267 Participating States;
268 8. Bring and prosecute legal pro ceedings or actions in the name of the
269 Commission, pr ovided that the standing of any State Licensing Board to sue or be sued
270 under applicable law shall not be affected;
271 9. Purchase and maintain insurance and bonds;
272 10. Borrow , accept, or contract for services of personnel, including, but not
273 limited to, employees of a Participating State;
274 1 1. Hir e employees and engage contractors, elect or appoint officers, fix
275 compensation, define duties, grant such individuals appr opriate authority to carry out
276 the purposes of this Compact, and establish the Commission's personnel policies and
277 pr ograms relat ing to conflicts of intere st, qualifications of personnel, and other r elated
278 personnel matters;
279 12. Accept any and all appr opriate donations and grants of money , equipment,
280 supplies, materials and services, and receiv e, utilize and dispose of the same; pr ovided
281 that at all times the Commission shall avoid any appearance of impropri ety or conflict
282 of interes t;
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283 13. Lease, pur chase, accept appr opriate gifts or donations of, or otherwise own,
284 hold, improv e or use, any pro perty , rea l, personal or mixed; pr ovided that at all times
285 the Commission shall avoid any appearance of impropri ety;
286 14. Sell, convey , mortgage, pledge, lease, exchange, abandon, or otherwise
287 dispose of any pr operty real, personal, or mixed;
288 15. Establish a budget and make expenditur es;
289 16. Borrow money;
290 17. Appoint committees, including standing committees composed of members,
291 State r egulators, State legislators or their re pr esentatives, and consumer
2 9 2 r epresent atives, and such other interes ted persons as may be designated in this
293 Compact and the bylaws;
294 18. Pr ovide and r eceive information fr om, and cooperate with, law enforcem ent
295 agencies;
296 19. Elect a Chair , V ice Chair , Secr etary and T rea sur er and such other officers of
297 the Commission as pr ovided in the Commission's bylaws;
298 20. Reserve for itself, in addition to those res erved exclusively to the Commission
299 under the Compact, powers that the Executive Committee may not exerci se;
300 21. Appr ove or disappr ove a State's participation in the Compact based upon its
301 determination as to whether the State's Compact legislation departs in a material
302 manner fr om the Model Compact language;
303 22. Pr epar e and pr ovide to the Participating States an annual repo rt; and
304 23. Perform such other functions as may be necessary or appr opriate to achieve
305 the purposes of this Compact consistent with the State regul ation of Physician Assistant
306 licensur e and practice.
307 D. Meetings of the Commission
308 1. All meetings of the Commission that ar e not closed pursuant to this subsection
309 shall be open to the public. Notice of public meetings shall be posted on the
310 Commission's website at least thirty (30) days prior to the public meeting.
311 2. Notwithstanding Section 7.D.1, the Commission may convene a public meeting
312 by provi ding at least twenty-four (24) hours prior notice on the Commission's website,
313 and any other means as pr ovided in the Commission's Rules, for any of the r easons it
314 may dispense with Notice of Pr oposed Rulemaking under Section 9.L.
315 3. The Commission may convene in a closed, non-public meeting or non-public
316 part of a public meeting to recei ve legal advice or to discuss:
317 a. Non-compliance of a Participating State with its obligations under this
318 Compact;
SS HCS HB 2974 57
319 b. The employment, compensation, discipline or other matters, practices or
320 pr ocedur es rel ated to specific employees or other matters rela ted to the Commission's
321 internal personnel practices and proc edures;
322 c. Curren t, thr eatened, or r easonably anticipated litigation;
323 d. Negotiation of contracts for the purch ase, lease, or sale of goods, services, or
324 r eal estate;
325 e. Accusing any person of a crime or formally censuring any person;
326 f. Disclosur e of trade secr ets or commer cial or financial information that is
327 privileged or confidential;
328 g. Disclosur e of information of a personal natur e wher e disclosur e would
329 constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
330 h. Disclosure of investigative record s compiled for law enforc ement purposes;
331 i. Disclosur e of information relat ed to any investigative rep orts pre pared by or
332 on behalf of or for use of the Commission or other committee charged with
333 r esponsibility of investigation or determination of compliance issues pursuant to this
334 Compact;
335 j. Legal advice; or
336 k. Matters specifically exempted from disclosur e by federal or Participating
337 States' statutes.
338 4. If a meeting, or portion of a meeting, is closed pursuant to this provi sion, the
339 chair of the meeting or the chair's designee shall certify that the meeting or portion of
340 the meeting may be closed and shall r efer ence each r elevant exempting pr ovision.
341 5. The Commission shall keep minutes that fully and clearly describe all matters
342 discussed in a meeting and shall pr ovide a full and accurate summary of actions taken,
343 including a description of the views expr essed. All documents consider ed in connection
344 with an action shall be identified in such minutes. All minutes and documents of a
345 closed meeting shall rem ain under seal, subject to r elease by a majority vote of the
346 Commission or order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
347 E. Financing of the Commission
348 1. The Commission shall pay , or pr ovide for the payment of, the reas onable
349 expenses of its establishment, organization, and ongoing activities.
350 2. The Commission may accept any and all appr opriate reven ue sources ,
351 donations, and grants of money , equipment, supplies, materials, and services.
352 3. The Commission may levy on and collect an annual assessment fro m each
353 Participating State and may impose Compact Privilege fees on Licensees of
3 5 4 Participating States to whom a Compact Privilege is granted to cover the cost of the
355 operations and activities of the Commission and its staff, which must be in a total
SS HCS HB 2974 58
356 amount sufficient to cover its annual budget as appr oved by the Commission each year
357 for which rev enue is not pr ovided by other sour ces. The aggreg ate annual assessment
358 amount levied on Participating States shall be allocated based upon a formula to be
359 determined by Commission Rule.
360 a. A Compact Privilege expir es when the Licensee's Qualifying License in the
361 Participating State fr om which the Licensee applied for the Compact Privilege expir es.
362 b. If the Licensee terminates the Qualifying License thr ough which the Licensee
363 applied for the Compact Privilege before its scheduled expiration, and the Licensee has
364 a Qualifying License in another Participating State, the Licensee shall inform the
365 Commission that it is changing to that Participating State the Participating State
366 thr ough which it applies for a Compact Privilege and pay to the Commission any
367 Compact Privilege fee r equir ed by Commission Rule.
368 4. The Commission shall not incur obligations of any kind prior to securing the
369 funds adequate to meet the same; nor shall the Commission pledge the cred it of any of
370 the Participating States, except by and with the authority of the Participating State.
371 5. The Commission shall keep accurate accounts of all receipt s and
3 7 2 disbursements. The r eceipts and disbursements of the Commission shall be subject
373 to the financial r eview and accounting pr ocedur es established under its bylaws. All
374 r eceipts and disbursements of funds handled by the Commission shall be subject to an
375 annual financial r eview by a certified or licensed public accountant, and the r eport of
376 the financial rev iew shall be included in and become part of the annual r eport of the
377 Commission.
378 F . The Executive Committee
379 1. The Executive Committee shall have the power to act on behalf of the
380 Commission according to the terms of this Compact and Commission Rules.
381 2. The Executive Committee shall be composed of nine (9) members:
382 a. Seven voting members who are elected by the Commission fr om the curr ent
383 membership of the Commission;
384 b. One ex-officio, nonvoting member fr om a recog nized national Physician
385 Assistant profes sional association; and
386 c. One ex-officio, nonvoting member fro m a recogn ized national Physician
387 Assistant certification organization.
388 3. The ex-officio members will be selected by their res pective organizations.
389 4. The Commission may r emove any member of the Executive Committee as
390 pr ovided in its bylaws.
391 5. The Executive Committee shall meet at least annually .
392 6. The Executive Committee shall have the following duties and res ponsibilities:
SS HCS HB 2974 59
393 a. Recommend to the Commission changes to the Commission's Rules or bylaws,
394 changes to this Compact legislation, fees to be paid by Compact Participating States
395 such as annual dues, and any Commission Compact fee charged to Licensees for the
396 Compact Privilege;
397 b. Ensur e Compact administration services ar e appr opriately pr ovided,
39 8 contractual or otherwise;
399 c. Pr epare and recomm end the budget;
400 d. Maintain financial record s on behalf of the Commission;
401 e. Monitor Compact compliance of Participating States and pr ovide compliance
402 r eports to the Commission;
403 f. Establish additional committees as necessary;
404 g. Exer cise the powers and duties of the Commission during the interim between
405 Commission meetings, except for issuing pr oposed rulemaking or adopting Commission
406 Rules or bylaws, or exer cising any other powers and duties exclusively r eserved to the
407 Commission by the Commission's Rules; and
408 h. Perform other duties as prov ided in the Commission's Rules or bylaws.
409 7. All meetings of the Executive Committee at which it votes or plans to vote on
410 matters in exer cising the powers and duties of the Commission shall be open to the
411 public and public notice of such meetings shall be given as public meetings of the
412 Commission are given.
413 8. The Executive Committee may convene in a closed, non-public meeting for the
414 same reas ons that the Commission may convene in a non-public meeting as set forth in
415 Section 7.D.3 and shall announce the closed meeting as the Commission is r equir ed to
416 under Section 7.D.4 and keep minutes of the closed meeting as the Commission is
417 r equir ed to under Section 7.D.5.
418 G. Qualified Immunity , Defense, and Indemnification
419 1. The members, officers, executive dir ector , employees and rep res entatives of
420 the Commission shall be immune fr om suit and liability , both personally and in their
421 official capacity , for any claim for damage to or loss of prop erty or personal injury or
422 other civil liability caused by or arising out of any actual or alleged act, error , or
423 omission that occurr ed, or that the person against whom the claim is made had a
424 r easonable basis for believing occurr ed within the scope of Commission employment,
425 duties or res ponsibilities; pro vided that nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to
426 pr otect any such person fro m suit or liability for any damage, loss, injury , or liability
427 caused by the intentional or willful or wanton misconduct of that person. The
428 pr ocur ement of insurance of any type by the Commission shall not in any way
429 compr omise or limit the immunity granted hereu nder .
SS HCS HB 2974 60
430 2. The Commission shall defend any member , officer , executive direc tor ,
431 employee, and re present ative of the Commission in any civil action seeking to impose
432 liability arising out of any actual or alleged act, err or , or omission that occurred within
433 the scope of Commission employment, duties, or re sponsibilities, or as determined by
434 the commission that the person against whom the claim is made had a r easonable basis
435 for believing occurr ed within the scope of Commission employment, duties, or
436 r esponsibilities; pr ovided that nothing her ein shall be construed to pr ohibit that
437 person fro m ret aining their own counsel at their own expense; and pr ovided further ,
438 that the actual or alleged act, error , or omission did not res ult fr om that person's
439 intentional or willful or wanton misconduct.
440 3. The Commission shall indemnify and hold harmless any member , officer ,
441 executive dir ector , employee, and repr esentative of the Commission for the amount of
442 any settlement or judgment obtained against that person arising out of any actual or
443 alleged act, err or , or omission that occurre d within the scope of Commission
44 4 employment, duties, or res ponsibilities, or that such person had a r easonable basis
445 for believing occurr ed within the scope of Commission employment, duties, or
446 r esponsibilities, prov ided that the actual or alleged act, erro r , or omission did not
447 r esult fr om the intentional or willful or wanton misconduct of that person.
448 4. V enue is prop er and judicial pr oceedings by or against the Commission shall
449 be bro ught solely and exclusively in a court of competent jurisdiction wher e the
450 principal office of the Commission is located. The Commission may waive venue and
451 jurisdictional defenses in any proceed ings as authorized by Commission Rules.
452 5. Nothing her ein shall be construed as a limitation on the liability of any
453 Licensee for profes sional malpractice or misconduct, which shall be governed solely by
454 any other applicable State laws.
455 6. Nothing her ein shall be construed to designate the venue or jurisdiction to
456 bring actions for alleged acts of malpractice, pr ofessional misconduct, negligence, or
457 other such civil action pertaining to the practice of a Physician Assistant. All such
458 matters shall be determined exclusively by State law other than this Compact.
459 7. Nothing in this Compact shall be interpret ed to waive or otherwise abro gate a
460 Participating State's state action immunity or state action affirmative defense with
461 r espect to antitrust claims under the Sherman Act, Clayton Act, or any other State or
462 federal antitrust or anticompetitive law or regul ation.
463 8. Nothing in this Compact shall be construed to be a waiver of soverei gn
464 immunity by the Participating States or by the Commission.
465 SECTION 8. DA T A SYSTEM
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466 A. The Commission shall pr ovide for the development, maintenance, operation,
467 and utilization of a coordinated data and rep orting system containing licensur e, Adverse
468 Action, and the repo rting of the existence of Significant Investigative Information on all
469 licensed Physician Assistants and applicants denied a License in Participating States.
470 B. Notwithstanding any other State law to the contrary , a Participating State
471 shall submit a uniform data set to the Data System on all Physician Assistants to whom
472 this Compact is applicable (utilizing a unique identifier) as requ ired by the Rules of the
473 Commission, including:
474 1. Identifying information;
475 2. Licensure data;
476 3. Adverse Actions against a License or Compact Privilege;
477 4. Any denial of application for licensur e, and the rea son(s) for such denial
478 (excluding the r eporting of any criminal history r ecord information wher e pr ohibited by
479 law);
480 5. The existence of Significant Investigative Information; and
481 6. Other information that may facilitate the administration of this Compact, as
482 determined by the Rules of the Commission.
483 C. Significant Investigative Information pertaining to a Licensee in any
484 Participating State shall only be available to other Participating States.
485 D. The Commission shall pr omptly notify all Participating States of any Adverse
486 Action taken against a Licensee or an individual applying for a License that has been
487 r eported to it. This Adverse Action information shall be available to any other
488 Participating State.
489 E. Participating States contributing information to the Data System may , in
490 accordance with State or federal law , designate information that may not be shar ed with
491 the public without the expr ess permission of the contributing State. Notwithstanding
492 any such designation, such information shall be rep orted to the Commission thr ough the
493 Data System.
494 F . Any information submitted to the Data System that is subsequently expunged
495 pursuant to federal law or the laws of the Participating State contributing the
496 information shall be r emoved fr om the Data System upon reporting of such by the
497 Participating State to the Commission.
498 G. The reco rds and information pr ovided to a Participating State pursuant to
499 this Compact or thr ough the Data System, when certified by the Commission or an
500 agent ther eof, shall constitute the authenticated business rec ords of the Commission,
501 and shall be entitled to any associated hearsay exception in any re levant judicial, quasi-
502 judicial or administrative pr oceedings in a Participating State.
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503 SECTION 9. RULEMAKING
504 A. The Commission shall exerci se its rulemaking powers pursuant to the criteria
505 set forth in this section and the Rules adopted ther eunder . Commission Rules shall
506 become binding as of the date specified by the Commission for each Rule.
507 B. The Commission shall pr omulgate reas onable Rules in order to effectively
508 and efficiently implement and administer this Compact and achieve its purposes. A
509 Commission Rule shall be invalid and have no for ce or effect only if a court of
510 competent jurisdiction holds that the Rule is invalid because the Commission exer cised
511 its rulemaking authority in a manner that is beyond the scope of the purposes of this
512 Compact, or the powers granted hereunder , or based upon another applicable standard
513 of review .
514 C. The Rules of the Commission shall have the for ce of law in each Participating
515 State, pro vided however that wher e the Rules of the Commission conflict with the laws
516 of the Participating State that establish the Medical Services a Physician Assistant may
517 perform in the Participating State, as held by a court of competent jurisdiction, the
518 Rules of the Commission shall be ineffective in that State to the extent of the conflict.
519 D. If a majority of the legislatur es of the Participating States rej ects a
520 Commission Rule, by enactment of a statute or res olution in the same manner used to
521 adopt this Compact within four (4) years of the date of adoption of the Rule, then such
522 Rule shall have no further for ce and effect in any Participating State or to any State
523 applying to participate in the Compact.
524 E. Commission Rules shall be adopted at a reg ular or special meeting of the
525 Commission.
526 F . Prior to pro mulgation and adoption of a final Rule or Rules by the
527 Commission, and at least thirty (30) days in advance of the meeting at which the Rule
528 will be consider ed and voted upon, the Commission shall file a Notice of Pr oposed
529 Rulemaking:
530 1. On the website of the Commission or other publicly accessible platform; and
531 2. T o persons who have r equested notice of the Commission's Notices of
532 Pr oposed Rulemaking; and
533 3. In such other way(s) as the Commission may by Rule specify .
534 G. The Notice of Pr oposed Rulemaking shall include:
535 1. The time, date, and location of the public hearing on the pr oposed Rule and
536 the pro posed time, date and location of the meeting in which the pr oposed Rule will be
537 consider ed and voted upon;
538 2. The text of the pr oposed Rule and the reas on for the pr oposed Rule;
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539 3. A r equest for comments on the pro posed Rule fr om any inter ested person and
540 the date by which written comments must be received ; and
541 4. The manner in which interes ted persons may submit notice to the Commission
542 of their intention to attend the public hearing or pro vide any written comments.
543 H. Prior to adoption of a prop osed Rule, the Commission shall allow persons to
544 submit written data, facts, opinions, and arguments, which shall be made available to
545 the public.
546 I. If the hearing is to be held via electr onic means, the Commission shall publish
547 the mechanism for access to the electr onic hearing.
548 1. All persons wishing to be heard at the hearing shall as dir ected in the Notice of
549 Pr oposed Rulemaking, not less than five (5) business days before the scheduled date of
550 the hearing, notify the Commission of their desire to appear and testify at the hearing.
551 2. Hearings shall be conducted in a manner prov iding each person who wishes to
552 comment a fair and reas onable opportunity to comment orally or in writing.
553 3. All hearings shall be rec orded. A copy of the reco rding and the written
554 comments, data, facts, opinions, and arguments recei ved in res ponse to the pro posed
555 rulemaking shall be made available to a person upon requ est.
556 4. Nothing in this section shall be construed as requ iring a separate hearing on
557 each pr oposed Rule. Pr oposed Rules may be gro uped for the convenience of the
558 Commission at hearings req uire d by this section.
559 J. Following the public hearing the Commission shall consider all written and
560 oral comments timely r eceived.
561 K. The Commission shall, by majority vote of all delegates, take final action on
562 the prop osed Rule and shall determine the effective date of the Rule, if adopted, based
563 on the rulemaking record and the full text of the Rule.
564 1. If adopted, the Rule shall be posted on the Commission's website.
565 2. The Commission may adopt changes to the pro posed Rule pr ovided the
566 changes do not enlarge the original purpose of the pr oposed Rule.
567 3. The Commission shall prov ide on its website an explanation of the reas ons for
568 substantive changes made to the prop osed Rule as well as reas ons for substantive
569 changes not made that were recommended by commenters.
570 4. The Commission shall determine a r easonable effective date for the Rule.
571 Except for an emergency as pr ovided in Section 9.L, the effective date of the Rule shall
572 be no sooner than thirty (30) days after the Commission issued the notice that it adopted
573 the Rule.
574 L. Upon determination that an emergency exists, the Commission may consider
575 and adopt an emergency Rule with twenty-four (24) hours prior notice, without the
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576 opportunity for comment, or hearing, provi ded that the usual rulemaking proce dures
577 pr ovided in this Compact and in this section shall be r etr oactively applied to the Rule as
578 soon as rea sonably possible, in no event later than ninety (90) days after the effective
579 date of the Rule. For the purposes of this pr ovision, an emergency Rule is one that must
580 be adopted immediately by the Commission in order to:
581 1. Meet an imminent thr eat to public health, safety , or welfare;
582 2. Pr event a loss of Commission or Participating State funds;
583 3. Meet a deadline for the pro mulgation of a Commission Rule that is established
584 by federal law or Rule; or
585 4. Pr otect public health and safety .
586 M. The Commission or an authorized committee of the Commission may direct
587 r evisions to a pr eviously adopted Commission Rule for purposes of corr ecting
588 typographical erro rs, err ors in format, erro rs in consistency , or grammatical errors.
589 Public notice of any revision s shall be posted on the website of the Commission. The
590 r evision shall be subject to challenge by any person for a period of thirty (30) days after
591 posting. The revision may be challenged only on gr ounds that the re vision r esults in a
592 material change to a Rule. A challenge shall be made as set forth in the notice of
593 r evisions and deliver ed to the Commission prior to the end of the notice period. If no
594 challenge is made, the revision will take effect without further action. If the r evision is
595 challenged, the rev ision may not take effect without the appr oval of the Commission.
596 N. No Participating State's rulemaking requi rem ents shall apply under this
597 Compact.
598 SECTION 10. OVERSIGHT , DISPUTE RESOLUTION, AND ENFORCEMENT
599 A. Oversight
600 1. The executive and judicial branches of State government in each Participating
601 State shall enforce this Compact and take all actions necessary and appr opriate to
602 implement the Compact.
603 2. V enue is prop er and judicial pr oceedings by or against the Commission shall
604 be bro ught solely and exclusively in a court of competent jurisdiction wher e the
605 principal office of the Commission is located. The Commission may waive venue and
606 jurisdictional defenses to the extent it adopts or consents to participate in alternative
607 dispute reso lution pr oceedings. Nothing herei n shall affect or limit the selection or
608 pr opriety of venue in any action against a Licensee for profes sional malpractice,
609 misconduct or any such similar matter .
610 3. The Commission shall be entitled to recei ve service of pr ocess in any
611 pr oceeding r egarding the enforcem ent or interpr etation of the Compact or the
612 Commission's Rules and shall have standing to intervene in such a pr oceeding for all
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613 purposes. Failur e to pr ovide the Commission with service of pr ocess shall rend er a
614 judgment or order in such proceed ing void as to the Commission, this Compact, or
615 Commission Rules.
616 B. Default, T echnical Assistance, and T ermination
617 1. If the Commission determines that a Participating State has defaulted in the
618 performance of its obligations or res ponsibilities under this Compact or the Commission
619 Rules, the Commission shall pr ovide written notice to the defaulting State and other
620 Participating States. The notice shall describe the default, the pro posed means of curing
621 the default and any other action that the Commission may take and shall offer rem edial
622 training and specific technical assistance r egarding the default.
623 2. If a State in default fails to cur e the default, the defaulting State may be
624 terminated fr om this Compact upon an affirmative vote of a majority of the delegates of
625 the Participating States, and all rights, privileges and benefits conferred by this
626 Compact upon such State may be terminated on the effective date of termination. A
627 cur e of the default does not reli eve the offending State of obligations or liabilities
628 incurr ed during the period of default.
629 3. T ermination of participation in this Compact shall be imposed only after all
630 other means of securing compliance have been exhausted. Notice of intent to suspend or
631 terminate shall be given by the Commission to the governor , the majority and minority
632 leaders of the defaulting State's legislature, and to the Licensing Board(s) of each of the
633 Participating States.
634 4. A State that has been terminated is res ponsible for all assessments,
635 obligations, and liabilities incurr ed thr ough the effective date of termination, including
636 obligations that extend beyond the effective date of termination.
637 5. The Commission shall not bear any costs r elated to a State that is found to be
638 in default or that has been terminated fr om this Compact, unless agre ed upon in writing
639 between the Commission and the defaulting State.
640 6. The defaulting State may appeal its termination fr om the Compact by the
641 Commission by petitioning the United States District Court for the District of Columbia
642 or the federal district where the Commission has its principal offices. The pr evailing
643 member shall be awarded all costs of such litigation, including rea sonable attorney's
644 fees.
645 7. Upon the termination of a State's participation in the Compact, the State shall
646 immediately pr ovide notice to all Licensees within that State of such termination:
647 a. Licensees who have been granted a Compact Privilege in that State shall
648 r etain the Compact Privilege for one hundred eighty (180) days following the effective
649 date of such termination.
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650 b. Licensees who are licensed in that State who have been granted a Compact
651 Privilege in a Participating State shall reta in the Compact Privilege for one hundr ed
652 eighty (180) days unless the Licensee also has a Qualifying License in a Participating
653 State or obtains a Qualifying License in a Participating State before the one hundr ed
654 eighty (180)-day period ends, in which case the Compact Privilege shall continue.
655 C. Dispute Resolution
656 1. Upon r equest by a Participating State, the Commission shall attempt to
657 r esolve disputes rela ted to this Compact that arise among Participating States and
658 between participating and non-Participating States.
659 2. The Commission shall promulg ate a Rule pr oviding for both mediation and
660 binding dispute r esolution for disputes as appr opriate.
661 D. Enfor cement
662 1. The Commission, in the reas onable exercise of its discret ion, shall enforce the
663 pr ovisions of this Compact and Rules of the Commission.
664 2. If compliance is not secured after all means to secure compliance have been
665 exhausted, by majority vote, the Commission may initiate legal action in the United
666 States District Court for the District of Columbia or the federal district wher e the
667 Commission has its principal offices, against a Participating State in default to enforce
668 compliance with the prov isions of this Compact and the Commission's pr omulgated
669 Rules and bylaws. The r elief sought may include both injunctive reli ef and damages. In
670 the event judicial enforcem ent is necessary , the prevai ling party shall be awarded all
671 costs of such litigation, including r easonable attorney's fees.
672 3. The rem edies her ein shall not be the exclusive r emedies of the Commission.
673 The Commission may pursue any other rem edies available under federal or State law .
674 E. Legal Action Against the Commission
675 1. A Participating State may initiate legal action against the Commission in the
676 United States District Court for the District of Columbia or the federal district wher e
677 the Commission has its principal offices to enforce compliance with the pr ovisions of the
678 Compact and its Rules. The relief sought may include both injunctive r elief and
679 damages. In the event judicial enfor cement is necessary , the pr evailing party shall be
680 awarded all costs of such litigation, including reas onable attorney's fees.
681 2. No person other than a Participating State shall enforce this Compact against
682 the Commission.
683 SECTION 1 1. DA TE OF IMPLEMENT A TION OF THE P A LICENSURE COMP ACT
684 COMMISSION
685 A. This Compact shall come into effect on the date on which this Compact
686 statute is enacted into law in the seventh Participating State.
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687 1. On or after the effective date of the Compact, the Commission shall convene
688 and rev iew the enactment of each of the States that enacted the Compact prior to the
689 Commission convening ("Charter Participating States") to determine if the statute
690 enacted by each such Charter Participating State is materially differe nt than the Model
691 Compact.
692 a. A Charter Participating State whose enactment is found to be materially
693 differ ent fr om the Model Compact shall be entitled to the default pr ocess set forth in
694 Section 10.B.
695 b. If any Participating State later withdraws fro m the Compact or its
696 participation is terminated, the Commission shall r emain in existence and the Compact
697 shall rem ain in effect even if the number of Participating States should be less than
698 seven. Participating States enacting the Compact subsequent to the Commission
699 convening shall be subject to the process set forth in Section 7.C.21 to determine if their
700 enactments are materially differen t from the Model Compact and whether they qualify
701 for participation in the Compact.
702 2. Participating States enacting the Compact subsequent to the seven initial
703 Charter Participating States shall be subject to the proce ss set forth in Section 7.C.21 to
704 determine if their enactments are materially differ ent fr om the Model Compact and
705 whether they qualify for participation in the Compact.
706 3. All actions taken for the benefit of the Commission or in furtherance of the
707 purposes of the administration of the Compact prior to the effective date of the Compact
708 or the Commission coming into existence shall be considere d to be actions of the
709 Commission unless specifically r epudiated by the Commission.
710 B. Any State that joins this Compact shall be subject to the Commission's Rules
711 and bylaws as they exist on the date on which this Compact becomes law in that State.
712 Any Rule that has been pr eviously adopted by the Commission shall have the full for ce
713 and effect of law on the day this Compact becomes law in that State.
714 C. Any Participating State may withdraw fr om this Compact by enacting a
715 statute repeal ing the same.
716 1. A Participating State's withdrawal shall not take effect until one hundr ed
717 eighty (180) days after enactment of the r epealing statute. During this one hundr ed
718 eighty (180) day-period, all Compact Privileges that wer e in effect in the withdrawing
719 State and wer e granted to Licensees licensed in the withdrawing State shall rem ain in
720 effect. If any Licensee licensed in the withdrawing State is also licensed in another
721 Participating State or obtains a license in another Participating State within the one
722 hundr ed eighty (180) days, the Licensee's Compact Privileges in other Participating
723 States shall not be affected by the passage of the one hundred eighty (180) days.
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724 2. Wi thdrawal shall not affect the continuing req uire ment of the State Licensing
725 Board(s) of the withdrawing State to comply with the investigative, and Adverse Action
726 r eporting req uirements of this Compact prior to the effective date of withdrawal.
727 3. Upon the enactment of a statute withdrawing a State fr om this Compact, the
728 State shall immediately provi de notice of such withdrawal to all Licensees within that
729 State. Such withdrawing State shall continue to reco gnize all licenses granted pursuant
730 to this Compact for a minimum of one hundr ed eighty (180) days after the date of such
731 notice of withdrawal.
732 D. Nothing contained in this Compact shall be construed to invalidate or pr event
733 any Physician Assistant licensur e agr eement or other cooperative arrangement between
734 Participating States and between a Participating State and non-Participating State that
735 does not conflict with the pro visions of this Compact.
736 E. This Compact may be amended by the Participating States. No amendment
737 to this Compact shall become effective and binding upon any Participating State until it
738 is enacted materially in the same manner into the laws of all Participating States as
739 determined by the Commission.
740 SECTION 12. CONSTRUCTION AND SEVERABILITY
741 A. This Compact and the Commission's rulemaking authority shall be liberally
742 construed so as to effectuate the purposes, and the implementation and administration
743 of the Compact. Pr ovisions of the Compact expr essly authorizing or requi ring the
744 pr omulgation of Rules shall not be construed to limit the Commission's rulemaking
745 authority solely for those purposes.
746 B. The pr ovisions of this Compact shall be severable and if any phrase, clause,
747 sentence or provi sion of this Compact is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be
748 contrary to the constitution of any Participating State, a State seeking participation in
749 the Compact, or of the United States, or the applicability ther eof to any government,
750 agency , person or circ umstance is held to be unconstitutional by a court of competent
751 jurisdiction, the validity of the rem ainder of this Compact and the applicability ther eof
752 to any other government, agency , person or circu mstance shall not be affected ther eby .
753 C. Notwithstanding Section 12.B, the Commission may deny a State's
75 4 participation in the Compact or , in accordance with the requ irem ents of Section 10.B,
755 terminate a Participating State's participation in the Compact, if it determines that a
756 constitutional req uire ment of a Participating State is, or would be with r espect to a State
757 seeking to participate in the Compact, a material departure fr om the Compact.
758 Otherwise, if this Compact shall be held to be contrary to the constitution of any
759 Participating State, the Compact shall rem ain in full for ce and effect as to the rem aining
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760 Participating States and in full for ce and effect as to the Participating State affected as
761 to all severable matters.
762 SECTION 13. BINDING EFFECT OF COMP ACT
763 A. Nothing her ein pr events the enfor cement of any other law of a Participating
764 State that is not inconsistent with this Compact.
765 B. Any laws in a Participating State in conflict with this Compact are superseded
766 to the extent of the conflict.
767 C. All agreements between the Commission and the Participating States are
768 binding in accordance with their terms.
✔
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