SB 816: Professions and vocations.

(1)Existing law, the Vocational Nursing Practice Act, establishes in the Department of Consumer Affairs a Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians of the State of California, which is charged with various licensing, regulatory, and disciplinary functions related to vocational nursing. Existing law, effective until January 1, 2025, sets forth an approval process for a vocational nursing school or program and authorizes the board to reduce the continuing approval fees, by no more than ¹/₂ of the established fee, for a program that experiences a reduction in state funding that directly leads to a reduction in enrollment capacity.

Existing law, the Psychiatric Technicians Law, also grants the board authority to license and regulate psychiatric technicians. That law, effective until January 1, 2025, similarly establishes an approval process for a school or program for psychiatric technicians and authorizes the board to reduce the continuing approval fees, by no more than ¹/₂ of the established fee, for a program that experiences a reduction in state funding that directly leads to a reduction in enrollment capacity.

This bill would instead authorize the board to reduce the continuing approval fees in the above-described circumstances for a program that experiences a reduction in enrollment capacity that directly leads to a reduction in state funding. The bill would revise related provisions to require the board to require a program to provide documentation for purposes of issuing the fee reduction.

(2)Existing law, the Psychology Licensing Law, imposes various fees on applicants for licensure and on licensees, including an application fee for registration as a psychologist of $50, a biennial renewal fee for registration as a psychologist of $400, an initial psychologist licensing fee in an amount not to exceed the renewal fee, an application fee for registration as a psychological associate of $75, an annual renewal fee for registration of a psychological associate of no more than $75, and a delinquency fee for each license type not to exceed $150. Existing law requires a licensed psychologist who holds an inactive license to pay a biennial renewal fee of no more than $40.

This bill would increase various fees imposed under the Psychology Licensing Law. In this regard, the bill would increase the application fee for registration as a psychologist to $236, the biennial renewal fee for registration as a psychologist to $795, the initial psychologist licensing fee to $231, the application fee for registration as a psychological associate to $424, and the annual renewal fee for registration of a psychological associate to $224. The bill would increase the maximum delinquency fee for each of these license types to $397.50. The bill would also establish an application fee in the amount of $127 for the California Psychology Law and Ethics Examination and a fee in the amount of $184 for Fingerprint Hard Card Processing for Out-of-State Applicants. The bill would increase the biennial renewal fee that a licensed psychologist with an inactive license must pay to $221.

(3)Existing law, until January 1, 2027, provides a comprehensive scheme for the certification and regulation of interior designers. Under existing law, a Certified Interior Designer may obtain a stamp from an interior design organization that includes a number that identifies and bears the name of the designer, and that stamp certifies that the Certified Interior Designer has provided the interior design organization with evidence of passage of an interior design examination and completion of certain interior design education or experience requirements.

This bill would, instead, establish the California Council for Interior Design Certification to carry out duties and responsibilities governing the stamp certification and regulation of interior designers. The bill would authorize the council to issue certifications pursuant to these provisions to applicants who provide satisfactory evidence of compliance with specified education, experience, and examination requirements. The bill would identify the individual as either a Certified Interior Designer or Certified Commercial Interior Designer if the designer has completed certain additional interior design courses and examination requirements for the commercial designation, as determined by the council.

This bill would authorize the council to adopt bylaws, rules, and procedures and establish reasonable application fees, renewal fees, and other fees related to the regulatory cost of providing services and carrying out the councils duties. The bill would make other related and conforming changes to these provisions.

(4)Existing law, the Pharmacy Law, establishes the licensure and regulation of the practice of pharmacy, including, among others, pharmacies, wholesalers or third-party logistics providers, nonresident wholesalers or third-party logistic providers, centralized hospital packing pharmacies, sterile compounding pharmacies, and paramedics. Existing law specifies the fees for issuance or renewal of licenses issued pursuant to the Pharmacy Law, including, among others, pharmacy licenses, outsourcing facility licenses, and centralized hospital packaging licenses.

This bill would reorganize and revise the fee schedule for specified licenses issued pursuant to the Pharmacy Law to both increase and decrease the amounts charged for the original issuance and renewal of those licenses, as well as for temporary licenses. The bill would also establish the fee schedule for the application and licensing fees of remote dispensing site pharmacies. The bill would make these provisions operative on January 1, 2025.

(5)Existing law, the Veterinary Medicine Practice Act, provides for the regulation of the practice of veterinary medicine by the Veterinary Medical Board in the Department of Consumer Affairs. Existing law requires the board to adopt regulations establishing animal health care tasks that may be performed by licensed veterinarians, registered veterinary technicians, or veterinary assistants. Existing law establishes a process by which a veterinary assistant may apply for a controlled substance permit. Existing law prohibits the board from issuing a veterinary assistant controlled substance permit to any applicant with a state or federal felony controlled substance conviction. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for any person to violate or aid or abet in the violation of the act.

This bill would delete the prohibition on the board issuing a veterinary assistant controlled substance permit to an applicant with a conviction, as described above. By expanding the application of the act, the violation of which is a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(6)Existing law establishes the California Board of Accountancy, which is within the Department of Consumer Affairs, and requires the board to license and regulate accountants in this state. Existing law imposes various fees on applicants for licensure as a certified public accountant and on certified public accountant licensees, including an application fee for a certified public accountant certificate in an amount not to exceed $250 and a biennial renewal fee for each permit to engage in the practice of public accountancy in an amount not to exceed $280. Existing law imposes a fee in an amount not to exceed $250 to each applicant for registration as a partnership or professional corporation. Existing law credits all moneys received by the board to the Accountancy Fund and continuously appropriates all money in that fund derived from fees.

This bill would increase various fees, including the application fee for a certified public accountant certificate to $700. The bill would adjust and increase the biennial renewal fee for each permit to engage in the practice of public accountancy that expires after June 30, 2024, to $340 for a certified public accountant and $400 for a partnership or professional corporation. The bill would adjust and increase the biennial renewal fee for each permit to engage in the practice of public accountancy that expires after June 30, 2026, to $400 for a certified public accountant and $520 for a partnership or professional corporation. The bill would increase the fee imposed on an applicant for registration as a partnership or professional corporation to no less than $250, but no more than $2,000. By increasing the fees deposited in a continuously appropriated fund, this bill would make an appropriation.

(7)Existing law establishes the California Architects Board within the Department of Consumer Affairs, and sets forth its powers and duties relating to the licensing and regulation of landscape architects, including the authority to issue licenses for the practice of landscape architecture. Existing law imposes various fees on applicants for licensure as a landscape architect and on landscape architect licensees, including an application fee not to exceed $100, a fee for the examination for a license to practice landscape architecture in an amount not to exceed the actual cost to the board to administer each exam, a fee not to exceed $400 for an original license, a fee not to exceed $50 for a duplicate license, and a renewal fee not to exceed $400.

This bill would increase the above-described fees imposed on landscape architect applicants and licensees. In this regard, the bill would impose an application fee of $100 and a fee for the California Supplemental Examination of not less than $350. The bill would authorize the board to increase the examination fee by regulation up to $400. The bill would increase the fee for an original license to $700. The bill would authorize the board to increase the fee by regulation up to $800. The bill would increase the fee for a duplicate license to $300 and would increase the renewal fee to be not less than $700. The bill would authorize the board to increase the original license fee by regulation up to $800.

(8)Existing law requires a person who weighs, measures, or counts a commodity and issues a statement or memorandum of the weight, measure, or count that is used as the basis for either the purchase or sale of that commodity or charge for service, to obtain a license as a weighmaster from the Department of Food and Agriculture, and imposes an annual license fee and various other requirements on weighmasters. Existing law, until January 1, 2024, requires a recycler or junk dealer who is an applicant for a new weighmaster license or a renewal of a weighmaster license to furnish specified additional information on the application, and requires a weighmaster who is a junk dealer or recycler to pay an additional annual fee of $500 to the department for each location at which the weighmaster operates, as specified. Existing law provides for license fees collected pursuant to these provisions to be deposited in the Department of Food and Agriculture Fund and continuously appropriated for the administration and enforcement of these provisions.

This bill would extend the operation of the requirements to furnish the additional application information and to pay the additional annual fee to January 1, 2028. By extending the collection of a fee deposited in a continuously appropriated fund, this bill would make an appropriation.

(9)This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 5134 of the Business and Professions Code proposed by SB 887 to be operative only if this bill and SB 887 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.

(10)The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.