Section 4996.23.

The experience required by subdivision (c) of Section 4996.2 shall meet the following criteria:

(a) All persons registered with the board on and after January 1, 2002, shall have at least 3,200 hours of post-master's degree supervised experience providing clinical social work services as permitted by Section 4996.9. At least 1,700 hours shall be gained under the supervision of a licensed clinical social worker. The remaining required supervised experience may be gained under the supervision of a licensed mental health professional acceptable to the board as defined by a regulation adopted by the board. This experience shall consist of the following:

(1) A minimum of 2,000 hours in clinical psychosocial diagnosis, assessment, and treatment, including psychotherapy or counseling.

(2) A maximum of 1,200 hours in client-centered advocacy, consultation, evaluation, and research.

(3) Of the 2,000 clinical hours required in paragraph (1), no less than 750 hours shall be face-to-face individual or group psychotherapy provided to clients in the context of clinical social work services.

(4) A minimum of two years of supervised experience is required to be obtained over a period of not less than 104 weeks and shall have been gained within the six years immediately preceding the date on which the application for licensure was filed.

(5) Experience shall not be credited for more than 40 hours in any week.

(b) "Supervision" means responsibility for, and control of, the quality of clinical social work services being provided. Consultation or peer discussion shall not be considered to be supervision.

(c) (1) Prior to the commencement of supervision, a supervisor shall comply with all requirements enumerated in Section 1870 of Title 16 of the California Code of Regulations and shall sign under penalty of perjury the "Responsibility Statement for Supervisors of an Associate Clinical Social Worker" form.

(2) Supervised experience shall include at least one hour of direct supervisor contact for a minimum of 104 weeks. For purposes of this subdivision, "one hour of direct supervisor contact" means one hour per week of face-to-face contact on an individual basis or two hours of face-to-face contact in a group conducted within the same week as the hours claimed.

(3) An associate shall receive at least one additional hour of direct supervisor contact for every week in which more than 10 hours of face-to-face psychotherapy is performed in each setting in which experience is gained. No more than five hours of supervision, whether individual or group, shall be credited during any single week.

(4) Group supervision shall be provided in a group of not more than eight supervisees and shall be provided in segments lasting no less than one continuous hour.

(5) Of the 104 weeks of required supervision, 52 weeks shall be individual supervision, and of the 52 weeks of required individual supervision, not less than 13 weeks shall be supervised by a licensed clinical social worker.

(6) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), an associate clinical social worker working for a governmental entity, school, college, or university, or an institution that is both a nonprofit and charitable institution, may obtain the required weekly direct supervisor contact via live two-way videoconferencing. The supervisor shall be responsible for ensuring that client confidentiality is preserved.

(d) The supervisor and the associate shall develop a supervisory plan that describes the goals and objectives of supervision. These goals shall include the ongoing assessment of strengths and limitations and the assurance of practice in accordance with the laws and regulations. The associate shall submit to the board the initial original supervisory plan upon application for licensure.

(e) Experience shall only be gained in a setting that meets both of the following:

(1) Lawfully and regularly provides clinical social work, mental health counseling, or psychotherapy.

(2) Provides oversight to ensure that the associate's work at the setting meets the experience and supervision requirements set forth in this chapter and is within the scope of practice for the profession as defined in Section 4996.9.

(f) Experience shall not be gained until the applicant has been registered as an associate clinical social worker.

(g) Employment in a private practice as defined in subdivision (h) shall not commence until the applicant has been registered as an associate clinical social worker.

(h) A private practice setting is a setting that is owned by a licensed clinical social worker, a licensed marriage and family therapist, a licensed psychologist, a licensed physician and surgeon, or a professional corporation of any of those licensed professions.

(i) If volunteering, the associate shall provide the board with a letter from his or her employer verifying his or her voluntary status upon application for licensure.

(j) If employed, the associate shall provide the board with copies of his or her W-2 tax forms for each year of experience claimed upon application for licensure.

(k) While an associate may be either a paid employee or volunteer, employers are encouraged to provide fair remuneration to associates.

(l) An associate shall not do the following:

(1) Receive any remuneration from patients or clients and shall only be paid by his or her employer.

(2) Have any proprietary interest in the employer's business.

(3) Lease or rent space, pay for furnishings, equipment, or supplies, or in any other way pay for the obligations of his or her employer.

(m) An associate, whether employed or volunteering, may obtain supervision from a person not employed by the associate's employer if that person has signed a written agreement with the employer to take supervisory responsibility for the associate's social work services.

(n) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, associates and applicants for examination shall receive a minimum of one hour of supervision per week for each setting in which he or she is working.

(Amended by Stats. 2010, Ch. 653, Sec. 54. Effective January 1, 2011.)