1742428 Continuing education requirements for professional licenses issued by the Board of Barber & Cosmetology

DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER AND REGULATORY AFFAIRS

 

NOTICE OF FINAL RULEMAKING

 

The Director of the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, pursuant to the authority set forth in D.C. Official Code § 47-2853.10(a)(12)(2005 Repl.) and Mayor’s Order 2000-70, dated May 2, 2000, hereby gives notice of the adoption of amendments to chapter 37 (Barber and Cosmetology) of title 17 (Business, Occupations, and Professions) of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations.

 

This rulemaking establishes continuing education requirements for applicants seeking to renew or reinstate a professional license approved by the Board of Barber and Cosmetology and establishes standards and administrative procedures for the approval of continuing education programs.

 

A Notice of Proposed Rulemaking was published in the D.C. Register on August 12, 2011 (58 DCR 6947). No comments were received in response to the proposed rulemaking and no substantive changes have been made. A technical correction was made to § 3730.9 which involves replacing the term “title” with “chapter” so that it is clear where § 3308 is located.  This change does not have a substantive affect on the overall rulemaking.

 

These rules will take effect immediately upon publication of this notice in the D.C. Register.

 

Chapter 37, BARBER AND COSMETOLOGY, of title 17, BUSINESS, OCCUPATIONS, AND PROFESSIONS, of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations is amended as follows:

 

A new section 3730, CONTINUING EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS FOR LICENSEES, is added to read as follows:

3730                CONTINUING EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS FOR LICENSEES

3730.1             This section shall apply to all applicants for the renewal or reinstatement of a barber, cosmetology, or specialty cosmetology license, including Manager and Instructor licenses, except those applicants seeking first renewal of a license.

3730.2             A continuing education credit shall be valid only if it is part of a program or activity approved by the Board in accordance with § 3731. Licensees are responsible for ensuring that continuing education courses taken to satisfy the Board’s renewal or reinstatement requirements are Board certified or approved.

3730.3             An applicant for renewal of a license shall submit to the Board proof of having completed at least six (6) hours of credit in approved continuing education programs during the term of the license. Two (2) of these hours shall be in health, safety, and welfare subjects. Four (4) of these hours shall consist of general elective courses, as approved by the Board.

3730.4             Licensees who also hold equivalent licenses in another jurisdiction may, at the Board’s discretion, substitute continuing education credits completed in the other jurisdiction for the general elective continuing education requirements under this section if the licensee earned the continuing education credits during the two (2) year period proceeding the date that the licensee’s District license expires.

3730.5             The Board may approve educational offerings that include, but are not limited to, the following topics:

(a)        Courses related to the practice of barbering, cosmetology, and specialty cosmetology;

(b)        District laws and regulations;

(c)        Ethics and standards of professional practice;

(d)       Occupational health and safety;

(e)        HIV/AIDS and communicable and infectious disease control;

(f)        Product knowledge;

(g)        Business;

(h)        Management (Managers only); and

(i)                 Education or Instruction (Instructors only).

3730.6             Upon request by the Board, an applicant shall prove completion of required continuing education credits by submitting a certification of completion that includes the following:

(a)        The name and address of the sponsor of the program;

(b)        The name of the program, its location, a description of the subject matter covered, and the names of the instructors;

(c)        The dates on which the applicant attended the program;

(d)       The hours of credit claimed; and

(e)        A verification of completion with the signature and seal of the sponsor.

3730.7             An applicant for reinstatement of an expired license or for reinstatement of a suspended or revoked license shall submit proof pursuant to § 3730.3 of having completed all continuing education credits that the applicant would have been required to take per licensing cycle if the applicant’s license had not expired or had not been suspended or revoked.

3730.8             An applicant for the renewal of a license who fails to submit proof of having completed the continuing education requirements by or before the expiration date may renew the license within sixty (60) days after expiration by submitting proof pursuant to § 3730.6 and by paying the required late fee. Upon renewal, the Board shall deem the applicant to have possessed a valid license during the period between the expiration of the license and its renewal.

3730.9             If an applicant for the renewal of a license fails to submit proof of completion of continuing education requirements within sixty (60) days after the expiration of the applicant’s license, the license shall be deemed to have lapsed on the date of expiration, and the applicant shall be required to apply for reinstatement of the expired license pursuant to § 3308 of this chapter.

3730.10           The Board may grant an extension of the sixty (60) day period to renew after expiration if the applicant’s failure to submit proof of completion was for good cause. For purposes of this subsection, “good cause” includes proof of the following:

(a)        Serious and protracted illness of the applicant who submits a doctor’s statement verifying the illness;

(b)        The death or serious and protracted illness of a member of the applicant’s immediate family, which death or illness resulted in the applicant’s inability to complete the continuing education requirements within the specified time. For the purposes of this subsection, the term “immediate family” means the applicant’s spouse and any parent, brother, sister, or child of the applicant and the spouse of any such parent, brother, sister, or child;

(c)        The applicant, due to age (seventy (70) years of age or older), is unable to complete the requirements within the specified time; or

(d)       Active military service.

A new section 3731, APPROVED CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAMS, is added to read as follows:

3731                                APPROVED CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAMS

3731.1             The Board, in its discretion, may approve continuing education programs that contribute to the growth in professional competence of a barber, cosmetologist, or specialty cosmetologist, and that meet the other requirements of this section.

3731.2             Unless the school or organization offering the program or course is exempt from the accreditation requirements of the Educational Licensure Commission, the school or organization shall obtain certification or licensure from the Educational Licensure Commission.

3731.3             Schools or organizations accredited by the Educational Licensure Commission that offer continuing education programs or courses shall be considered certified for the purposes of this section.

3731.4                          The Board may approve the following types of continuing education programs, if the programs meet the requirements of § 3731.7:

(a)        A seminar or workshop;

(b)        An educational program given at a conference, institute, academy, or trade show;

(c)        An undergraduate or graduate course given at a college or university, including community or junior colleges; or

(d)       A distance learning course that has been approved by the Board pursuant to § 3731.8.

3731.5             A sponsor of a continuing education program shall submit a completed application to the Board at least ninety (90) days prior to the date of the presentation of each program for which the sponsor seeks approval.

3731.6             A sponsor of a continuing education program shall have the burden of verifying whether the Board, pursuant to this section, has approved a program prior to advertising the program as approved by the Board.

3731.7             In order to be approved by the Board for continuing education credit, a program shall meet the following requirements:

(a)        The program shall contribute to the professional competence of participants;

(b)        The program shall be directly related to increasing the participants’ knowledge and skills in the practice of barbering, cosmetology, or specialty cosmetology;

(c)        The stated program objectives shall specify the level of knowledge the participant should have attained, or the level of competency the participant should be able to demonstrate, upon completing the program;

(d)       The program shall be developed by persons qualified in the subject matter and in instructional design;

(e)        The program shall be instructed by an individual approved by the Board;

(f)        The program content shall be current in its subject matter;

(g)        All providers shall have a system of written evaluation by students in which the program and the instructor are evaluated at the end of each offering. The evaluation form shall accompany the application. Providers shall keep the completed evaluation forms on each program and instructor for four (4) years from the end of the offering; and

(h)        The sponsor shall agree to allow the Board to conduct an audit of the written student evaluations at any time within four (4) years of the time that a given program was offered.

3731.8             Distance learning courses may be approved as follows:

(a)        Distance learning courses may be certified by the Board if they provide the Board with appropriate documentation that National Association of Barber Boards of America (NABBA), National Coalition of Estheticians, Manufacturers/ Distributors & Associations (NCEA), or National-Interstate Council of State Boards of Cosmetology, Inc. (NIC) certification is in effect, that the distance learning course meets the content requirements of § 3731.7, and that the course meets the following additional requirements of the Board:

(1)        Distance learning courses shall not include pre-licensing education courses;

(2)        Distance learning courses shall only include elective continuing education courses;

(3)        Distance learning courses shall be a mastery-based format defined as follows:

(A)       Having at least one (1) objective;

(B)       Having a method for measuring student progress;

(C)       Having delivery formats that are interactive, which may include computer based instruction via CD-ROM or the Internet; and

(D)       Having a delivery format that does not deliver course material in a passive, text only format consisting primarily of questions similar to those found on the licensing examination;

(4)        Distance learning courses shall be equivalent to in-class continuous instruction and attendance formats;

(b)        Approval under this section shall be revoked immediately in writing should certification by NABBA, NCEA, or NIC be discontinued for any reason;

(c)        The distance-learning provider shall inform the Board immediately if certification by NABBA, NCEA, or NIC is discontinued for any reason; and

(d)       A student shall complete the distance learning course within three (3) months of the date of enrollment in the course.

3731.9             The Board may approve programs with a minimum of one (1) instructional hour.

3731.10           Any significant changes in program content or program instructor shall be submitted to the Board in writing at least thirty (30) days prior to the change for Board approval.

3731.11           Approval of a program or course by the Board shall continue until the end of the two (2) year licensing period during which approval is given.

3731.12           A program sponsor shall issue a certificate of successful completion to a licensee who completes the program. A program sponsor shall not issue a certificate to a licensee who fails to complete the entire program.

3731.13           Within ten (10) days after the completion of the continuing education program, the program sponsor shall forward to the Board a list of all participants, which shall include each participant’s license number, name, and address.

3731.14           A program sponsor shall retain records of the following information:

(a)        The outline of the program;

(b)        The program date(s);

(c)        The program location(s);

(d)       The instructor(s); and

(e)        The number of instructional hours.

3731.15           A program sponsor shall retain a copy of the information required by § 3731.12 and 3731.13 for a period of at least five (5) years of the time that a given program was offered.

3731.16           A sponsor of a program that has been approved by the Board for one (1) license period shall reapply for approval at least ninety (90) days prior to the beginning of the next license renewal period.

3731.17           A sponsor of a continuing education program that has been approved by the Board may apply for renewal of that program by submitting a renewal application and, in alternate renewal cycles, providing an updated syllabus outlining the course content.

3731.18           Sponsors or schools offering continuing education programs shall notify the Board in writing within thirty (30) days, if certification by NABBA, NCEA, or NIC ceases.

Section 3799, DEFINITIONS, is amended as follows:

 

Subsection 3799.1 is amended as follows:

The term and definition of “distance learning” are added to read as follows:

Distance learning – Courses in which instruction does not take place in a traditional classroom setting, but through other media where instructor and student are separated by distance and sometimes by time.

The term and definition of “instructional hour” are added to read as follows:

Instructional hour – An instructional hour is equal to fifty (50) minutes of each sixty (60) minute segment and includes time devoted to tests that are considered part of the course.

The term and definition of “NABBA” are added to read as follows:

NABBA – National Association of Barber Boards of America.

The term and definition of “NIC” are added to read as follows:

NIC – National-Interstate Council of State Boards of Cosmetology, Inc.