The 2023 TASP Legislative Platform

The 88th Legislative Session has begun! The official TASP Legislative Platform for 2023 has been approved and adopted by the executive board. Based on current state and national issues, input from membership, and following our vision and mission statement, TASP will be working with our legislative committee and allied organizations to advocate for:

  • Increased access to school mental health services
  • Improved access to school psychological services
  • Promotion of best practices for safe and supportive schools
  • Advancing social justice for all students

Read more of the full legislative platform now so that you all can not only see what your state organization is up to, but so that you can use it as a tool as you engage in your own advocacy efforts! We are also tracking this updated list of proposed bills. Stay tuned in as there may be opportunities for you to contact your elected legislators to advocate for school psychologists and the children and youth we serve through calls to action this year!

Report from TSBEP Meeting, February 10, 2022

The Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists met for a regularly called meeting on Thursday, February 10, 2022 via Zoom. The agenda and board packets from the meeting with materials for the board members can be found at this link. The meeting was recorded and will be available for viewing later on the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council's YouTube Channel. Two main items relevant to school psychologists in Texas were discussed. 1) The TSBEP's Guidelines for the Practice of Telepsychology were referred to the Board's Rules Committee for updating. Those of us who use this form of practice should review the guidelines and stay informed about developments. 2) As you will read on pages 46-68 of the Board's packet, TASP petitioned the Board for a 463.9 rule change which would specify that the minimum educational requirement to apply for the LSSP is a specialist degree (defined as a graduate degree with 60 or more hours). This is an important issue because the current rules state that someone with a degree from an APA-approved program is eligible to apply for the LSSP, and APA recently adopted standards which will permit master's-level programs to apply for APA accreditation. You're probably seeing the issue now, but this presents the real possibility that APA could approve a master's program that requires only 36 or 48 hours, and TSBEP rules would permit graduates of that program to be license-eligible with significantly fewer credit hours than LSSPs are currently required to have completed. TASP's petition for this rule change was presented by TASP board member and Texas' NASP Delegate, Ashley Arnold, who comprehensively addressed the issue. However, the TSBEP unfortunately elected to take no action on the petition at this time. Actions have already been taken to prepare our membership for public comment to further highlight the concerns at the next TSBEP meeting on May 19, 2022. Stay tuned to your email and the TASP social media pages for your call to action.

TASP's Advocacy Tools

 

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Contact Information:

If you would like any additional resources or assistance in your advocacy efforts, or if you are interested in helping with TASP's advocacy efforts, contact GPR chair, Amanda Afifi, at [email protected] or TASP President, Cassandra Hulsey, at [email protected].