37-1-139. Definition — joint duties of boards — sexual offender evaluator license endorsement — rulemaking. (1) As used in this section, “boards” means the following boards jointly:

Terms Used In Montana Code 37-1-139

  • Board: means a licensing board created under Title 2, chapter 15, that regulates a profession or occupation and that is administratively attached to the department as provided in 2-15-121. See Montana Code 37-1-130
  • License: means permission granted under a chapter of this title to engage in or practice at a specific level in a profession or occupation, regardless of the specific term used for the permission, including permit, certificate, recognition, or registration. See Montana Code 37-1-130
  • Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201

(a)board of behavioral health as established in 2-15-1744;

(b)board of medical examiners as established in 2-15-1731;

(c)board of nursing as established in 2-15-1734; and

(d)board of psychologists as established in 2-15-1741.

(2)The boards shall:

(a)jointly establish, develop rules, and maintain standards, consistent with appropriate national standards for evaluation and treatment of sexual offenders, and guidelines for evidence-based assessment, evaluation, treatment, and behavioral monitoring of sexual offenders, including the transition into community-based treatment from a prison setting;

(b)create a subcommittee to draft requirements for sexual offender evaluators. The subcommittee must include one member of each board and two licensees of the boards listed in subsection (1) who have been engaged in the practice of evaluating sexual offenders during the last 4 years.

(c)require sexual offender evaluators to use the following levels of risk designations for a sexual offender:

(i)level 1, the risk of a repeat sexual offense is low;

(ii)level 2, the risk of a repeat sexual offense is moderate; or

(iii)level 3, the risk of a repeat sexual offense is high, there is a threat to public safety, and the sexual offender evaluator believes that the offender is a sexually violent predator; and

(d)using recommendations from the subcommittee, set and enforce educational and experiential requirements for licensees of each of the boards to obtain a license endorsement as a sexual offender evaluator. A person may not perform sexual offender evaluations for purposes of this section without first obtaining a license endorsement.

(3)The requirements set pursuant to subsection (2)(d) must include that an evaluator:

(a)is a professional licensed in Montana or in another state as:

(i)a physician;

(ii)an advanced practice registered nurse;

(iii)a clinical psychologist;

(iv)a clinical social worker;

(v)a clinical professional counselor; or

(vi)a marriage and family therapist;

(b)has 2,000 documented hours of supervised experience in the evaluation and treatment of sexual offenders, at least 400 hours of which are face-to-face evaluations of sexual offenders or therapy sessions with sexual offenders. The provisions of this subsection (3)(b) do not apply when an evaluator is renewing the endorsement.

(c)has completed at least two sexual offender evaluations under supervision;

(d)is a full or clinical member of at least one relevant national professional organization that has ethics of practice for sexual offender assessment and treatment; and

(e)must renew the license endorsement concurrent with the evaluator’s professional license.

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