TSBEMFT OCTOBER 2020 UPDATE

On Wednesday, October 21, Governor Abbott's office officially announced the appointment of three new members to the Texas Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists, which licenses and regulates marriage and family therapists in Texas.

TAMFT is pleased to share that Jeanene Smith and Russ Bartee, both longtime TAMFT members, leaders, and advocates for MFTs in Texas, were appointed as professional members of the board. They have both worked tirelessly on behalf of TAMFT in the recent past, and they are well-acquainted with the issues facing LMFTs and the general public in Texas. Daniel Parrish was also appointed to the board as a public member. Furthermore, current board member, Lisa Merchant, also a TAMFT member, has been appointed chairperson of TSBEFMT. See the news announcement here.

The Texas State Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists also had their quarterly meeting on Friday, October 19 via Zoom. TAMFT has included a short report here, but two of the highlights are noted here:

• The BHEC website continues to grow and contains more resources for licensees and the public. 
  • One of the more useful BHEC now maintains a web page about applying for a license and the current timelines of application processing. Applicants can consult the chart of current timelines, rather than waiting in the dark or making unnecessary calls to the TSBEMFT office.
  • Another benefit is a new consolidated LMFT rulebook that is easier to download and reference.
• There continues to be much discussion about removing AAMFT Approved Supervisor Candidates from automatic approval as a Board-Approved Supervisor. (Full AAMFT-Approved Supervisors will be unaffected.) This is due to a loophole caused by the fact that AAMFT does not actively monitor the progress of Supervisor Candidates, meaning that an individual could begin the candidacy process but never complete or even progress in the process, thereby failing to meet the basic board requirements for supervisors.

While TAMFT is not affiliated in any way with TSBEMFT, we do our best to stay abreast of the actions of the board and offer public comment on those actions. Let us know if you have any specific questions about the report or the actions of the board, and we will do our best to answer your question or point you in the right direction to find an answer.