03/13/1997 01:33 PM Senate L&C

         SB  92 BOARD OF VETERINARY EXAMINERS; LICENSE                        
                                                                              
 CHAIRMAN LEMAN announced  SB 92  to be up for consideration.                  
                                                                               
  MS. ANNETTE KREITZER,  Staff to Senator Leman, said she tried to             
 come up with language that reflected the desires of the Committee             
 which would require amending 08.981.65 (Qualifications for a                  
 license) and 08.981.84 (Licensure by credentials).  After reviewing           
 her memo, Ms. Reardon and Mr. Welker noted one item that is a                 
 policy question for the Committee - whether or not the State is               
 going to require the CCT and the NBE exam for credentialed                    
 applicants.                                                                   
                                                                               
 Right now section 2 says that they pass the written exam of the               
 State and pass the practical examination of skills, but section 3,            
 Licensure by credential under the amendment, only includes State              
 written or practical exam, she said.  The question is are                     
 credential applicants being given the choice of passing either the            
 Alaskan written exam or the CCT, but not both.                                
                                                                               
  CHAIRMAN LEMAN  said he thought the issue was that the Board might           
 require it, but the concern is that it might be too restrictive.              
 He said that existing statutes require applicants from the United             
 States to be a graduate of an accredited veterinary school.  MS.              
 KREITZER added, or pass the NBE Committee's Education Commission              
 for Foreign Veterinary Graduates.  The current statute has an "or."           
                                                                               
 CHAIRMAN LEMAN said in Engineering there is an option for people              
 who do not graduate from an accredited school.  Although he                   
 believes it is highly unlikely that anyone would fall in that                 
 category, but he thought it unwise to preclude it in case someone             
 wanted to teach themselves or have alternate training - as long as            
 they can pass the practical exams and do everything else that shows           
 they are qualified to practice as a veterinarian.  He is not                  
 opposed to having certain restrictions for the foreign applicants             
 so they can demonstrate that they are at least qualified to sit for           
 the exam.                                                                     
                                                                               
  SENATOR MACKIE  asked if there were three ways to be a veterinarian          
 under the new language; one, to have graduated from an accredited             
 school, two, to have passed the Education Commission on Foreign               
 Veterinary Graduates Certification process; or three, to have                 
 passed the NBE.  MS. KREITZER replied that that was her                       
 understanding.                                                                
                                                                               
  CHAIRMAN LEMAN  said he wanted to correct their understanding.  He           
 said there are two provisions.  The third one Senator Mackie listed           
 was an "and" provision.                                                       
                                                                               
  SENATOR KELLY  asked if you are an American and have graduated from          
 an accredited American veterinary school, do you still have to take           
 a test.  CHAIRMAN LEMAN answered yes.                                         
                                                                               
  MR. RANDY WELKER,  Legislative Audit, clarified that section two             
 addresses if you are trying to come into Alaska and get your                  
 initial license   to be a veterinarian.  You must have graduated from         
 an accredited school or have passed the Foreign Veterinary                  
 Graduates examination and then have satisfied the other                       
 requirements which are the State written exam and a practical exam            
 (CCT which is also written).                                                  
                                                                               
 MS. KREITZER interjected that passing the NBE is one of the four              
 requirements of the foreign test and this is why the language was             
 changed to the "certification process."                                       
                                                                               
 MR. WELKER continued saying that section three's proposed change              
 says if you are licensed in another jurisdiction and you want to              
 get licensed in Alaska, right now, the way the amendment is worded,           
 you would have to have the same as the other, plus satisfy 2, 3, 4,           
 and 5.  That takes the NBE out of the equation for licensed by                
 credentials.  There is nothing in there saying a graduate from an             
 accredited school has to have passed that test.  The law they are             
 trying to amend says that to come in, you have to have been                   
 licensed under standards that were equivalent to or greater than              
 the State's at the time you were initially licensed.                          
                                                                               
 SENATOR MACKIE asked if they currently have to do a State written             
 or practical exam.  MR. WELKER replied no; that right now the law             
 says the standards they have to meet when they were licensed                  
 originally in their state have to be equivalent to the requirements           
 in Alaska at the time they were licensed in the other state.                  
 SENATOR MACKIE asked if the proposed language makes the                       
 requirements more stringent.  MR. WELKER replied that it was more             
 stringent, but that was in response to the fact that the Board is             
 headed towards requiring the CCT of all applicants whether they had           
 passed it before or not.                                                      
                                                                               
  CHAIRMAN LEMAN  said he was hesitant to make policy changes when             
 they didn't fully understand the impacts of those changes.  SENATOR           
 MACKIE said he was having a hard time following, also, and wanted             
 the amendment presented as a CS.  CHAIRMAN LEMAN said they would do           
 that and bring it up at another meeting.