We, the Public Policy Committee of the Virginia Association for Behavior Analysis, are of the opinion that the Regulations Governing the Practice of Behavior Analysis should be amended.  First, they should more similarly conform to other professions under the Board of Medicine. Second, to protect consumer safety, they should clarify the qualifications of organizations who can nationally certify someone who is to become licensed as follows.   This is to best protect the consumer of these services.

Certifications and other credentials should be accepted as evidence of qualification for licensure to practice behavior analysis in this state only if they are issued by a non-profit credentialing organization that has all of the following features and safeguards:

• A mission to protect consumers of behavior analysis services by establishing professional standards of practice
• Published, publicly available bylaws, standards, and procedures
• A governing body (typically a Board of Directors) whose voting members are
  • Unpaid
  • Credentialed (certified and/or licensed) behavior analysts representing the range of practitioners in the field and 1-2 consumers of behavior analytic services
  • Selected or elected in accordance with procedures specified in the bylaws
  • Independent of any other organizations or entities in making decisions about the organization’s credentialing programs
• Key leadership personnel who are credentialed professional behavior analysts
• A well-established track record in managing credentialing programs for practitioners of behavior analysis
• Credentialing programs that are accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) of the Institute for Credentialing Excellence or American National Standards Institute. Accreditation by the NCCA is preferred because that organization
  • Was the first to develop standards for professional certification programs
  • From its inception in 1977, designed its standards to (a) ensure the health, welfare, and safety of the public; (b) to be consistent with the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing; and (c) to be applicable to all professions and industries
  • Requires certifying bodies to demonstrate that they are free of undue influence from any other body and are autonomous in making decisions about certification activities
  • has been accrediting professional credentialing programs in behavior analysis and similar professions for many years. 
• Requirements and standards for each credential that have been derived from job (or occupational) analysis studies that
  • Involved subject matter experts in behavior analysis and psychometrics (test construction) and large numbers of practitioners of behavior analysis  
  • Were designed to identify the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) required to practice behavior analysis generally, not with any specific client or service recipient population(s) or in any specific settings
  • Were conducted in accordance with standards and procedures that are widely accepted and followed by other similar professions
  • Resulted in a comprehensive list of KSAs (often called a task list) that is publicly available 
  • Are published and available to the public
• Credentialing requirements set by the organization’s governing body that include
  • Completion of a degree or degrees
  • Successful completion of specified coursework in behavior analysis
  • Successful completion of specified experiential training in delivering behavior analytic services to clients under the supervision of credentialed professional behavior analysts
  • Passage of an objective, valid, and reliable professional examination in behavior analysis that is derived from the applicable job analysis study and managed in ways that assure the security of exam items, administrations, and results
  • Continuing education in behavior analysis to maintain the credential
  • Adherence to ethical and disciplinary standards that have been developed by professional behavior analysts, are publicly available, and are enforced by the organization in accordance with publicly available procedures

Third, the regulations must address the time gap between certification and licensure and allow for practice under supervision while certificants are waiting for the paperwork to be completed.  Finally, it is necessary to add that licensees must maintain certification in order to renew their license, similar to other professions. 

We thank you for your time and dedication to the safety of consumers who receive services provided by licensed behavior analysts and licensed assistant behavior analysts.