54 N.J.R. 407(a)

VOLUME 54, ISSUE 5, MARCH 7, 2022
RULE PROPOSALS

Reporter
54 N.J.R. 407(a)
NJ - New Jersey Register  >  2022  >  MARCH  >  MARCH 7, 2022  >  RULE PROPOSALS  >  LAW AND PUBLIC SAFETY -- DIVISION OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS

Interested Persons Statement 

INTERESTED PERSONS 
Interested persons may submit comments, information or arguments concerning any of the rule proposals in this issue until the date indicated in the proposal. Submissions and any inquiries about submissions should be addressed to the agency officer specified for a particular proposal. 
The required minimum period for comment concerning a proposal is 30 days. A proposing agency may extend the 30-day comment period to accommodate public hearings or to elicit greater public response to a proposed new rule or amendment. Most notices of proposal include a 60-day comment period, in order to qualify the notice for an exception to the rulemaking calendar requirements of  N.J.S.A. 52:14B-3. An extended comment deadline will be noted in the heading of a proposal or appear in a subsequent notice in the Register. 
At the close of the period for comments, the proposing agency may thereafter adopt a proposal, without change, or with changes not in violation of the rulemaking procedures at      N.J.A.C. 1:30-6.3. The adoption becomes effective upon publication in the Register of a notice of adoption, unless otherwise indicated in the adoption notice. Promulgation in the New Jersey Register establishes a new or amended rule as an official part of the New Jersey Administrative Code. 
Agency


LAW AND PUBLIC SAFETY > DIVISION OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS > STATE BOARD OF SOCIAL WORK EXAMINERS

Administrative Code Citation


Proposed New Rule: N.J.A.C. 13:44G-4.7
Text

  Abandonment of Application for Licensure or Certification
Authorized By: State Board of Social Work Examiners, Maureen Braun Scalera, MSW, LCSW, Chair.
Authority: N.J.S.A. 45:15BB-11.
Calendar Reference: See Summary below for explanation of exception to calendar requirement.
Proposal Number: PRN 2022-032.
Submit comments by May 6, 2022, to:

Edie Nugent, Acting Executive Director
State Board of Social Work Examiners
124 Halsey Street
PO Box 45033
Newark, New Jersey 07101

or electronically at:   http://www.njconsumeraffairs.gov/Proposals/Pages/default.aspx.

The agency proposal follows:
Summary
The Board of Social Work Examiners (Board) proposes a new rule that would permit the Board to close an application that has not been completed within one year after the last notice of deficiency was sent to the applicant or where the individual applying for the license or certificate has not submitted to the Board any documentation in furtherance of the application since January 1, 2018. A number of individuals have applied to the Board for a license or certificate as a licensed clinical social worker, licensed social worker, or certified social worker, but have not submitted all of the information and documentation required to obtain a license or certificate. Many of these applications have been open for years as the Board waits for the applicants to provide the missing information or documentation. This imposes an administrative burden on the Board.  
The Board proposes new N.J.A.C. 13:44G-4.7 to establish standards as to when the Board may consider an application for licensure or certification abandoned. An application for a license or certificate will be deemed abandoned if an applicant has not submitted all of the information and documentation required to obtain a license, and one year has elapsed since the last notice was sent to the applicant regarding the deficiencies in the application. Additionally, an application for a license or certificate will be deemed abandoned if the applicant has not submitted to the Board all of the information and documentation required to obtain a license and has not submitted any documentation in furtherance of the application since January 1, 2018. The rule will require the Board to include in its deficiency letters information advising applicants that applications will be deemed abandoned if required information is not received within one year. If an application is deemed abandoned pursuant to this section, the Board will close the application without further notice and dispose of any information or documentation submitted by the applicant pursuant to the Division of Consumer Affairs' record retention plan. An applicant whose application has been deemed abandoned may reapply for licensure or certification. The application will require a new application fee.  
The Board has provided a 60-day comment period for this notice of proposal. Therefore, this notice is excepted from the rulemaking calendar requirement pursuant to N.J.A.C. 1:30-3.3(a)5.  
Social Impact  
The Board believes the proposed new rule will have a positive impact on social workers seeking licensure or certifications in that, as the Board's administrative burden from having to process abandoned applications is lessened, the Board will be free to allocate that time to processing active applications more quickly and efficiently.  
Economic Impact  
The proposed new rule may have an impact on applicants who will need to pay another application fee in the amount of $ 75.00 if they fail to submit all required documentation within one year after the last notice of deficiency was sent by the Board or if they have not submitted to the Board any documentation in furtherance of an incomplete application since January 1, 2018.  
Federal Standards Statement  
A Federal standards analysis is not required because there are no Federal laws or standards applicable to the proposed new rule.  
Jobs Impact  
The Board does not believe that this proposed new rule will result in the creation or loss of jobs in the State.  
Agriculture Industry Impact  
The proposed new rule will have no impact on the agriculture industry in the State.  
Regulatory Flexibility Statement  
As licensed clinical social workers are individually licensed by the Board pursuant to the Regulatory Flexibility Act (the Act), N.J.S.A. 52:14B-16 et seq., they may be considered "small businesses" for the purposes of the Act; however, the proposed new rule will only apply to individuals who do not yet have a license and, therefore, they are not considered "small businesses."  
Housing Affordability Impact Analysis  
The proposed new rule will have an insignificant impact on the affordability of housing in New Jersey and there is an extreme unlikelihood that the proposed new rule would evoke a change in the average costs associated with housing because the proposed new rule only concerns the abandonment of applications for licensure or certification.  
Smart Growth Development Impact Analysis  
The proposed new rule will have an insignificant impact on smart growth and there is an extreme unlikelihood that the proposed new rule would evoke a change in housing production in Planning Areas 1 or 2, or within designated centers, under the State Development and Redevelopment Plan in New Jersey because the proposed new rule only concerns the abandonment of applications for licensure or certification.  
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Racial and Ethnic Community Criminal Justice and Public Safety Impact  
The Board has evaluated this rulemaking and determined that it will not have an impact on pretrial detention, sentencing, probation, or parole policies concerning adults and juveniles in the State. Accordingly, no further analysis is required.  
Full text of the proposed new rule follows:  
SUBCHAPTER 4.   APPLICANT QUALIFICATIONS; BOARD-APPROVED EXAMINATION; ENDORSEMENT  
13:44G-4.7  Abandonment of application for licensure or certification  
(a) An application for a license or certification submitted to the Board will be deemed abandoned if:  
1. The individual applying for the license or certificate has not submitted, to the Board, all of the information and documentation required to obtain the license or certificate and:  
i. One year has elapsed since the last notice to the applicant was sent by the Board informing the applicant that the Board has not received all of the information and documentation required for licensure or certification; and  
ii. The last notice to the applicant states that the application will be deemed abandoned if the required information and documentation is not received by the Board within one year; or  
2. The individual applying for the license or certificate has not submitted to the Board any documentation in furtherance of the application after January 1, 2018.  
(b) If an application for licensure or certification is deemed abandoned pursuant to (a) above, the Board shall administratively close the application without further notice to the applicant and shall dispose of any information or documentation submitted by the applicant pursuant to the Division of Consumer Affairs' record retention plan.  
(c) An individual whose application for licensure or certification has been administratively closed by the Board pursuant to (a) above may reapply for licensure or certification pursuant to N.J.A.C. 13:44G-4.1, 4.2, or 4.3, and include payment of the appropriate application fee.