52 N.J.R. 866(a)

VOLUME 52, ISSUE 8, APRIL 20, 2020
RULE PROPOSALS

Reporter
52 N.J.R. 866(a)
NJ - New Jersey Register  >  2020  >  APRIL  >  APRIL 20, 2020  >  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 > BOARD OF NURSING


Administrative Code Citation

Proposed Amendments: N.J.A.C. 13:37-2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 7.1, and 9.3


Proposed New Rules: N.J.A.C. 13:37-2.4 and 8.4


Text

Nurse Licensure Compact
Authorized By: Board of Nursing, Joanne Leone, Executive Director.
Authority: N.J.S.A. 45:11-24.
Calendar Reference: See Summary below for explanation of exception to calendar requirement.
Proposal Number: PRN 2020-046.
Submit comments by June 19, 2020, to:
Joanne Leone, Executive Director
State Board of Nursing
PO Box 45010
Newark, New Jersey 07101
or electronically at: http://www.njconsumeraffairs.gov/Proposals/Pages/default.aspx.
The agency proposal follows:
Summary
P.L. 2019, c. 172 entered New Jersey into the Nurse Licensure Compact (Compact). The Compact is an agreement between states in which nurses licensed in one member state ("home state") may work in another member state ("remote state") without obtaining a license in the remote state. In order to work in the remote state, a nurse would have to obtain a license with multistate privileges from his or her home state, which must be the nurse's primary state of residence. In order to effectuate the Compact, the Board of Nursing (Board) proposes amendments and new rules to establish the procedures for applying for licenses with multistate privileges, to incorporate by reference Compact regulations that have been developed by the Interstate Commission of Nurse Licensure Compact Administrators, and to recognize that applicants for certification as advanced practice nurses or forensic nurses-certified sexual assault (FN-CSA), who must be licensed as registered professional nurses in order to obtain certification, may meet the licensure requirement by holding a license with multistate privileges in a remote state.
N.J.A.C. 13:37-2.1, 2.2, and 2.3 establish eligibility and application requirements for licensure as a registered professional nurse or licensed practical nurse. The Board proposes to amend these rules, so that new applicants for licensure will indicate whether they seek a license with multistate privileges or one without such privileges. Existing registered professional nurses and licensed practical nurses will need to apply to the Board for multistate privileges if they seek to work in other states under the Compact. Proposed new N.J.A.C. 13:37-2.4 establishes application requirements to obtain multistate privileges. Applicants will need to submit an application that indicates that the nurse is not participating in New Jersey's Alternative to Discipline Program and that New Jersey is the nurse's primary state of residence. Applicants will also be required to submit an authorization for a criminal history background check and the application fee.
N.J.A.C. 13:37-7.1 and 9.3 require applicants for certification as advanced practice nurses or FN-CSAs to possess a New Jersey license as a registered professional nurse. Under the Compact, multistate privileges as a registered professional nurse in a Compact member state will satisfy registered professional nurse licensure requirements contained at N.J.A.C. 13:37-7.1 and 9.3. The Board, therefore, proposes to amend N.J.A.C. 13:37-7.1 and 9.3 to so clarify.
The Compact is administered by the Interstate Commission of Nurse Licensure Compact Administrators (Commission). The Commission has rules that address sharing of licensure and disciplinary information between Compact states, implementation requirements for states entering the Compact, member state responsibilities for licensure, and responsibilities of nurses licensed by member states to obtain a new home license if they move to another Compact state. The Board proposes new N.J.A.C. 13:37-8.4 to incorporate the Commission's rules by reference.
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 does not believe that the proposed rulemaking will have any social impact.
Economic Impact
The proposed amendments and new rules will have an economic impact on registered professional nurses and licensed practical nurses who are currently licensed in New Jersey and who seek licenses with multistate privileges. Such nurses will be required to pay the application fee.
Federal Standards Statement
A Federal standards analysis is not required because there are no Federal laws or standards applicable to the proposed amendments and new rules.
Jobs Impact
The Board does not believe that proposed amendments and new rules will result in the creation or loss of jobs in the State.
Agriculture Industry Impact
The Board does not believe that proposed amendments and new rules will have any impact on the agriculture industry in the State.
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
Since registered professional nurses, licensed practical nurses, advanced practice nurses, and FN-CSAs are individually licensed or certified by the Board, under 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.
The economic impact on small businesses will be the same as on all businesses as detailed in the Economic Impact above. The Board does not believe that nurses will need to employ any additional professional services to comply with the requirements of the proposed rulemaking. The proposed amendments and new rules impose no reporting or recordkeeping requirements, but impose compliance requirements upon licensed nurses who seek multistate privileges as detailed in the Summary above.
The proposed amendments and new rules will protect the health, safety, and welfare of patients who receive services from nurses with multistate privileges; therefore, no differing compliance requirements are provided to nurses based upon the size of a business.
Housing Affordability Impact Analysis
The proposed amendments and new rules will have an insignificant impact on the affordability of housing in New Jersey and there is an extreme unlikelihood that the rulemaking would evoke a change in the [page=867] average costs associated with housing because the proposed amendments and new rules concern multistate licensure requirements for nurses.
Smart Growth Development Impact Analysis
The proposed amendments and new rules will have an insignificant impact on smart growth and there is an extreme unlikelihood that the proposed amendments and new rules 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 amendments and new rules concern multistate licensure requirements for nurses.
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.
Regulations

Full text of the proposal follows (additions indicated in boldface thus; deletions indicated in brackets [thus]):

1. LICENSURE BY EXAMINATION; REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL AND LICENSED PRACTICAL NURSES
2. Eligibility requirements
3. (No change.)

(c)Applicants shall indicate whether they seek a multistate license, which authorizes a licensee to practice in any state that is part of the Nurse Licensure Compact, or a license without multistate privileges.

1. Application requirements; professional and practical nurses
2. Each applicant for licensure shall file with the Board:
3. A completed application form, provided by the Board, which requests information concerning the applicant's educational and experiential background and which indicates whether the applicant seeks a multistate license or a license without multistate privileges;

2.-3. (No change.)

1. Application requirements; graduates of foreign nursing programs
2. An applicant for licensure who graduated from a foreign nursing program shall submit:
3. A completed licensure application for graduates of foreign nursing program, which contains information concerning the applicant's educational and experiential background and which indicates whether the applicant seeks a multistate license or a license without multistate privileges;

2.-4. (No change.)

1. (No change.)

13:37-2.4 Multistate licenses

1. A registered professional nurse or licensed practical nurse in good standing who seeks a multistate license, which authorizes a nurse to practice in any state which is part of the Nurse Licensure Compact, shall submit to the Board:
2. A multistate license application, which indicates that the nurse is not currently participating in the Board's Alternative to Discipline Program and that New Jersey is the nurse's primary state of residence;
3. y Certification of Authorization form; and
4. n fee as set forth at N.J.A.C. 13:37-5.5(a)1.
5. CERTIFICATION OF ADVANCED PRACTICE NURSES
6. Application for certification
7. (No change.)
8. A registered professional nurse who wishes to practice as an advanced practice nurse shall:
9. Possess a current New Jersey registered professional nurse license in good standing or hold a registered professional nurse multistate license from a state which is part of the Nurse Licensure Compact; and
10. (No change.)
11. (No change.)
12. NURSING PRACTICE

13:37-8.4 Nurse Licensure Compact regulations
The Interstate Commission of Nurse Licensure Compact Administrators Final Rules (2019), available from National Council of State Boards of Nursing, 111 East Wacker Drive, Suite 2900, Chicago, IL 60601-4277 and at http://www.ncsbn.org/nlcrules.htm, are incorporated herein by reference, as amended and supplemented.

1. FORENSIC NURSE-CERTIFIED SEXUAL ASSAULT PROGRAM
2. Application for certification
3. To be eligible for certification as a FN-CSA, an applicant must:
4. Hold a current license as a registered professional nurse from the Board or a registered professional nurse multistate license from a state which is part of the Nurse Licensure Compact;

2.-4. (No change.)

1. (No change.)