GA Code § 43-10A-5 (2021)
2021 Georgia Code|Title 43 - Professions and Businesses|Chapter 10A - Professional Counselors, Social Workers, and Marriage and Family Therapists|Article 1 - Licensing Provisions|§ 43-10A-5. Requirement of Oath; Quorum; Powers and Duties of Board; Ethics; Reimbursement of Members; Meetings; Background Checks

  The members of the board shall take an oath to perform faithfully the duties of their office. Within 30 days after taking the oath of office, the first board appointed under this article shall meet for an organizational meeting on call by the division director. At such meeting and at an organizational meeting in January every odd-numbered year thereafter, the board shall elect from its members a chairperson and vice chairperson to serve for terms of two years.   The quorum for the transaction of business of the board shall be as provided in subsection (b) of Code Section 43-1-12.   Unless specifically delegated to a standards committee pursuant to Code Section 43-10A-6, the board shall have the following powers and duties:   To adopt, amend, and repeal such rules and regulations not inconsistent with this article necessary for the proper administration and enforcement of this article;   To issue, renew, and reinstate the licenses of duly qualified applicants for licensure to practice a specialty in this state;   To deny, suspend, revoke, or otherwise sanction licenses to practice a specialty in this state;   To initiate investigations for the purpose of discovering violations of this article;   To conduct hearings upon charges calling for the discipline of a licensee or on violations of this article;   To issue to specialists licensed under this article certificates under the seal of the board evidencing such licensure and signed, either by hand or facsimile signature, by the chairperson of the board and the division director;   To adopt a seal; and   To do all other things necessary to administer and enforce this article and all rules and regulations adopted by the board pursuant to this article.     The board shall adopt a code of ethics to govern the behavior of persons licensed under this article, including but not limited to the prohibiting of practice in those areas in which the specialty practitioner has not obtained university level graduate training or substantially equivalent supervised experience.   Each member of the board shall be reimbursed as provided in subsection (f) of Code Section 43-1-2.   After a person has applied for licensure, no member of the board may supervise or direct such applicant for a fee nor shall any member vote on any applicant previously supervised or directed by that member.   The board shall hold at least two regular meetings each year. Additional meetings may be held upon the call of the chairperson of the board or at the written request of any four members of the board.   The board shall administer the Professional Counselors Licensure Compact contained in Article 2 of this chapter.   The board is authorized to conduct national background checks by the submission of fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation through the Georgia Crime Information Center; provided, however, that reports from such background checks shall not be shared with entities outside of this state.     (Code 1981, §43-7A-5, enacted by Ga. L. 1984, p. 1406, § 1; Ga. L. 2000, p. 1706, § 19; Ga. L. 2021, p. 729, §§ 1, 3/HB 395.)    The 2021 amendment,  effective July 1, 2021, substituted "this article" for "this chapter" in the second sentence in subsection (a), twice in paragraph (c)(1), in paragraphs (c)(4) through (c)(6), twice in paragraph (c)(8), and in subsection (d); and added subsections (h) and (i).   Code Commission notes.   - Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 1988, the internal reference in the introductory language of subsection (c) was changed to "Code Section 43-10A-6" to reflect the redesignation of this chapter as Chapter 10A.