Mississippi Code 1972 (2023) › Title 73 - PROFESSIONS AND VOCATIONS (§§ 73-1-1 — 73-79-1) › Chapter 53 - LICENSING AND REGULATION OF SOCIAL WORKERS (§§ 73-53-1 — 73-53-31) › Section 73-53-23 - Disciplinary sanctions; advisory letter; assessment for investigation and prosecution costs

(1)
The board may impose any of the following sanctions, singly or in combination, when it finds that a licensee or applicant has committed any offense listed in Section
73-53-17
:
(a)
Revocation of the license;
(b)
Suspension of the license, for any period of time;
(c)
Censure the licensee;
(d)
Issue a letter of reprimand to the licensee;
(e)
Impose a monetary penalty in an amount not to exceed Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for the first violation, One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) for the second violation, and Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) for the third and each subsequent violation;
(f)
Place a licensee on probationary status and require the licensee to submit to any of the following:
(i)
report regularly to the board upon matters which are the basis of probation;
(ii)
continue to renew professional education until a satisfactory degree of skill has been attained in those areas which are basis of probation; or
(iii)
such other reasonable requirement or restrictions as are proper;
(g)
Refuse to issue or renew a license;
(h)
Revoke probation which has been granted and impose any other disciplinary action in this subsection when the requirements of probation have not been fulfilled or have been violated;
(i)
Restrict a license; and/or
(j)
Accept a voluntary surrendering of a license based on an order of consent from the board.
(2)
The board may summarily suspend a license issued by the board without a hearing simultaneously with the filing of a formal complaint and notice for a hearing provided by this chapter and Sections
73-54-1
through
73-54-39
pending proceedings before the board. If the board suspends summarily a license under the provisions of this subsection, a hearing must begin within twenty (20) days after such suspension begins, unless continued at the request of the licensee.
(3)
Disposition of any formal complaint may be made by consent order or stipulation between the board and the licensee.
(4)
The board may reinstate any licensee to good standing under this chapter if the board is satisfied that the applicant's renewed practice is in the public interest. The procedure for the reinstatement of a license that is suspended for being out of compliance with an order for support, as defined in Section
93-11-153
, shall be governed by Section
93-11-157
or
93-11-163
, as the case may be.
(5)
The board shall seek to achieve consistency in the application of the foregoing sanctions, and significant departure from prior decisions involving similar conduct shall be explained by the board.
(6)
In addition to any other power that it has, the board may issue an advisory letter to a licensee if it finds that the information received in a complaint for an investigation does not merit disciplinary action against the licensee.
(7)
The board may also assess and levy upon any licensee or applicant for licensure the costs incurred or expended by the board in the investigation and prosecution of any licensure or disciplinary action, including but not limited to, the cost of process service, court reports, expert witness, investigators, and attorney fees.
Laws, 1987, ch. 421, § 12; Laws, 1996, ch. 507, § 79; Laws, 2011, ch. 462, § 13, eff. 7/1/2011.