During the 2005 Session of the North Carolina General Assembly, legislation was introduced to amend Chapter 90-C (Therapeutic Recreation Personnel Certification Act). On August 23, 2005 the General Assembly passed An Act To Update The Laws Regulating The Practice Of Recreational Therapy which was signed into law by Governor Michael F. Easley on September 8, 2005. This historic legislation effective October 5, 2005 makes North Carolina only the second state in the nation to currently license individuals who provide recreational therapy services. The purpose of the Recreational Therapy Licensure Act is “to safeguard the health and safety of the public and to protect the public from harm by unqualified persons by establishing a minimum level of education, experience, and competence to assure the highest degree of professional care and conduct on the part of licensed recreational therapists and licensed recreational therapy assistants”.

As you may be aware the North Carolina Therapeutic Recreation Certification Board conducted over thirty educational forums and conference presentations from 2001 – 2005 outlining the proposed revisions and rules to Chapter 90-C. These sessions provided valuable grassroots input as the Board proceeded with the licensure initiative. With the passage of the Act the former Board members of the Therapeutic Recreation Certification Board have been appointed to complete their terms on The North Carolina Board of Recreational Therapy Licensure (NCBRTL). The new Board has met and outlined strategies for implementing the Act including the adoption of rules as well as communication and marketing initiatives to assure interested parties such students, practitioners, educators, and employers are informed of the licensure act.

A priority of the new Board is to proceed with the adoption of temporary rules which will detail how the Act is to be interpreted and implemented. In order to comply with North Carolina law a Public Hearing on the temporary rules will be conducted on October 5, 2005 at Dorothea Dix Hospital in Raleigh, North Carolina in Room 105 of the Brown Building at 7 pm. Written comments directed to NCBRTL in care of Becky Garrett at PO Box 67, Saxapahaw, North Carolina 27430 regarding the temporary rules will also be accepted until October 28, 2005. Chapter 90-C, the proposed temporary rules, and directions to the Public Hearing are posted on www.trcb.org or available by calling 336-212-1133. The temporary rules with an effective date of December 1, 2005 can also be viewed on the Office of Administrative Hearings website at www.ncoah.com/rules.

It is an exciting time to be involved with the practice of recreational therapy in North Carolina as we transition from certification to licensure. We encourage you to frequently check the www.trcb.org website as we will post administrative procedures and information related to licensure implementation. Notices will also be mailed soon of educational forums which will be conducted in October, November and December around the state to provide an overview of the licensure act and implementation.

As always the Board welcomes your input and looks forward to seeing you at one of the upcoming sessions.

Pamela Adams Wilson TRS/CTRS
Chair, North Carolina Board of Recreational Therapy Licensure