Manley Effort to Strengthen Behavior Analyst Licensing Act Passes General Assembly, Heads to Governor

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – In coordination with the Illinois Association for Behavior Analysis, state Rep. Natalie Manley, D-Joliet, sent a plan to the governor Thursday that will clarify and strengthen provisions in the state’s Behavior Analyst Licensing Act, helping residents access the professional care they deserve.

“This is a needed update that clarifies existing law so we can better protect multidisciplinary care models, increase access to services and ensure clinical decisions remain with licensed professionals delivering care,” Manley said. “These are technical changes in our law, but they have real world impact to support our skilled professionals.”

The Manley-led Senate Bill 712 applies to licensed behavioral analysts in the following ways:

• Protects multidisciplinary practices by explicitly including behavior analysis as a related profession with Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy and Speech Therapy;
• Strengthens consumer protection by explicitly stating that only licensed clinicians can make decisions regarding clinical care;
• Increases access to ABA services by explicitly stating that schools and non-for-profit organizations are exempted from the business structure requirement (this structure only applies to privately-owned entities); and
• Updates additional definitions in state statute.

Senate Bill 712 passed the General Assembly with bipartisan support, and will now head to the governor for final approval. For more information, please contact repmanley@gmail.com.