Counseling Compact Update: Number of Member States Continues to Rise

During the 2023 legislative session, the Interstate Counseling Compact added 12more member states, bringing the current total to 29. The additional states, in the order they were passed, are Wyoming, Arkansas, Virginia, Kansas, Washington, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Indiana, Vermont, Iowa, and Missouri.

The compact’s continued growth demonstrates the desire and urgency to accommodate our country’s expanding mental health needs and to support counseling professionals in relocating and/or expanding their services across state lines without re-licensure. The counseling profession has shown tremendous dedication toward supporting the passage of these bills, as the map of compact states now spans the entire country.

Several states and districts are still considering compact legislation, and NBCC continues to work with various national and state organizations to push these bills forward. We encourage all NCCs to advocate for their state/district by visiting our action center, which includes detailed information about the compact and how to contact respective representatives to urge them to join.

In addition to growing its number of state members, the compact commission collaborates diligently with various committees to confer privileges to practice and is now in the final stages of appointing an executive director and secretariat. NBCC will fund all voting commission members to attend the NBCC Counseling Regulatory Boards Summit (CRBS) in Nashville, July 26–29. The Compact Commission’s Executive and Rules Committees will hold in-person meetings on July 26 concurrently with the NBCC & Affiliates Counseling and Regulatory Boards Summit in Nashville, TN. The Commission will hold a full commission meeting in October via Zoom. To ensure as many voices as possible are heard in supporting the compact, all commission and committee meetings are open to the public. 

NBCC is proud to be an ex-officio member of the commission, along with the American Counseling Association (ACA), the American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMHCA), and the American Association of State Counseling Boards (AASCB). To support the compact’s progress, NBCC has committed $150,000 per year for 3 years, with optional extensions, toward its operating costs. This commitment is to help keep fees for counselors affordable, supporting equitable access to the privileges offered through the Compact. NBCC works to advance equitable access to quality mental health services and ensure that counselors have the privilege to practice in multiple states will expand the mental health workforce and increase resources in communities across the US.