The Social Work Interstate Compact

The Council of State Governments (CSG) has partnered with the Department of Defense (DoD), the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) to support the mobility of licensed social workers through the development of a new interstate compact. This additional licensing pathway will facilitate multistate practice among member states and reduce the barriers to license portability.

What is the Social Work Licensure Compact?
The Social Work Licensure Compact is an interstate occupational licensure compact. Interstate compacts are constitutionally authorized, legislatively enacted, legally binding agreements among states. This compact will enable regulated social workers with bachelor’s, master’s and clinical licenses to serve clients in every state that joins the compact, rather than going through the licensure process in every state where they want to practice. Like the compact for a driver’s license, each Social Work Licensure Compact member state agrees to mutually recognize the licenses issued by every other member state.

What are the advantages of the Social Work Licensure Compact?

The Social Work Licensure Compact allows eligible social workers to practice in all states that join the compact. The goal is to eliminate barriers to practice and to client care along with ensuring public protection. The Social Work Licensure Compact will also enhance a state’s ability to protect public safety.

Other benefits include:

  • Enhancing the mobility of social workers
  • Improving access to professional social work services
  • Improving continuity of care when clients travel or relocate
  • Supporting relocating military spouses and families
  • Enhancing public safety
  • Creating a data system of information about licensees including license status, investigative information and adverse actions


To join the compact, a state must enact the model compact legislation and meet eligibility criteria.

Questions:

Lynn Stanley, LICSW
Executive Director
National Association of Social Workers, New Hampshire Chapter
exec.naswnh@socialworkers.org
603.496.0994


Social Work Compact Website

July 2, 2024

The signing ceremony was this morning!

NH has enacted the Social Work Compact.


March 28, 2024

YOU DID IT!

The Social Work Compact (HB 1190) just passed in the NH House

We are one step closer and this was the big hurdle

Because of your advocacy, your calls and emails, we got this through with a 25 vote margin.

THANK YOU!

One more ask - please email your REPRESENTATIVE to thank them. Don't know if your Rep voted yes? Doesn't matter, we still thank them!

Dear Representative ___

Thank you very much for passing HB 1190, the Social Work Compact.

Your name & town

We are stronger together!

Lynn





March 22, 2024

Call to Action - Social Work Compact

and happy social work month!

The big ask - we need everyone to make calls

AND share this email with your colleagues, supervisors & agency managers

The House Executive Departments & Administration Committee voted the Social Work Compact "ITL" or Inexpedient to Legislate. This means we have

a lot of work to do to get it to pass on the full House floor March 28th.

We need everyone to call their REPRESENTATIVES and ask them to

  • vote NO on the ITL
  • then vote YES on the Ought to Pass

on HB 1190 - the Social Work Compact

This is a workforce issue - if you are the employer of social workers we REALLY need for you to make calls, especially to our Republican Representatives. The SW Compact will mean your social workers newly employed from other states will be more likely to start right away rather than waiting until they are licensed in NH.

When you call your Representatives (or leave a message)

Share your name, where you live, you are a social worker (or employer of social workers or allied professional), and that you are asking them to pass HB 1190 - The Social Work Compact

Then share what might be applicable to you:

  • Clients have continuity of care when traveling or if they move
  • Clients have continuity of care if you happen to be out of state
  • College aged clients have continuity of care when they go to college or return home during breaks
  • You are part of a military family that is subject to frequent moves
  • Ability to provide crisis care to out of state clients
  • You have a specialized scope of practice or your client would benefit from a specialized scope of practice
  • You practice near the border and an interstate compact would save you money and time as you will only need to maintain your New Hampshire relicensure requirements
  • You are a social work student and want to be able to stay in New Hampshire
  • If you hire social workers - this will enable your new from out of state social workers to start working immediately if they come from an interstate compact state

The psychologists and the mental health counselors already have their compacts in New Hampshire!

Please circle back to me with names and responses - we are keeping track!

NASW NH Members - some of you will be receiving a special email from me because you are in an identified district.

Feeling nervous? Completely understandable, but remember they are YOUR elected officials. They want and need to hear from their constituents and calls are the most effective way to share your perspective. Want to practice or need a pep-talk? Give me a call - 603.496.0994

Thank you so much for your advocacy and please forward this email to your colleagues, employers, fellow social workers, social work students, or anyone else!

Working together,

Lynn Currier Stanley, LICSW

Executive Director

NASW NH

exec.naswnh@socialworkers.org

603.496.0994

March 6, 2024

I wish I had better news, but this afternoon the Social Work Compact was voted ITL or Inexpedient to Legislate in the House Executive Department & Administration Committee 12 - 8.  
We are not giving up, but it means that we have a tougher fight ahead of us.
The ITL will need to FAIL on the full House Floor.  If it fails, then the motion for OTP - Ought to Pass can be heard and will need to pass.
Once we know when it is coming to the House Floor, I will be sending out a very important call to action.  We will need all social workers to have their voices heard.  I will be asking you to make calls and for you to ask your mental health colleagues and your agency bosses/managers/supervisors to make calls.  All hands on deck.
Please - don't make calls right now - we don't know when it is getting to the full House.
You are more than welcome to jump into Friday's (3/8) Legislative Update meeting at 12:15 on zoom. 
Working together,
Lynn