§854. Continuing education; requirements; enforcement; exemptions; course approval; provider approval; recordkeeping; fees

A. As a condition of renewal, each active licensee shall complete four hours per licensing period of continuing education in accordance with the provisions of Subsection D of this Section subject to the following:

(1) A maximum of eight hours of continuing education may be carried over and applied to the required hours for subsequent licensing periods, up to four hours each period for a maximum of two periods.

(2) Continuing education programs may be offered in person or though other means, including but not limited to distance learning, videotape, audiotape, teleconference, satellite seminar, webconferencing, Internet course work, correspondence course work, or any other means approved by the board.

(3) Credit shall not be given for the same course more than once during any two consecutive licensing periods.

(4) Credit of attendance may be given to a licensee who conducts a continuing education program.

(5) Credit shall be given for completion of any continuing education program upon submission of evidence of completion issued by a provider or program instructor in accordance with Subsection D of this Section.

B. The continuing education requirements of this Section shall not apply to:

(1) First-time license renewals.

(2) Licensees who are sixty-five years of age or older at the time of renewal and who have been licensed for a period of not less than ten consecutive years.

(3) Licensees who have been called to active military duty status.

(4) Inactive licensees during any licensing period in which they remain inactive; however, an inactive licensee changing status to an active licensee shall first meet the continuing education requirements.

(5) Temporary licensees.

(6) Interns.

C.(1) Any licensee who seeks credit for participation in an educational activity not provided for in Subsection D of this Section may submit a request for subsequent approval of the activity. Such application shall be in a form approved by the board and shall be submitted within thirty days of the completion of the activity.

(2) The board shall approve or reject the application within five working days of receipt and shall notify the licensee in writing of the action.

(3) An appeal of the rejection of an application may be made in writing to the board within fifteen days of notification of the rejection. The board shall rule on the appeal at the next scheduled meeting of the board.

D.(1) The continuing education program required by this Section shall be satisfied by:

(a) Courses recognized by the Academy of Professional Funeral Service Practice or offered by the Louisiana Funeral Directors Association or the Louisiana Funeral Directors and Morticians Association.

(b) Courses approved by the board or its designee that do not meet the standards in Subparagraph (a) of this Paragraph.

(2) Continuing education programs may be open and available to all licensees or closed and restricted as determined by the sponsor, approved provider, or program instructor.

(3) The number of continuing education hours for a specific program shall be determined and announced by the provider or program instructor.

(4) The board shall maintain a listing of approved continuing education programs, approved providers, and program instructors.

(5) The board may monitor, inspect, or review any board-approved continuing education activity. If a determination is made that the program as presented varied significantly from the program as approved, the board may disallow all or part of the continuing education hours granted for the activity.

E.(1) Board-approved providers and program instructors shall:

(a) Submit, within ten days of completion of the activity and on a form approved by the board, a statement attesting to the satisfactory completion of all participating licensees.

(b) Retain all records pertaining to approved continuing education programs for a period of not less than three years, which records shall be subject to examination by the board upon its request.

(2) The board shall maintain records of current hours of continuing education for each licensee, and each individual licensee shall maintain his own records of his current hours of continuing education.

(3) The board shall, as a part of the application process for license renewal, inform each licensee of the current number of hours of continuing education in the licensee's file.

F. The sponsor, provider, or program instructor conducting a continuing education program may charge a fee to each licensee attending the program.

G. Any licensee who meets all the requirements of this Chapter, with the exception of the required hours of continuing education, shall become an inactive licensee.

Acts 2012, No. 176, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2013; Acts 2014, No. 264, §1.