CHAPTER 11. PROFESSIONAL LICENSING STANDARDS OF PRACTICE - Indiana Statutes

IC 25-1-11
     Chapter 11. Professional Licensing Standards of Practice

IC 25-1-11-1 Version a
"Board" defined
     Note: This version of section amended by P.L.84-2010, SEC.18. See also following version of this section amended by P.L.113-2010, SEC.103.
    Sec. 1. As used in this chapter, "board" means any of the following:
        (1) Indiana board of accountancy (IC 25-2.1-2-1).
        (2) Board of registration for architects and landscape architects (IC 25-4-1-2).
        (3) Indiana auctioneer commission (IC 25-6.1-2).
        (4) State athletic commission (IC 25-9-1).
        (5) State board of cosmetology and barber examiners (IC 25-8-3-1).
        (6) State board of registration of land surveyors (IC 25-21.5-2-1).
        (7) State board of funeral and cemetery service (IC 25-15-9).
        (8) State board of registration for professional engineers (IC 25-31-1-3).
        (9) Indiana plumbing commission (IC 25-28.5-1-3).
        (10) Indiana real estate commission (IC 25-34.1-2-1).
        (11) Real estate appraiser licensure and certification board (IC 25-34.1-8).
        (12) Private investigator and security guard licensing board (IC 25-30-1-5.2).
        (13) Manufactured home installer licensing board (IC 25-23.7).
        (14) Home inspectors licensing board (IC 25-20.2-3-1).
        (15) State board of massage therapy (IC 25-21.8-2-1).
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.2-1995, SEC.93; P.L.234-1995, SEC.5; P.L.82-2000, SEC.6; P.L.162-2002, SEC.6; P.L.145-2003, SEC.6; P.L.185-2007, SEC.7; P.L.200-2007, SEC.7; P.L.3-2008, SEC.181; P.L.160-2009, SEC.10; P.L.84-2010, SEC.18.

IC 25-1-11-1 Version b
"Board" defined
     Note: This version of section amended by P.L.113-2010, SEC.103. See also preceding version of this section amended by P.L.84-2010, SEC.18.
    Sec. 1. As used in this chapter, "board" means any of the following:
        (1) Indiana board of accountancy (IC 25-2.1-2-1).
        (2) Board of registration for architects and landscape architects (IC 25-4-1-2).
        (3) Indiana auctioneer commission (IC 25-6.1-2).
        (4) State board of barber examiners (IC 25-7-5-1).
        (5) State board of cosmetology examiners (IC 25-8-3-1).
        (6) State board of registration of land surveyors (IC

25-21.5-2-1).
        (7) State board of funeral and cemetery service (IC 25-15-9).
        (8) State board of registration for professional engineers (IC 25-31-1-3).
        (9) Indiana plumbing commission (IC 25-28.5-1-3).
        (10) Indiana real estate commission (IC 25-34.1-2-1).
        (11) Real estate appraiser licensure and certification board (IC 25-34.1-8).
        (12) Private investigator and security guard licensing board (IC 25-30-1-5.2).
        (13) Manufactured home installer licensing board (IC 25-23.7).
        (14) Home inspectors licensing board (IC 25-20.2-3-1).
        (15) State board of massage therapy (IC 25-21.8-2-1).
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.2-1995, SEC.93; P.L.234-1995, SEC.5; P.L.82-2000, SEC.6; P.L.162-2002, SEC.6; P.L.145-2003, SEC.6; P.L.185-2007, SEC.7; P.L.200-2007, SEC.7; P.L.3-2008, SEC.181; P.L.160-2009, SEC.10; P.L.113-2010, SEC.103.

IC 25-1-11-2
"Practitioner" defined
     Sec. 2. As used in this chapter, "practitioner" means a person that holds:
        (1) an unlimited license, certificate, registration, or permit;
        (2) a limited or probationary license, certificate, registration, or permit;
        (3) a temporary license, certificate, registration, or permit;
        (4) an intern permit; or
        (5) an inactive license;
issued by the board regulating a profession.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.236-1995, SEC.1.

IC 25-1-11-3
"License" defined
     Sec. 3. As used in this chapter, "license" includes a license, certificate, registration, or permit.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1.

IC 25-1-11-4
"Person" defined
     Sec. 4. As used in this chapter, "person" means an individual, a partnership, a corporation, or a limited liability company.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.236-1995, SEC.2.

IC 25-1-11-5
Practitioner compliance with professional standards; findings meriting disciplinary sanctions; fraud or material deception
     Sec. 5. (a) A practitioner shall comply with the standards

established by the board regulating a profession. A practitioner is subject to the exercise of the disciplinary sanctions under section 12 of this chapter if, after a hearing, the board finds that:
        (1) a practitioner has:
            (A) engaged in or knowingly cooperated in fraud or material deception in order to obtain a license to practice, including cheating on a licensing examination;
            (B) engaged in fraud or material deception in the course of professional services or activities;
            (C) advertised services or goods in a false or misleading manner; or
            (D) been convicted of a crime or assessed a civil penalty involving fraudulent billing practices;
        (2) a practitioner has been convicted of a crime that:
            (A) has a direct bearing on the practitioner's ability to continue to practice competently; or
            (B) is harmful to the public;
        (3) a practitioner has knowingly violated a state statute or rule or federal statute or regulation regulating the profession for which the practitioner is licensed;
        (4) a practitioner has continued to practice although the practitioner has become unfit to practice due to:
            (A) professional incompetence, including undertaking professional activities that the practitioner is not qualified by training or experience to undertake;
            (B) failure to keep abreast of current professional theory or practice;
            (C) physical or mental disability; or
            (D) addiction to, abuse of, or severe dependency on alcohol or other drugs that endanger the public by impairing a practitioner's ability to practice safely;
        (5) a practitioner has engaged in a course of lewd or immoral conduct in connection with the delivery of services to the public;
        (6) a practitioner has allowed the practitioner's name or a license issued under this chapter to be used in connection with an individual or business who renders services beyond the scope of that individual's or business's training, experience, or competence;
        (7) a practitioner has had disciplinary action taken against the practitioner or the practitioner's license to practice in any state or jurisdiction on grounds similar to those under this chapter;
        (8) a practitioner has assisted another person in committing an act that would constitute a ground for disciplinary sanction under this chapter;
        (9) a practitioner has allowed a license issued by a board to be:
            (A) used by another person; or
            (B) displayed to the public when the license has expired, is inactive, or has been revoked or suspended; or
        (10) a practitioner has failed to comply with an order imposing

a sanction under section 12 of this chapter.
    (b) If an applicant or a practitioner has engaged in or knowingly cooperated in fraud or material deception to obtain a license to practice, including cheating on the licensing examination, the board may rescind the license if it has been granted, void the examination or other fraudulent or deceptive material, and prohibit the applicant from reapplying for the license for a length of time established by the board. An applicant who is aggrieved by a decision of the board under this section is entitled to hearing and appeal rights under the Indiana administrative rules and procedures act (IC 4-21.5).
    (c) A certified copy of the record of disciplinary action is conclusive evidence of the other jurisdiction's disciplinary action under subsection (a)(7).
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.84-1998, SEC.6; P.L.113-1999, SEC.1; P.L.197-2007, SEC.24.

IC 25-1-11-6
Architect or landscape architect; grounds for disciplinary sanctions
     Sec. 6. A practitioner registered as an architect or a landscape architect is subject to the disciplinary sanctions under section 12 of this chapter if, after a hearing, the board finds that the practitioner has:
        (1) permitted the practitioner's seal to be affixed to plans, specifications, or drawings that were not prepared by the practitioner or under the practitioner's personal supervision by the practitioner's regularly employed subordinates; or
        (2) used the title "engineer" or advertised to practice engineering and is not registered under IC 25-31-1.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1.

IC 25-1-11-7
Auctioneers; grounds for disciplinary sanctions
     Sec. 7. A practitioner licensed to practice auctioneering is subject to the disciplinary sanctions under section 12 of this chapter if, after a hearing, the board finds that the practitioner has failed to:
        (1) account and to make payment under IC 25-6.1-6-2; or
        (2) keep the funds of others separate from the practitioner's own private accounts.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1.

IC 25-1-11-8
Barbers; grounds for disciplinary sanctions
     Sec. 8. A practitioner registered as a barber is subject to the disciplinary sanctions under section 12 of this chapter if, after a hearing, the board finds that the practitioner has continued to practice barbering while the practitioner has an infectious, a contagious, or a communicable disease that has been epidemiologically demonstrated to be transmitted through casual contact during the scope of practice of barbering. As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1.

IC 25-1-11-9
Engineers or land surveyors; grounds for disciplinary sanctions
     Sec. 9. A practitioner registered as an engineer or a land surveyor is subject to the disciplinary sanctions under section 12 of this chapter if, after a hearing, the board finds that the practitioner:
        (1) has permitted the practitioner's seal to be affixed to plans, specifications, or drawings not prepared by the practitioner or under the practitioner's personal supervision by the practitioner's regularly employed subordinates;
        (2) has used the title "architect" or advertised to practice architecture and is not registered under IC 25-4-1.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1.

IC 25-1-11-9.5
Repealed
    (Repealed by P.L.194-2005, SEC.87.)

IC 25-1-11-10
Physical and mental examination of practitioner
     Sec. 10. The board may order a practitioner to submit to a reasonable physical or mental examination, at the practitioner's expense, if the practitioner's physical or mental capacity to practice safely and competently is at issue in a disciplinary proceeding.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.178-1997, SEC.1; P.L.194-2005, SEC.7.

IC 25-1-11-11
Refusal of physical or mental examination; summary suspension
     Sec. 11. Failure to comply with a board order to submit to a physical or mental examination makes a practitioner liable to summary suspension under section 13 of this chapter.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1.

IC 25-1-11-12
Sanctions for violations
     Sec. 12. (a) The board may impose any of the following sanctions, singly or in combination, if the board finds that a practitioner is subject to disciplinary sanctions under sections 5 through 9 of this chapter:
        (1) Permanently revoke a practitioner's license.
        (2) Suspend a practitioner's license.
        (3) Censure a practitioner.
        (4) Issue a letter of reprimand.
        (5) Place a practitioner on probation status and require the practitioner to:
            (A) report regularly to the board upon the matters that are the basis of probation;
            (B) limit practice to those areas prescribed by the board;             (C) continue or renew professional education approved by the board until a satisfactory degree of skill has been attained in those areas that are the basis of the probation; or
            (D) perform or refrain from performing any acts, including community restitution or service without compensation, that the board considers appropriate to the public interest or to the rehabilitation or treatment of the practitioner.
        (6) Assess a civil penalty against the practitioner for not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) for each violation listed in sections 5 through 9 of this chapter except for a finding of incompetency due to a physical or mental disability.
        (7) Order a practitioner to pay consumer restitution to a person who suffered damages as a result of the conduct or omission that was the basis for the disciplinary sanctions under this chapter.
    (b) When imposing a civil penalty under subsection (a)(6), the board shall consider a practitioner's ability to pay the amount assessed. If the practitioner fails to pay the civil penalty within the time specified by the board, the board may suspend the practitioner's license without additional proceedings. However, a suspension may not be imposed if the sole basis for the suspension is the practitioner's inability to pay a civil penalty.
    (c) The board may withdraw or modify the probation under subsection (a)(5) if the board finds after a hearing that the deficiency that required disciplinary action has been remedied or that changed circumstances warrant a modification of the order.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.32-2000, SEC.12; P.L.177-2009, SEC.17.

IC 25-1-11-13
Summary license suspension of real estate appraisers and other practitioners; notification by consumer protection division
     Sec. 13. (a) The board may summarily suspend a practitioner's license for ninety (90) days before a final adjudication or during the appeals process if the board finds that a practitioner represents a clear and immediate danger to the public's health, safety, or property if the practitioner is allowed to continue to practice. The summary suspension may be renewed upon a hearing before the board, and each renewal may be for not more than ninety (90) days.
    (b) The board may summarily suspend the license of a real estate appraiser for ninety (90) days before a final adjudication or during the appeals process if the board finds that the licensed real estate appraiser has engaged in material and intentional misrepresentations or omissions in the preparation of at least three (3) written appraisal reports that were submitted by a person to obtain a loan. The summary suspension may be renewed after a hearing before the board. Each renewal of a summary suspension may be for not more than ninety (90) days.
    (c) Before the board may summarily suspend a license under this section, the consumer protection division of the office of the attorney

general shall make a reasonable attempt to notify a practitioner of:
        (1) a hearing by the board to suspend the practitioner's license; and
        (2) information regarding the allegation against the practitioner.
The consumer protection division of the office of the attorney general shall also notify the practitioner that the practitioner may provide a written or an oral statement to the board on the practitioner's behalf before the board issues an order for summary suspension. A reasonable attempt to notify the practitioner is made if the consumer protection division of the office of the attorney general attempts to notify the practitioner by telephone or facsimile at the last telephone number or facsimile number of the practitioner on file with the board.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.178-1997, SEC.2; P.L.197-2007, SEC.25; P.L.209-2007, SEC.3; P.L.3-2008, SEC.182.

IC 25-1-11-14
Reinstatement of suspended license
     Sec. 14. The board may reinstate a license that has been suspended under this chapter if, after a hearing, the board is satisfied that the applicant is able to practice with reasonable skill, safety, and competency to the public. As a condition of reinstatement, the board may impose disciplinary or corrective measures authorized under this chapter.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.178-1997, SEC.3.

IC 25-1-11-15
Reinstatement of revoked license
     Sec. 15. The board may not reinstate a license that has been revoked under this chapter. An individual whose license has been revoked under this chapter may not apply for a new license until seven (7) years after the date of revocation.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1.

IC 25-1-11-16
Consistency of sanctions
     Sec. 16. The board shall seek to achieve consistency in the application of sanctions authorized in this chapter. Significant departures from prior decisions involving similar conduct must be explained in the board's findings or orders.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1.

IC 25-1-11-17
Surrender of practitioner license; surrender prohibited if attorney general opposes
     Sec. 17. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), a practitioner may petition the board to accept the surrender of the practitioner's license instead of having a hearing before the board. The practitioner

may not surrender the practitioner's license without the written approval of the board, and the board may impose any conditions appropriate to the surrender or reinstatement of a surrendered license.
    (b) The board may not approve the surrender of a practitioner's license under subsection (a) if the office of the attorney general:
        (1) has filed an administrative complaint concerning the practitioner's license; and
        (2) opposes the surrender of the practitioner's license.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.52-2009, SEC.10; P.L.105-2009, SEC.13.

IC 25-1-11-18
Costs; practitioners subject to sanctions
     Sec. 18. A practitioner who has been subjected to disciplinary sanctions may be required by a board to pay the costs of the proceeding. The practitioner's ability to pay shall be considered when costs are assessed. If the practitioner fails to pay the costs, a suspension may not be imposed solely upon the practitioner's inability to pay the amount assessed. These costs are limited to costs for the following:
        (1) Court reporters.
        (2) Transcripts.
        (3) Certification of documents.
        (4) Photo duplication.
        (5) Witness attendance and mileage fees.
        (6) Postage.
        (7) Expert witnesses.
        (8) Depositions.
        (9) Notarizations.
        (10) Administrative law judges.
        (11) Real estate review appraisals, if applicable.
As added by P.L.214-1993, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.194-2005, SEC.8; P.L.52-2009, SEC.11; P.L.105-2009, SEC.14.

IC 25-1-11-19
Refusal to issue license; probationary license; requirements
     Sec. 19. (a) The board may refuse to issue a license or may issue a probationary license to an applicant for licensure if:
        (1) the applicant has:
            (A) been disciplined by a licensing entity of another state or jurisdiction; or
            (B) committed an act that would have subjected the applicant to the disciplinary process if the applicant had been licensed in Indiana when the act occurred; and
        (2) the violation for which the applicant was or could have been disciplined has a bearing on the applicant's ability to competently perform or practice the profession in Indiana.
    (b) The board may:
        (1) refuse to issue a license; or         (2) issue a probationary license;
to an applicant for licensure if the applicant practiced without a license in violation of the law.
    (c) Whenever the board issues a probationary license, the board may require a licensee to do any of the following:
        (1) Report regularly to the board upon the matters that are the basis of the discipline of the other state or jurisdiction.
        (2) Limit practice to the areas prescribed by the board.
        (3) Continue or renew professional education requirements.
        (4) Engage in community restitution or service without compensation for the number of hours specified by the board.
        (5) Perform or refrain from performing an act that the board considers appropriate to the public interest or to the rehabilitation or treatment of the applicant.
    (d) The board shall remove any limitations placed on a probationary license under this section if the board finds after a public hearing that the deficiency that required disciplinary action has been remedied.
As added by P.L.194-2005, SEC.9. Amended by P.L.197-2007, SEC.26.

IC 25-1-11-20
Appearance before board
     Sec. 20. The board may require an applicant for licensure to appear before the board before issuing a license.
As added by P.L.194-2005, SEC.10.

IC 25-1-11-21
Authority to adopt rules
     Sec. 21. The board may adopt rules under IC 4-22-2, including emergency rules under IC 4-22-2-37.1, to establish procedures to expedite the issuance or renewal of a:
        (1) license;
        (2) certificate;
        (3) registration; or
        (4) permit;
of a person whose spouse serves on active duty (as defined in IC 25-1-12-2) and is assigned to a duty station in Indiana.
As added by P.L.144-2007, SEC.26.