Senate Bill 47 was presented to the Senate Finance Committee Jan. 28 with support from the State Board of Physical Therapy Examiners and the bill sponsor, who said the measure clarifies the definition of a physical therapist assistant, increases board membership from eight to nine and permits email as the default renewal-notification method for licensees.

“Senate Bill 47 has three key objectives,” said Rebecca Holzinger, chair of the State Board of Physical Therapy Examiners. The board told the committee the changes would align assistant definitions with existing language for physical therapists, better reflect the workforce ratio by adding a second licensed physical therapist assistant to the board, and reduce the potential for tie votes by moving to an odd-numbered membership. Holzinger also said the board’s data shows email has a high open rate and that moving to electronic renewal notices would reduce printing and mailing costs.

Sponsor testimony highlighted an estimated net savings noted in the fiscal analysis. No committee questions were recorded and the panel concluded without objection.

Ending: The board asked for a favorable report; committee staff recorded the testimony with no additional amendments announced.