Certification Appeal Procedures


CERTIFICATION APPEAL
 
1. Appeal of the Denial for Certification.  Every applicant shall be provided the opportunity to appeal the decision of the Board regarding the applicant's certification to the Committee on Ethics and Appeals.
 
A. The letter of the Chair informing the applicant of the denial of certification shall provide information on how the applicant may request an appeal review meeting.
 
B. If the applicant desires to appeal the decision of the Board regarding certification, the applicant shall respond in writing, requesting an appeal review meeting, within thirty (30) days of receipt of the certified notice of denial of certification.
 
The response shall be addressed to:
 
Committee on Ethics and Appeals
Iowa Board for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers
510 East 12th Street
Des Moines, IA  50319
 
C. Acknowledgement of receipt of the request shall be sent certified mail to the applicant.  The acknowledgement shall fix a date, time and location (if known) for the appeal review meeting.  If the date, time and location of the meeting of the Committee on Ethics and Appeals are not known at the time of acknowledgement, the applicant shall be notified of the date, time and location of the meeting at least ten days prior to the meeting.
 
2. Appeal Review Meeting.  An appeal review meeting shall be held at a time and place fixed by the Chair of the Committee on Ethics and Appeals.
 
A. All appeal review meetings of the Committee on Ethics and Appeals shall be closed to the public.  Only Committee members, those invited by the Committee to testify or staff members shall be in attendance.
 
B. There shall be no contact prior to the appeal review meeting between the applicant and any member of the Committee on Ethics and Appeals for the purpose of discussing the appeal.
 
C. The Committee on Ethics and Appeals shall review with the applicant the reasons for denial of certification; applicant may present information he/she feels is relevant.
 
D. In making a decision on the validity of the appeal, the Committee on Ethics and Appeals shall consider only materials contained in the Applicant Handbook as submitted and reviewed by the Committee on Certification.  The Committee on Ethics and Appeals may not consider additional material presented by the applicant for the purposes of correcting deficiencies in the application.
 
E. The Committee shall make a determination to:
  1. Recommend the Board uphold the decision of the Committee on Certification.
  2. Recommend the Board overturn the decision of the Committee on Certification.
  3. Recommend the Board remand the application to the Committee on Certification for re-review.
 
F. If an applicant who has requested an appeal review meeting, and upon whom proper notice of the meeting has been served, fails to appear for the meeting, the Committee shall proceed with the conduct of the review and the applicant shall be bound by the results to the same extent as if the applicant had been present.
 
G. The Board shall, at its next regularly scheduled meeting, vote to accept or reject the recommendations of the Committee on Ethics and Appeals.
 
H. The applicant shall be notified by certified mail within two weeks of the decision of the Board concerning the appeal.
 

Glossary


​Board - The Iowa Board for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers.
 
Complainant - A person who has filed an official complaint pursuant to these rules.
 
Disciplinary Proceeding - Any proceeding conducted under the authority of the Board.
 
Discipline - Any sanction the Board may impose upon a sex offender treatment professional for conduct which denies or threatens to deny the citizens of this state a high standard of professional care.
 
Hearing Panel - A panel comprised of members of the Board, which conducts a disciplinary proceeding pursuant to these rules.
 
Recipient - A person who seeks or receives the services of a treatment professional.
 
Reprimand - A formal written warning.
 
Respondent - Any individual charged in an official complaint with a violation of professional ethics as delineated in the Grounds for Discipline in Section 3.
 
Revocation - The permanent loss of certification.
 
Suspension - A time-limited loss of certification or of the privilege of making application for certification.

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