Board Information

NCBLCMHC Mission

The mission of the Board under NC GS Article 24 section 90-329 states that, it is declared to be the public policy of this State that the activities of persons who render counseling services to the public be regulated to insure the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare.

NCBLCMHC General Information

The North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors (NCBLCMHC or the “Board”) was established under provisions of the Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor Act (LCMHC Act) , which was ratified on July 24, 1993 as North Carolina General Statutes Chapter 90 Article 24, to become effective July 1, 1994.

Since implementation of the practice Act in 1994, the Board has the responsibility of administering and enforcing the provisions of the practice act. In that capacity, the Board uses national standards of counselor preparation and ethical codes of the counseling profession for guidance. National standards for the preparation of professional counselors are found in two resources used by the Board. One is the National Board of Certified Counselors, which sets standards for the preparation and certification of counselors and has also developed the National Counselor Examination (NCE). The NCE is used by most states (including North Carolina) to assess the eligibility of licensure applicants. The second resource for standards of counselor preparation is the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), a corporate affiliate of the American Counseling Association.

The code of ethics and standards of practice published by the American Counseling Association (2014) have been adopted by the NCBLCMHC. The Board uses these resources to develop standards of preparation and ensure that licensed counselors in the state practice according to ethical standards, but it neither endorses nor promotes the American Counseling Association, the North Carolina Counseling Association, the Licensed Professional Counselor Association of North Carolina, the National Board of Certified Counselors, the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs, or any other professional association of counselors.