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Bill

AB 60

Revises provisions relating to certain behavioral health services. (BDR 39-434)

2025 Regular Session

AB 60 creates a formal Certified Prevention Specialist role with standardized certification and stricter age/supervision rules to professionalize prevention work in Nevada.

Approved by the Governor. Chapter 223.
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Bill Summary · AB 60

AB 60 (BDR 39-434) — Summary / What the law does (2025)

Status: Enacted in 2025; approved by the Governor and chaptered into law.
Primary sponsor: Assembly Committee on Health and Human Services (on behalf of the Northern Regional Behavioral Health Policy Board)

Main purpose

AB 60 creates a statutory role of “Certified Prevention Specialist” (C-PS), establishes certification and related regulatory requirements, and tightens age and supervision requirements for peer recovery support roles. The bill aims to professionalize prevention work, align prevention personnel with evidence‑based practice, and clarify regulatory authority and enforcement for behavioral‑health prevention and peer support services in Nevada.

Key provisions and changes

  • Definition and certification of Certified Prevention Specialists:

    • A “Certified Prevention Specialist” is defined as a natural person who supervises, reviews, or implements evidence‑based programs, policies, practices and other culturally relevant interventions in schools or communities to prevent or reduce substance use, early‑onset substance use, substance use disorder and other behavioral‑health disorders, or to address systemic barriers to wellness.
    • Certification is to be issued by the Nevada Certification Board (NCB) or its successor; if the NCB ceases to certify, the Division of Public and Behavioral Health may provide certification.

  • Prevention coalitions:

    • Certified substance use disorder prevention coalitions must employ or contract with certified prevention specialists as necessary to carry out coalition duties.

  • Peer recovery support roles and age limits:

    • The bill requires that peer recovery support specialists, peer recovery support specialist supervisors, and peer recovery support specialist interns be at least 18 years of age.
    • The law prohibits minors from providing or supervising peer recovery support services (with the Division authorized to set narrow internship conditions only where applicable in earlier drafts; final actions remove general allowance for minors).

  • Regulation, oversight and enforcement:

    • Certified prevention specialists are treated similarly to peer recovery support specialists with respect to background checks, certification rules, mandatory reporting obligations, and exemptions from certain other professional statutes.
    • The Division is authorized to impose civil penalties and seek injunctions for violations (e.g., holding oneself out as certified without a valid certificate; minors providing/supervising unauthorized services).
    • Employers/contracting entities: the bill includes provisions that may prohibit employing or retaining a certified prevention specialist as an independent contractor in positions involving regular and substantial contact with minors if that person has been found to have engaged in certain conduct (as specified in the statute).

  • Mandatory reporting and duty to report certain information by certified prevention specialists (statutory reporting duties added).

  • Contingency for certification authority: if the NCB stops certifying specified roles, the Division may assume that function.

Who is affected

  • Workforce: prospective and current Certified Prevention Specialists, peer recovery support specialists/supervisors/interns, and prevention coalition staff.
  • Employers and contractors: prevention coalitions, schools, community organizations, nonprofits and public agencies that employ or contract for prevention/peer support services.
  • Regulatory agencies: Nevada Certification Board (or successor) and the Division of Public and Behavioral Health (for certification, regulation, and enforcement).
  • Youth and communities: by specifying qualifications and restrictions regarding minors in peer recovery roles and establishing professional standards for prevention personnel, the law affects service delivery in schools and community prevention programs.

Procedural/timeline notes

  • The bill moved through committee amendments and two reprints; some amendments addressed internship conditions for minors and effective dates. A Senate amendment maintained a two‑thirds majority requirement for final passage of specified sections.
  • Enactment: the bill was enrolled, presented to the Governor in 2025 and chaptered into law that year. The statute includes provisions designating the NCB (or the Division if necessary) as the certifying authority; affected agencies must adopt any implementing regulations and procedural rules consistent with the new certification and enforcement authorities.

Practical impact

AB 60 formalizes the C‑PS role and creates certification requirements intended to standardize prevention practice across Nevada. It increases minimum age requirements for peer recovery roles (removing or narrowing prior allowances for minors), adds enforcement mechanisms for unlicensed practice, and requires prevention coalitions to incorporate certified prevention specialists into their staffing or contracting structures—actions intended to strengthen evidence‑based prevention capacity statewide.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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