16. a. On or before the 730th day following the effective date of this act, upon application to the board on the form and in the manner the committee prescribes and the board approves, any person certified in New Jersey by the Alcohol and Drug Counselor Certification Board of New Jersey, Inc. as an alcohol use disorder counselor on the enactment date of this act who demonstrates to the board that the person has successfully completed 30 classroom hours in drug education may acquire a certificate as a certified alcohol and drug counselor without meeting the requirements set forth in section 5 of this act.
b. On or before the 730th day following the effective date of this act, upon application to the board on the form and in the manner the committee prescribes and the board approves, any person certified in New Jersey by the Alcohol and Drug Counselor Certification Board of New Jersey, Inc. as a drug counselor on the enactment date of this act who demonstrates to the board that the person has successfully completed 50 classroom hours in alcohol education may acquire a certificate as a certified alcohol and drug counselor without meeting the requirements set forth in section 5 of this act.
c. On or before the 730th day following the effective date of this act, upon application to the board on the form and in the manner the committee prescribes and the board approves, any person who has practiced as an alcohol and drug counselor for at least five years and is certified in New Jersey by the Alcohol and Drug Counselor Certification Board of New Jersey, Inc. as an alcohol and drug counselor on the enactment date of this act may be licensed as a licensed clinical alcohol and drug counselor without meeting the requirements set forth in section 4 of this act.