A surveyor does not ask which rule your state publishes. A surveyor asks whether you can show that the nurse who administered moderate sedation was formally educated for it and assessed as competent — and asks to see the record.
The guides below set out what each board actually publishes, quoted with a citation you can check. They exist because the answer differs sharply by state, and because the most common thing a facility is told about its own state is wrong.
What this survey found
Across the 50 jurisdictions written up here, 16 boards of nursing publish no sedation-specific document at all, and 34 publish something specific. Three things follow, and none of them means less work for you:
- Where the board is silent, the standard does not disappear — it moves onto you. Your own sedation policy becomes the document you are measured against, along with whatever your facility’s licensing regulator requires. That is a heavier burden than a clear state rule, not a lighter one, because you are also the one who has to defend it.
- No state names a course, so the evidence has to stand on its own. What is asked for is consistent even where the wording is not: documented education, a competency assessment, and a dated record for each nurse. Those are the three records each guide ends with.
- Advisory does not mean optional in practice. Most boards that address sedation do so through a position statement or advisory opinion rather than a rule. It is still the standard your board will measure a nurse against, and still what a surveyor will expect your policy to reflect.
Continuing education, and how the course fits
The tables also carry each state’s continuing-education requirement for renewing an RN licence — a separate obligation from sedation competency, and the one nurses ask about most. It was taken from each board’s own rule and then checked a second time against that rule. Where a state lets a nurse renew by an alternative route — national certification, practice hours — the cell says so rather than showing a bare number you may not owe.
The CSRN™ course carries 10 CE contact hours. Whether a particular board counts them toward the figure in the table depends on that board’s own rules about whose approval it accepts, which varies and which we do not state on your behalf — check yours before relying on it.
Boards that publish a sedation document
| State | What the board publishes | CE to renew an RN licence | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Alabama Board of Nursing Administrative Code, Chapter 610-X-6 — Standards of Nursing Practice (the moderate sedation rule is 610-X-6-.08, Standards For Moderate Sedation) | 24 contact hours | every 2 years |
| Alaska | Advisory Opinion — OPINION: Registered Nurse Administration of Sedating and Anesthetic Agents | 2 of 3 routes; CE route = 30 hrs | every 2 years |
| Arizona | Advisory Opinion — Sedation: Deep, Moderate, and Palliative | None | — |
| Arkansas | Position Statement 94-1, “Role of the Registered Nurse in the Management of Patients Receiving Moderate Sedation, Anesthetic Agents or Neuromuscular Blocking (paralytic) Agents For Therapeutic or Diagnostic Procedures” — six-page PDF served by the Arkansas Department of Health for the Board. Statement pp. 1–2; “POSITION STATEMENT 94-1 GUIDELINES” pp. 3–5; references p. 6. | 15 hrs, or an alternative route | every 2 years |
| California | NPR-B-06 — Conscious Sedation/Moderate Sedation (Board of Registered Nursing policy). The old page’s title for it, “RN Administration of Medications for Moderate Sedation”, appears nowhere in the document; the Board’s own publications list calls it “Conscious Sedation”. | 30 contact hours | every 2 years |
| Georgia | {‘primary’: ‘Position Statement: Administration of Propofol, Etomidate, and Neuromuscular Blocking Agents’, ‘ketamine’: ‘Position Statement: Administration of Ketamine’} | 30 CE hours, or another route | every 2 years |
| Illinois | Ambulatory Surgical Treatment Center Act, 210 ILCS 5/6.7 — Sec. 6.7, Registered nurse administration of limited levels of sedation or analgesia | 20 contact hours | every 2 years |
| Kansas | Position Statement, “Administration of IV Conscious Sedation (Moderate Sedation/Analgesia) By the Registered Professional Nurse” | 30 contact hours | every 2 years |
| Kentucky | Advisory Opinion Statement #32 — The Role of Nurses in Procedural Sedation, Regional Anesthesia, and Analgesia, and Airway Management in Various Settings (running header: AOS #32 Sedation, Regional Anesthesia, Analgesia, & Airway Management (Revised 10/2025)); the old page’s short name was ‘Advisory Opinion Statement #32 — Procedural Sedation and Analgesia’ | 14 hrs, or an alternative route | every year |
| Louisiana | Declaratory Statement on the Role and Scope of Practice of the Registered Nurse in the Administration of Medication and Monitoring of Patients During the Levels of Intravenous Procedural/Conscious Sedation (Minimal, Moderate, Deep, and Anesthesia) as Defined Herein — Louisiana State Board of Nursing (file Declerat18.pdf; listed on the Board’s scope-of-practice page as ‘Procedural/Conscious Sedation’; the old page called it ‘Declaratory Statement on the Role of the RN in Moderate Sedation’) | 30 hrs, or an alternative route | every 2 years |
| Maine | Practice Questions Related to Registered Professional Nurses — Maine State Board of Nursing | None | — |
| Massachusetts | Advisory Ruling 9101, “Administration of Medications for Sedation/Analgesia” (Advisory Ruling on Nursing Practice) | 15 contact hours | every 2 years |
| Minnesota | Statement of Accountability by the Registered Nurse for Administration of Medications Classified as Anesthetics (Minnesota Board of Nursing) | 24 contact hrs, or certification | every 2 years |
| Mississippi | Position Statement — Administration and Management of Intravenous (IV) Moderate Sedation | None | — |
| Missouri | Code of State Regulations, Title 20 — Department of Commerce and Insurance, Division 2200 — State Board of Nursing, Chapter 6 — Intravenous Infusion Treatment Administration (20 CSR 2200-6.020 to 6.060) | None | — |
| Montana | ARM 24.159.1011, “PROHIBITED INTRAVENOUS (IV) THERAPIES” — Administrative Rules of Montana, Title 24 (Labor and Industry), chapter 24.159 (Board of Nursing), subchapter 24.159.10 (Licensed Practical Nurses) | None | — |
| Nebraska | Advisory Opinion — Sedation and Analgesia (old page called it “Nursing Advisory Opinion — Moderate Sedation”) | 20 hrs, or an alternative route | every 2 years |
| Nevada | Practice Decision — The Role of the RN in Moderate/Procedural Sedation (Nevada State Board of Nursing) | 30 contact hours | every 2 years |
| New Hampshire | Position Statement, Definitions, and Clinical Practice Advisories Regarding the Role of the RN and LPN in the Administration of Anesthesia, Sedation, and Analgesia | 30 hrs, or national certification | every 2 years |
| New Jersey | N.J.A.C. 13:35-4A.10 — Administration of moderate sedation; authorized personnel (the old page’s label ‘Office-Based Moderate Sedation’ is not the section’s title) | 30 contact hours (incl. 1 opioid) | every 2 years |
| New Mexico | Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) — the Board’s practice FAQ web page; used: its ‘Sedation’ section (3 questions) and its ‘Registered Nurse Scope of Practice for Propofol Administration in New Mexico’ section (2 questions), plus one line from ‘Appendix A: LPN Scope of Practice; Selected Interventions’ (LPN ‘May not’ column) and the section preamble/disclaimer | 30 contact hrs, or national cert. | every 2 years |
| North Carolina | Procedural Sedation/Analgesia Position Statement for RN Practice (North Carolina Board of Nursing) | 30 contact hrs, or another option | every 2 years |
| North Dakota | Practice Guidance — Role of the Nurse in Sedation/Analgesia | 12 contact hours | every 2 years |
| Ohio | Interpretive Guideline: Registered Nurse Care of Patients Receiving Intravenous Moderate Sedation for Medical and/or Surgical Procedures | 24 contact hours | every 2 years |
| Oklahoma | Moderate (Conscious) Sedation Guidelines for Registered Nurse Managing and Monitoring Patients (OBN Policy/Guideline #P-06) | 24 hrs, or an alternative route | every 2 years |
| Oregon | Nursing Scope of Practice for the Use of Sedating and Anesthetic Agents | None general; 20 hrs from 2028 | every 2 years |
| Pennsylvania | 49 Pa. Code Chapter 21, Subchapter D, Interpretations — § 21.413, Interpretations regarding the administration of drugs—statement of policy, subsection (d) (conscious sedation), conditions (1)–(8) | 30 contact hours | every 2 years |
| South Carolina | Advisory Opinion #25 — listed as ‘Sedation (RN)’ on the Board’s advisory-opinion index; the PDF itself is headed ‘ADVISORY OPINION # 25’ and carries no other title beyond its Question | 30 hrs, or an alternative route | every 2 years |
| South Dakota | Role of the Registered Nurse in the Management of Patients Receiving Moderate Sedation — South Dakota Board of Nursing practice statement (4-page PDF). The Board’s index page lists it as “Role of the RN in the Management of Patients Receiving Moderate Sedation”; the PDF’s own heading spells out “Registered Nurse”. | None | — |
| Texas | Position Statement 15.8, “Role of the Nurse in Moderate Sedation” — Texas Board of Nursing Position Statements, 2026 edition (PDF), pp. 18–23; page numbers on this page refer to that edition. | 20 contact hrs, or certification | every 2 years |
| Virginia | Registered Nurses and Procedural Sedation (Virginia Board of Nursing Guidance Document 90-63) | 30 contact hrs, or an alternative | every 2 years |
| Washington | Advisory Opinion NCAO 7.1 — Administration of Sedating, Analgesic, and Anesthetic Agents (Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission, Department of Health) | 8 CE hours + 96 practice hours | every 12 months |
| West Virginia | Legislative Rule, Title 19, Series 10 — Standards for Scope of Professional Nursing Practice (W. Va. Code R. § 19-10-1 to § 19-10-3) | 12 contact hours | every 2 years |
| Wyoming | Advisory Opinion — MODERATE SEDATION & PAIN MANAGEMENT (Wyoming State Board of Nursing) | 40 CE hours, or an alternative | every 2 years |
Boards with no sedation-specific document
These boards publish nothing on RN moderate sedation. Each guide names what the board does publish, so the silence is demonstrated rather than asserted, and is built on the general standards that do apply.
| State | What the guide is built on | CE to renew an RN licence | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | Nurse and Nurse Aide Practice Act — Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 12, Article 255 (sections 12-255-101 to 12-255-215), as published by the Colorado State Board of Nursing on its Nursing Laws page; the PDF is headed “Uncertified Printout” / “Colorado Revised Statutes 2025” | None | — |
| Connecticut | Propofol Guidance (title on the Board’s own page); the document’s printed heading is “GUIDANCE OFFERED ON PROPOFOL ADMINISTRATION” | 2 hrs mental health only | 1st renewal, then 6-yrly |
| Delaware | 1900 Board of Nursing — Rules and Regulations. TITLE 24 REGULATED PROFESSIONS AND OCCUPATIONS, DELAWARE ADMINISTRATIVE CODE, Department of State, Division of Professional Regulation (Authenticated PDF Version) | 30 contact hours | every 2 years |
| District of Columbia | District of Columbia Municipal Regulations for Registered Nursing — Title 17, Chapter 54 (REGISTERED NURSING) | 24 hours | every 2 years |
| Florida | Chapter 464, Florida Statutes — NURSING; Part I (ss. 464.001–464.027) cited as the “Nurse Practice Act” (s. 464.001) | 24 contact hrs, or certification | every 2 years |
| Hawaii | Amendment and Compilation of Chapter 16-89, Hawaii Administrative Rules (Title 16, Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Chapter 89, Nurses) — the Board of Nursing publishes NO sedation-specific document; this general chapter is the fallback | 30 contact hrs, or another route | every 2 years |
| Idaho | IDAPA 24 – DIVISION OF OCCUPATIONAL AND PROFESSIONAL LICENSES / BOARD OF NURSING / 24.34.01 – Rules of the Idaho Board of Nursing | None | — |
| Indiana | IC 25-23, ARTICLE 23. NURSES (Indiana Code 2026 edition; footer on every page reads “Indiana Code 2026”) | None | — |
| Iowa | Iowa Administrative Code 481—Chapter 620, Nursing Practice for Registered Nurses/Licensed Practical Nurses (Iowa Board of Nursing, rules in agency 481, Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing) | 36 hrs, or an alternative route | every 3 years |
| Maryland | Maryland Code, Health Occupations Article, §8–101 (Definitions) — Annotated Code of Maryland, Title 8, Nurses | 30 CEUs, or an alternative route | every 2 years |
| Michigan | PUBLIC HEALTH CODE (EXCERPT), Act 368 of 1978, Part 172, NURSING — MCL 333.17201 to 333.17242 | 25 hours (2 in pain mgmt) | every 2 years |
| New York | New York Education Law, Title VIII, Article 139 — Nursing, §§ 6900–6912, as published by the NYSED Office of the Professions (page title as printed: “NYS Nursing:Laws, Rules & Regulations:Article 139”) | None general; topic courses only | — |
| Tennessee | Tennessee Board of Nursing Position Statements | None fixed; 2 competence items | every 2 years |
| Utah | Nursing Scope of Practice Statement (headed “NURSING SCOPE OF PRACTICE STATEMENT”; listed on the Board’s Resources page as “Nursing Scope-Of-Practice Statement”) | 30 contact hrs, or practice hours | every 2 years |
| Vermont | APRN/RN/LPN Scope of Practice Position Statement and Decision Tree | 20 hrs, or an alternative route | every 2 years |
| Wisconsin | Wisconsin Administrative Code ch. N 6 — Standards of Practice for Registered Nurses and Licensed Practical Nurses (Board of Nursing) | None | — |
One jurisdiction we have not written up
Rhode Island. The Board’s 2017 Scope of Practice Guide to the Administration of Anesthetic Agents by Registered Nurses demonstrably exists — its text is quoted in search indexes — but it has no live URL: both health.ri.gov paths return 404 and the Department’s publications index does not list it. The only other Rhode Island source is a general licensing rule that mentions sedation nowhere.
Rather than cite a dead link, reproduce someone else’s copy of a document we cannot verify, or write a guide from a rule that says nothing about sedation, we have left Rhode Island unwritten and said so here. If you need it, ask the Board directly for the current version — and if you obtain a citable copy, tell us and we will write the guide.
Before you rely on any of this
This page is educational information, not legal advice and not a compliance determination. Every figure and quotation on it was taken from a board’s own published document on the date each guide records, and boards change, withdraw and renumber those documents without notice. Continuing-education rules in particular change between renewal cycles, several states offer alternative routes that a short table cell cannot fully capture, and a facility’s licensing regulator may impose requirements its board of nursing does not.
You are responsible for confirming what applies to you. Verify your own state’s current requirements directly with your board of nursing, and against your employer’s policy, before you act on anything here — including any purchasing decision. We accept no liability for reliance on this page or the guides it links, and no state mandates this specific course.
Last reviewed September 2026. The CSRN™ course is education that supports your facility’s documented-competency requirement. It covers moderate sedation only.