La. Admin. Code tit. 33 § III-2805

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024

Section III-2805 - Recognition and Standards for Training Providers

A. Application Process. A training provider shall not provide, offer, or claim to provide lead training courses for accreditation purposes without receiving recognition from the department. For a training provider to receive recognition for itself and its courses from the department, the following procedures shall be followed.

1. A training provider may seek recognition to offer initial and refresher training courses in the following disciplines: lead inspector, risk assessor, lead project supervisor, lead project designer, and lead worker.

2. A training provider seeking recognition shall submit to the Office of Environmental Services the appropriate fees, as required in LAC 33:III.223, a completed LPF-4 form, and a completed LPF-5 form for each trainer to be recognized, containing the following information:

a. the training provider's name, address, and telephone number;

b. a list of initial and refresher training courses for which recognition is sought;

c. a statement signed by the training manager that certifies that the training provider meets the minimum requirements established in Subsection B of this Section;

d. a signed statement by the training manager certifying that each instructor meets the qualifications described in Paragraph B.2 of this Section;

e. a statement signed by the training manager that certifies that the provider will use, if available, EPA-developed and EPA-authorized model training materials. Alternatively, if a training provider does not use EPA-developed and EPA-authorized training materials, its application for accreditation shall include a copy of the student and instructor manuals to be used for each course and a copy of the course agenda, which includes the time allocation for each course topic;

f. a copy of the test blueprint, which describes the proportion of course test questions devoted to each major course topic;

g. a description of the facilities and equipment available for lecture and hands-on training;

h. a description of the procedures for conducting the assessment of hands-on skills;

i. a copy of the quality control plan as described in Paragraph B.10 of this Section; and

j. an example of numbered certificates, as described in Paragraph B.8 of this Section, to be issued to students who successfully complete the training course.

3. The department shall approve or disapprove a request for recognition within 30 days of receiving the application from a training provider. Approved applicants will be notified in writing. Recognition will expire one year from the date on the approval letter. If the application is not approved, a letter describing the reasons for disapproval shall be sent to the applicant. The department may require submission of additional information, as needed. If a training provider's application is disapproved, the provider may reapply for recognition at any time.

4. A training provider may seek recognition for additional initial or refresher training courses at any time as long as the provider can demonstrate that it meets the minimum requirements of Subsection B of this Section.

B. Requirements for the Recognition of Training Providers. For a training provider to obtain recognition from the department to offer lead-based paint activities courses, the provider shall demonstrate, through its application materials, that it meets the following requirements for each course for which the provider is seeking recognition:

1. the training provider shall employ a training manager who has the primary responsibility for ensuring that the provider complies with the requirements of this Chapter. The training manager shall have:

a. at least two years of experience, education, or training in teaching adults; or

b. a bachelor's or graduate degree in building construction technology, science, engineering, industrial hygiene, safety, public health, education, business administration, or program management; or

c. two years of experience in managing a program specializing in environmental hazards; and

d. at least one year of experience, education, or training in the construction industry, including lead or asbestos abatement, painting, carpentry, renovation, remodeling, occupational safety and health, or industrial hygiene;

2. all lead courses shall be organized and taught by qualified principal instructors. The training provider shall employ qualified principal instructors for each course who have:

a. at least one year of experience, education, or training in teaching adults;

b. training in the lead courses they are teaching;

c. current accreditation in the disciplines in which they instruct (lead worker course instructors shall maintain supervisor accreditation); and

d. at least one year of experience, education, or training in lead or asbestos abatement, painting, carpentry, renovation, remodeling, occupational safety and health, or industrial hygiene;

3. the training manager may employ qualified guest instructors to provide instruction in specific areas of expertise, such as legal issues, health effects, insurance and technology, or equipment demonstrations;

4. the following items shall be recognized by the department as evidence that training managers and principal instructors have the relevant education, work experience, training requirements, accreditations, and demonstrated experience:

a. official academic transcripts or diploma, as evidence of meeting the educational requirements;

b. resumes, letters of reference, or documentation of work experience, as evidence of meeting the work experience requirements; and

c. certificates from train-the-trainer courses, lead-specific training courses, and accreditations, as evidence of meeting the training requirements;

5. the training provider shall provide adequate facilities for lecture, course tests, hands-on training, and assessment. This includes providing training equipment that reflects current work practices and maintaining or updating the equipment and facilities as needed;

6. the training provider shall provide training courses that meet the following training hour requirements:

a. the lead inspector course shall consist of a minimum of 24 training hours, with a minimum of eight hours devoted to hands-on training. The minimum curriculum required for this course is established in Paragraph C.1 of this Section;

b. the risk assessor course shall consist of a minimum of 16 training hours with a minimum of four hours devoted to hands-on training. The minimum curriculum required for this course is established in Paragraph C.2 of this Section;

c. the lead project supervisor course shall consist of a minimum of 32 training hours, with a minimum of eight hours devoted to hands-on training. The minimum curriculum required for this course is established in Paragraph C.3 of this Section;

d. the lead project designer course shall consist of a minimum of eight training hours. The minimum curriculum required for this course is established in Paragraph C.4 of this Section; and

e. the lead worker course shall consist of a minimum of 16 training hours, with a minimum of eight hours devoted to hands-on training. The minimum curriculum required for this course is established in Paragraph C.5 of this Section;

7. for each course offered, the training provider shall conduct a course test at the completion of the course. In addition, at the completion of the hands-on skills training the principal instructor(s) shall conduct assessment of each student's hands-on skills. The student must demonstrate proficiency at hands-on skills to the satisfaction of the instructor and score 70 percent or greater on the course test to pass any course:

a. the training manager is responsible for maintaining the validity and integrity of the hands-on skills assessment to ensure that it accurately evaluates the students' performance of the work practices and procedures associated with the course topics;

b. the training manager is responsible for maintaining the validity and integrity of the course test to ensure that it accurately evaluates the students' knowledge and retention of the course topics; and

c. the course tests shall be developed in accordance with the test blueprint submitted with the application;

8. training providers shall issue unique initial and refresher training course completion certificates to each individual who successfully completes the course requirements. The course completion certificate shall include:

a. a unique certificate number;

b. the name, driver's license or state identification number and the issuing state, and the address of the individual;

c. the name of the particular course that the individual completed;

d. the dates of course completion/test passage;

e. the name/address/telephone number of the training provider;

f. the following statement undersigned by the training manager:

"Under civil and criminal penalties of law for the making or submission of false or fraudulent statements or representations (R.S. 30:2025), I certify that this training complies with all applicable requirements of TSCA Title IV, 40 CFR 745, and LAC 33:III.2805"; and

g. the expiration date, which is one year from the course completion date;

9. the training provider shall submit rosters, including photographs of participants, to the Office of Environmental Services within 10 working days of course completion. For each course, the training provider shall provide three photographs of each student:

a. one 1" x 1 1/4" photograph for the trainee to submit to the department with the application for accreditation;

b. one 1" x 1 1/4" photograph for the class roster submitted to the department by the training provider; and

c. one 1" x 1 1/4" photograph for the training provider to keep on file;

10. the training manager shall develop and implement a quality control plan. The plan shall be used to maintain or improve the quality of the training program over time. This plan shall contain at least the following elements:

a. procedures for periodic revision of training materials and course tests to reflect innovations in the field; and

b. procedures for the training manager's annual review of instructor competency;

11. training providers shall offer courses that teach the appropriate standards for conducting lead-based paint activities contained in LAC 33:III.2811, and other such standards adopted by the department;

12. the training manager shall be responsible for ensuring that the training provider complies at all times with all of the requirements of this Section;

13. the training manager shall allow the department to audit the training provider at any time during normal working hours;

14. training providers must be recognized to offer the initial training courses in order to offer the corresponding refresher training course(s):

a. a recognized refresher training course shall address the following topics:

i. an overview of current safety practices relating to lead-based paint activities in general, as well as specific information pertaining to the appropriate discipline;

ii. current laws and regulations relating to lead-based paint activities in general, as well as specific information pertaining to the appropriate discipline;

iii. current technologies relating to lead-based paint activities in general, as well as specific information pertaining to the appropriate discipline; and

iv. a review of the curriculum topics of the full-length course;

b. each refresher course, except for the project designer course, shall last a minimum of eight training hours and shall include a hands-on skills assessment if required in the original course. The project designer refresher course shall last a minimum of four training hours and does not require a hands-on skills assessment;

c. at the completion of the course, the student must pass a course test with a score of 70 percent or better; and

15. unannounced audits may be performed by the department to verify the certified statements, other contents of the application, and compliance with this Chapter.

C. Minimum Training Curricula Requirements. To obtain and maintain recognition training providers must ensure that their courses of study for the various lead-based paint activities disciplines cover the following subject areas. Passing students shall be provided with a course completion certificate:

Note: Listed requirements ending in an asterisk (*), for this Subsection only, indicate areas that require hands-on experience as an integral component of the course.

1. lead inspector:

a. role and responsibilities of lead inspector;

b. background information on lead and its adverse health effects;

c. background information on federal, state, and local regulations and guidance that pertains to lead-based paint and lead-based paint activities;

d. lead-based paint inspection methods, including selection of rooms and components for sampling or testing;*

e. paint, dust, and soil sampling methodologies;*

f. clearance standards and testing, including random sampling;*

g. preparation and submittal of the final inspection report;* and

h. recordkeeping;

2. risk assessor (inspector course completion certificate required as prerequisite):

a. role and responsibilities of risk assessor;

b. collection of background information to perform a risk assessment;

c. sources of environmental lead contamination such as paint, surface dust and soil, water, air, packaging, and food;

d. visual inspection for the purposes of identifying potential hazards associated with lead-based paint, dust-lead hazards, and soil-lead hazards;*

e. lead hazard screen protocol;

f. sampling for other sources of lead exposure;*

g. interpretation of lead-based paint and other lead sampling results;*

h. development of hazard control options, the role of interim controls, and operations and maintenance to reduce lead hazards; and

i. preparation of a final risk assessment report;

3. lead project supervisor:

a. role and responsibilities of lead project supervisor;

b. background information on lead and its adverse health effects;

c. background information on federal regulations that include 29 CFR 1926.62(1), state, and local regulations and guidance that pertain to lead-based paint abatement;

d. liability and insurance issues relating to lead-based paint abatement;

e. contract specifications, including conformance with building codes and cost estimation;

f. community relations;

g. project management and supervisory techniques;

h. risk assessment and inspection report interpretation;*

i. development and implementation of an occupant and worker protection plan and abatement report;

j. lead hazard recognition and control;*

k. lead-based paint abatement and lead hazard reduction methods, including restricted practices;*

l. interior dust abatement/cleanup or lead hazard control and reduction methods;*

m. soil and exterior dust abatement or lead hazard control and reduction methods;*

n. clearance standards and testing;

o. cleanup and waste disposal; and

p. recordkeeping;

4. project designer (lead project supervisor course completion certificate required as a prerequisite):

a. role and responsibilities of project designer;

b. development and implementation of an occupant and worker protection plan for large-scale abatement projects;

c. lead-based paint abatement and lead-based paint hazard reduction methods, including restricted practices for large-scale abatement projects;

d. interior dust abatement/cleanup or lead hazard control and reduction methods for large-scale abatement projects;

e. clearance standards and testing for large-scale abatement projects; and

f. integration of lead-based paint abatement methods with modernization and rehabilitation projects for large-scale abatement projects; and

5. lead worker:

a. role and responsibilities of lead worker;

b. background information on lead and its adverse health effects;

c. background information on federal regulations that must include 29 CFR 1926.62(l), state, and local regulations and federal and state guidance that pertain to lead-based paint abatement;

d. lead-based paint hazard recognition and control;*

e. personal protection equipment and personal hygiene;*

f. lead-based paint abatement and lead-based paint hazard reduction methods, including restricted practices;*

g. interior dust abatement methods/cleanup/waste disposal or lead-based paint hazard reduction;* and

h. soil and exterior dust abatement methods/cleanup/waste disposal or lead-based paint hazard reduction.*

D. Renewal of Training Provider's Recognition

1. A training provider seeking renewal of its recognition shall submit, along with the appropriate fees as required in LAC 33:III.223, a completed LPF-4 Form and a completed LPF-5 Form for each trainer to be recognized to the Office of Environmental Services 60 days prior to its expiration date. If a training provider does not submit its renewal application by that date, the department cannot guarantee the application will be reviewed and acted upon before the end of the one-year period.

2. The training provider's application for renewal of recognition shall contain:

a. the training provider's name, address, and telephone number;

b. a list of courses for which it is applying for renewal of recognition;

c. a description of any changes or updates to the training facility, equipment, or course materials; and

d. a statement signed by the training manager that certifies that:

i. the course materials for each course meet the requirements in Paragraphs C.1-5 of this Section, as appropriate;

ii. the principal instructors and guest instructors meet the qualifications in Paragraphs B.2-3 of this Section;

iii. the training provider complies at all times with all requirements in Subsection B of this Section;

iv. the quality control program meets the requirements in Paragraph B.10 of this Section; and

v. the recordkeeping and reporting requirements of Subsection G of this Section shall be followed.

3. A signed statement disclosing any violations of regulations governing training providers for which the applicant has been cited by any state or federal regulatory agency in the past year shall be submitted to the department. If no citation has been received during the previous year, that fact shall be stated. This disclosure shall include evidence that all penalties and fees assessed to the applicant are paid in full.

E. Notification Requirements. A training provider scheduling lead-based paint activities courses shall notify the Office of Environmental Services in writing as follows:

1. the written notification shall be received by the department at least five days before the start of initial training courses;

2. the written notification shall be received by the department at least two days before the start of refresher training courses;

3. the department shall be notified in writing of course location and time changes or cancellations 24 hours prior to the initial class day;

4. in the event that a training course must be scheduled immediately due to an emergency, notification to the department must be made as soon as possible, but no less than 24 hours prior to commencement of the course. Written justification for not notifying the department five working days in advance must be provided with the emergency training request;

5. in the notification, the training provider shall submit to the department the following information:

a. the name of the training course to be taught;

b. the dates and length of the training course;

c. the principal/guest instructors that will be teaching the course;

d. the name and telephone number of the training manager; and

e. the location where the course will be taught; and

6. the training course shall not start before the start date noted on the notification.

F. Suspension and Revocation of Recognized Training Providers

1. The department may suspend or revoke training provider recognition if a training provider has:

a. misrepresented the contents of a training course to the department and/or the student population;

b. failed to submit required information or notifications in a timely manner;

c. failed to maintain required records;

d. falsified records required by this Chapter, instructor qualifications, or other recognition information;

e. failed to comply with the training standards and other requirements of this Chapter;

f. failed to comply with federal, state, or local lead-based paint statutes or regulations; or

g. made false or misleading statements to the department, EPA, or another state in its application for recognition.

2. Suspension of training provider recognition shall be for no less than one year. Revocation of recognition shall be for no less than three years.

G. Training Provider Recordkeeping Requirements

1. Recognized training providers shall maintain, and make available to the department if requested, the following records:

a. all documents specified in Paragraph B.4 of this Section that demonstrate the qualifications listed in Paragraphs B.1-3 of this Section of the training manager, principal instructors, and guest instructors;

b. current curriculum/course materials and documents reflecting any changes made to these materials;

c. the course test blueprint;

d. information on how the hands-on assessment is conducted including, but not limited to, who conducts the assessment, how the skills are graded, what facilities are used, and the pass/fail rate;

e. the quality control plan as described in Paragraph B.10 of this Section; and

f. results of the student's hands-on skills assessments and course tests, and a copy of each student's course completion certificate and photograph.

2. Training providers may maintain records electronically.

3. The training provider shall retain these records at the location (e.g., address) specified on the training provider recognition application for five years.

4. The training provider shall notify the Office of Environmental Services 30 days prior to relocating its business or transferring its records.

La. Admin. Code tit. 33, § III-2805

Promulgated by the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Air Quality and Radiation Protection, Air Quality Division, LR 23:1666 (December 1997), amended by the Office of Environmental Assessment, Environmental Planning Division, LR 26:2459 (November 2000), LR 28:2337 (November 2002), amended by the Office of Environmental Assessment, LR 30:2804 (December 2004), amended by the Office of the Secretary, Legal Affairs Division, LR 31:2445 (October 2005), LR 33:642 (April 2007), LR 33:2091 (October 2007).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:2054 and 2351 et seq.