Section 250-RICR-150-10-5.11 - CertificationA. Upon satisfactory fulfillment by an applicant of the provisions of the rules and regulations adopted by the Board, the Board shall issue a suitable Certificate designating competency. This two (2) year Certificate shall expire at the end of every other calendar year and may be renewed thereafter for additional two (2) year periods. The Certificate shall indicate the grade of treatment facility for which the operator is qualified. The Certificates for Superintendent and Assistant Superintendents shall be prominently displayed in the office of the Wastewater Treatment Facility.B. A newly issued Certificate shall expire at the end of odd-numbered calendar years and may be renewed for additional two (2) year periods thereafter. 1. Licensees who are no longer employed at a Rhode Island Wastewater Treatment Facility may continue to renew their Certificate.2. Licensees will be notified at their address of record as to the expiration of their Certificate, and the necessity to renew. All renewals and payments must be received by December 31st of the year of expiration. a. The license of any individual who does not apply for renewal by December 31st of every odd-numbered calendar year will expire. However, the Board will send a second (2nd) notice to the licensee by Certified Mail stating the individual has until February 15th (or the following business day) to apply for renewal and pay a late fee of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) in addition to the renewal fee. A copy of the second (2nd) notice will be sent to the Operator's Superintendent if the Licensee is employed at a Rhode Island Wastewater Treatment Facility.b. If a Licensee does not renew by February 15th and pay the renewal fee and the twenty-five dollar ($25.00) late fee, the expiration of said License will remain permanently in effect. Once an individual's License is permanently expired, said individual will no longer be able to work as an operator at a Wastewater Treatment Facility in the State of Rhode Island.c. Should the Board be unable to contact a Licensee whose address of record has changed and no forwarding address is available, and if that Licensee is no longer working at a Wastewater Treatment Facility in Rhode Island, the Board will make no further attempt at notification regarding licensure expiration.d. Re-certification will be through examination only.3. Should the Board determine that a substantial number of acceptable training courses are available to all grades of Rhode Island Licensees, then the Board may institute a Mandatory Retraining for Renewal (MRR) requirement which will operate with the following guidelines:a. The Board must notify Licensees, within ninety (90) days of the close of a two (2) year licensure period that the MRR is presently in effect. Hence, in order to renew an Operator License for the next renewal date (i.e., in approximately two (2) years) a minimum amount of training will be required.b. All Licensees must satisfactorily attain twenty (20) hours of acceptable training within the two (2) year period.c. Training hours, to be considered acceptable and to be applied to a Licensee's training hours, must be achieved from a course, seminar, or other curriculum which has been approved by the Board. Any course, seminar or curriculum will be reviewed by the Board or its designees for purposes of granting prior approval.d. The Licensee is responsible for ensuring that a course, seminar or other curriculum is approved by the Board, and that those hours with that course can be accredited to the Operator's training requirements.e. The burden of proof lies with the Licensee to satisfy the Board that any course, seminar, or other curriculum not previously approved by the Board meets Board criteria and should be approved for credit.f. The Board is not responsible for notifying Licensees of their individual status and/or the number of credited hours which they have attained. Additionally, it is ultimately the individual Licensee's responsibility to inform the Board of any training hours to be applied to their training hours.g. At the close of the two (2) year renewal period, the Board will determine if each Licensee has been credited with the required hours of acceptable training.h. If a Licensee has not acquired the required hours, as specified above, then the License will not be renewed and the License will then be invalid. With an invalid License, the individual will not be able to work as an Operator at a Wastewater Treatment Facility in the State of Rhode Island. Recertification will be by examination only.4. At the time of License renewal, a Licensee may choose to renew their License in either one (1) or the other of two (2) licensure tiers: Tier One is reserved for renewals without participation in optional training protocols; Tier Two renewal will include documentation that the Licensee has, at their own discretion, met particular training requirements, enumerated below.a. Renewal in Tier One will result in standard Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3, or Grade 4 licensure levels; Tier Two renewals will result in a Grade 1T, Grade 2T, Grade 3T, or Grade 4T. No matter what Tier the Licensee holds, the Licensee can then choose during that renewal period to participate in the requisite training so that subsequent renewal may be achieved at the Tier Two level.b. For the purposes of these Regulations, participation in the Tier Two level is optional.c. Both Tiers will meet the intent of statutory and regulatory Wastewater Operator licensure requirements.d. To participate in Tier Two licensure renewal, the Licensee must submit adequate documentation at the time of renewal of the successful completion of training per the following: (1) Operators seeking to participate in the Tier Two licensure renewal status must attain twenty (20) training hours during the prior renewal period.(2) To be credited toward the required amount of twenty (20) hours, a training event/program must be approved by the Board.(3) Approved training may include professional conferences, classroom training, and in-house training programs or active participation in the Narragansett Water Pollution Control Association's Operator Challenge Team.(4) Applicable training is intended to be in topics that are not required for the performance of an Operator's required duties, however the Board will accept requests for approval for any training opportunity. The Board holds the final authority as to the applicability of a particular training course for use by an individual operator. Training required by the licensee's employer as a condition of employment will not be applicable to meet the intent of this provision.(5) Unless otherwise requested at the time of renewal application, Licenses will be renewed at the Tier One level.(6) Random audits will examine the validity of submitted information for Tier Two renewal; a determination that false or misleading information has been submitted regarding training contact hours may result in the revocation of the License.(7) The Board reserves the right to rescind a prior approval of a training course and remove any hours from an operator's total training hours that were gained through that course.C. As a condition of certification, Licensees are responsible for informing the Board in writing as to a change of address or a change in employment status. Said notification must be within thirty (30) calendar days of said change.D. Superintendents of a facility are responsible for notifying the Board when their facility hires a new operator. Said notification must be within thirty (30) calendar days of the hiring and must include the operator's full name, address, social security number and starting date.E. Should a facility be upgraded or reclassified, all positions in Direct Responsible Charge must attain through examination (or, if so qualified, equivalency) the required certification levels per §§ 5.6(E) and 5.6(F) of this Part prior to the initiation of operations or start-up procedures for the facility.F. Certificates may be issued, upon application, without examination, in a comparable classification to any individual who holds a Certificate issued by any State, recognized by the Association of Boards of Certification, if in the judgment of the Board, the requirements for certification of Operators under which such individual's Certificate was issued are equivalent to the requirements of these Regulations. 1. A Certificate issued under the provisions of this sub-rule is valid at any Wastewater Treatment Facility.2. In order for an applicant to obtain a Rhode Island Grade 4 Wastewater Treatment Facility Operator's License on the basis of the applicant's possession of an Operator's License issued by another recognized certifying authority, the applicant must also demonstrate the following to the satisfaction of the Board:a. That the applicant provides valid evidence that he/she is employed or has been accepted for employment as an Assistant Superintendent or a Superintendent at a Grade 4 Wastewater Treatment Facility in the state of Rhode Island; and,b. That his/her past or current employment as an equivalent Grade 4 Operator at an equivalent Grade 4 Wastewater Treatment Facility, as determined by the Board, located in the State which issued the equivalent Grade 4 Wastewater Treatment Facility operator's License must have terminated no earlier than one (1) year prior to the filing of his/her application with the Board and completed his/her service In Good Standing.G. Certificates issued without examination to those Operators so employed as of June 30, 1979 shall be valid only in that facility at which the Operator was employed at the time of certification.250 R.I. Code R. 250-RICR-150-10-5.11
Amended effective 10/28/2021