Section R156-55a-303b - Continuing Education - Standards(1) Under Section 58-55-302.5, each licensee shall complete six hours of continuing education during each two-year license term. A minimum of three hours shall be core education; the remaining three hours may be professional education or core education. A minimum of three hours shall consist of live in-class attendance; the remaining three hours may consist of distance learning courses. (a) Regular attendance by a Commission member on the Construction Services Commission shall satisfy the member's continuing education requirements under Section 58-55-302.5.(b) A contractor under Subsection R156-55a-301(2)(s) shall complete at least three of their six continuing education hours in continuing education directly related to the installation, repair, or replacement of a heating, ventilation, or air conditioning system.(c) A contractor under Subsection R156-55a-301(2)(r) or R156-55a-301(2)(v) that performs installation of a backflow preventer device shall complete at least two of their six continuing education hours in continuing education directly related to backflow installation.(d) Contractors with a renewal cycle that ends after January 1, 2020, shall complete at least one of their six continuing education hours in energy conservation.(e) "Core continuing education" means education related to construction codes, construction laws, job site safety, OSHA 10 or OSHA 30 safety training, governmental regulations pertaining to the construction trades and employee verification and payment practices, finance, bookkeeping, energy conservation, and construction business practices.(f) "Professional continuing education" means education related to substantive subjects dealing with the practice of the construction trades, including land development, land use, planning and zoning, professional development, arbitration practices, estimating, marketing techniques, servicing clients, personal and property protection for the licensee and the licensee's clients and similar topics.(g) The following course subject matter is not acceptable as core education or professional education hours:(i) mechanical office and business skills, such as typing, speed reading, memory improvement and report writing;(ii) physical well-being or personal development, such as personal and business motivation, stress management, time management, dress for success, or similar subjects;(iii) presentations by a supplier or a supplier representative to promote a particular product or line of products; and(iv) meetings held in conjunction with the general business of the licensee or employer.(h) The Division may defer or waive continuing education requirements as provided in Section R156-1-308d.(2) A continuing education course shall meet the following standards: (a) Each hour of credit shall consist of 50 minutes of education in the form of seminars, lectures, conferences, training sessions or distance learning modules. The remaining ten minutes is to allow for breaks.(b) The course provider shall be specified in Subsection 58-55-302.5(2).(c) The content of the course shall be relevant to the practice of the construction trades and consistent with the laws and rules of this state.(d) The learning objectives of the course shall be reasonably and clearly stated.(e) The course shall be presented in a competent, well organized and sequential manner consistent with the stated purpose and objective of the program.(f) The course shall be prepared and presented by individuals who are qualified by education, training and experience.(g) An internet or home study course may be recognized for continuing education if the course verifies registration and participation by means of a test demonstrating that the participant has learned the material. Test questions shall be randomized for each participant. A home study course shall include no fewer than five variations of the final examination, distributed randomly to participants. Home study courses, including the five exam variations, shall be submitted in their entirety to the Division for review. Providers shall track the following: (i) the amount of time each student has spent in the course;(ii) what activities the student did or did not access; and(iii) student's test scores.(h) The course provider shall: (i) have a competent method of registration of individuals who completed the course;(ii) maintain records of attendance available for review by the Division; and(iii) provide individuals completing the course a certificate that contains the following information: (B) name of the course provider;(C) name of the instructor;(E) hours of continuing education credit and type of credit, whether core or professional;(G) signature of the course provider.(i) A course provided through live broadcast may be recognized for live in-class continuing education credit if the student and the instructor are able to see and hear each other.(3) The Division may assign monitors at no charge to attend a course for evaluating the course and the instructor.(4)(a) Each licensee shall maintain adequate documentation as proof of compliance with this section, such as certificates of completion, course handouts and materials. The licensee shall retain this proof for two years from the end of the renewal period for which the continuing education is due.(b) Each licensee shall ensure that the course provider has submitted the verification of attendance to the continuing education registry on behalf of the licensee as specified in Subsection (8). Alternatively, the licensee may submit the course to the continuing education registry for approval and pay any course approval fees and attendance recording fees.(5) Licensees who lecture in continuing education courses meeting the requirements of Section R156-55a-303b shall receive two hours of continuing education for each hour spent lecturing. However, no lecturing or teaching credit is available for participation in a panel discussion.(6)(a) The continuing education requirements for electricians, plumbers, and elevator mechanics in Section 58-55-302.7, if offered by a provider specified in Subsection 58-55-302.5(2), shall satisfy the contractor continuing education requirements of Section 58-55-302.5 and this section.(b) The contractor licensee shall assure that the course provider has submitted the verification of the electrician's, plumber's or elevator mechanic's attendance on behalf of the licensee to the continuing education registry as specified in Subsection (8).(7) A course provider shall submit continuing education courses to the continuing education registry and shall submit verification of attendance and completion on behalf of licensees attending and completing the program directly to the continuing education registry in the format required by the continuing education registry.(8) The Division shall review continuing education courses that have been submitted through the continuing education registry and shall approve only those courses that meet the standards of this section.(9) As provided in Section 58-1-401 and Subsections 58-55-302.5(2) and 58-55-302.7(4)(a), the Division may refuse to renew or may revoke, suspend, restrict, place on probation, issue a public reprimand to, or otherwise act upon the approval of any course or provider, if the course or provider fails to meet any of the requirements of this section or the provider has engaged in unlawful or unprofessional conduct.(10) The Division shall designate an entity to act as the Continuing Education Registry, and the Continuing Education Registry in consultation with the Division and the Commission, shall: (a) through its internet site electronically receive applications from continuing education course providers, and submit to the Division for review and approval only those applications from programs that meet the standards of this section;(b) publish on their website listings of continuing education programs that have been approved by the Division, and that meet the standards for continuing education credit under this rule;(c) maintain accurate records of approved qualified continuing education;(d) maintain accurate records of verification of attendance and completion, by individual licensee, that the licensee may review for compliance with this rule; and(e) make records of approved continuing education programs and attendance and completion available for audit by representatives of the Division.(11) The Continuing Education Registry may charge a reasonable fee to continuing education providers or licensees for services provided for review and approval of continuing education programs.Utah Admin. Code R156-55a-303b
Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2015-24, effective 11/23/2015Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2017-11, effective 5/8/2017Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2017-23, effective 11/7/2017Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2019-2, effective 1/1/2019Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2019-16, effective 7/22/2019Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2020-19, effective 9/22/2020Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2023-02, effective 1/3/2023