R309-300. Certification Rules for Water Supply Operators.

R309-300-1. Objectives.

These certification rules are established to promote use of trained, experienced, and efficient personnel in charge of public waterworks and to establish standards whereby operating personnel can demonstrate competency to protect the public health through proficient operation of waterworks facilities.

R309-300-2. Authority.

Utah's Operator Certification Program is authorized by Section 19-4-104.

R309-300-3. Extent of Coverage - To Whom Rules Apply - Effective Date.

These rules shall apply to all community and non-transient non-community drinking water systems and all public drinking water systems that utilize treatment of the drinking water. This shall include both water treatment and distribution systems.

The certification requirements shall become effective February 1, 2001 for non-transient non-community drinking water systems and for community water systems serving less than 800 population utilizing only ground water or wholesale sources. These water systems shall have until February 1, 2003 to meet these requirements. For further information on this program, contact the Division of Drinking Water, telephone 536-4200.

R309-300-4. Definitions.

"Board" see the definition of: Drinking Water Board below.

"Commission" see the definition of: Operator Certification Commission.

"Community Water System" means a public drinking water system which serves at least 15 service connections used by year-round residents or regularly serves at least 25 year-round residents.

"Continuing Education Unit (CEU)" means ten contact hours of participation in, and successful completion of, an organized and approved continuing education experience under responsible sponsorship, capable direction, and qualified instruction. College credit in approved courses may be substituted for CEUs on an equivalency basis.

"Direct Employment" means that the operator is directly compensated by the drinking water system to operate that drinking water system.

"Direct Responsible Charge" means active on-site charge and performance of operation duties. A person in direct responsible charge is generally an operator of a water treatment plant or distribution system who independently makes decisions during normal operation which can affect the sanitary quality, safety, and adequacy of water delivered to customers. In cases where only one operator is employed by the system, this operator shall be considered to be in direct responsible charge.

"Discipline" means type of certification (Distribution or Treatment).

"Distribution System" means the use of any spring or well source, distribution pipelines, appurtenances, and facilities which carry water for potable use to consumers through a public water supply. Systems which chlorinate groundwater are in this discipline.

"Distribution System Manager" means the individual responsible for all operations of a distribution system.

"Division of Drinking Water" means the Division within the Utah Department of Environmental Quality which regulates public water supplies.

"Drinking Water Board" means the board appointed by the Governor responsible for promulgation, interpretation and enforcement of Drinking Water Rules in Utah.

"Executive Secretary" means the individual authorized by the Drinking Water Board to conduct business on its behalf. The Executive Secretary has been delegated the responsibility of conducting the necessary daily duties of the Board.

"Grade" means any one of the possible steps within a certification discipline of either water distribution or water treatment. The water distribution discipline has five steps and the water treatment discipline has four steps. Treatment Grade I and Distribution Small System indicate knowledge and experience requirements for the smallest type of public water supply. Grade IV indicates knowledge and experience levels appropriate for the largest, most complex type of public water supply.

"Grandparent Certificate" means the operator has not been issued an Operator Certificate through the examination process and that a restricted certificate has been issued to the operator which is limited to his current position and system. These certificates cannot be used with any other system should the operator transfer.

"Non-Transient Non-Community Water System" means a public water system that is not a community water system and that regularly serves at least 25 of the same persons for more than six months per year. Examples are separate systems serving workers and schools.

"Training Coordinating Committee" means the voluntary association of individuals responsible for environmental training in the state of Utah.

"Operator" means a person who operates, repairs, maintains, and is directly employed by or an appointed volunteer for a public drinking water system.

"Operator Certification Commission" means the Commission appointed by the Drinking Water Board as an advisory Commission on certification.

"Public Drinking Water System" means any drinking water system, either publicly or privately owned, that has at least 15 connections or serves at least 25 people for at least 60 days a year.

"Regional Operator" means a certified operator who is in direct responsible charge of more than one public drinking water system.

"Restricted Certificate" means that the operator has qualified by passing an examination but is in a restricted certification status due to lack of experience as an operator.

"Secretary" means the Secretary to the Operator Certification Commission. This is an individual appointed by the Executive Secretary to conduct the business of the Commission.

"Specialist" means a person who has successfully passed the written certification exam and meets the required experience, but who is not in direct employment with a Utah public drinking water system.

"Treatment Plant Manager" means the individual responsible for all operations of a treatment plant.

"Treatment Plant" means those facilities capable of delivering complete treatment to any water (the equivalent of coagulation and/or filtration) serving a public drinking water supply.

"Unrestricted Certificate" means that a certificate of competency has been issued by the Board on the recommendation of the Commission. This certificate implies that the operator has passed the appropriate level written examination and has met all certification requirements at the discipline and grade stated on his certificate.

R309-300-5. General Policies.

1. In order to become a certified water operator or specialist, an individual shall pass an examination administered by the Division of Drinking Water or qualify for the grandparent provisons outlined in R309-300-13.

2. Any properly qualified operator (see Minimum Required Qualifications for Utah Waterworks Operators Table 5) may apply for unrestricted certification.

3. Any properly qualified person (see Minimum Required Qualifications for Water System Specialists Table 6) may apply for Specialist certification. A Specialist, regardless of discipline or grade, shall not act as a direct responsible charge operator, or be in direct operation or supervise the direct operation of, any public drinking water system.

4. An individual who holds a current Specialist Certificate may apply for an Operator Certificate of the same discipline and grade upon verification of direct employment with a public drinking water system. An individual who holds a current Operator Certificate (Restricted and Unrestricted) may apply for a Specialist Certificate of the same discipline and grade if that operator leaves the direct employment of a drinking water system.

5. All direct responsible charge operators shall be certified at a minimum of the grade level of the water system with an appropriate certificate. Where 24-hour shift operation is used or required, one operator per shift must be certified at the classification of the system operated.

6. The Board, upon recommendation from the Commission, may waive examination of applicants holding a valid certificate or license issued in compliance with other state certification plans having equivalent standards, and grant reciprocity.

7. A grandparent certificate will require normal renewal as with other certificates and will be restricted to the existing position, person, and system for which it was issued. No further examination will be required unless the grade of the drinking water system increases or the operator seeks to change the certificate discipline or grade. At that time, all normal certification requirements must be met.

8. Every community and non-transient non-community drinking water system and all public systems that utilize treatment of the drinking water shall have at least one operator certified at the classified grade of the water system. The certification requirements for non-transient non-community drinking water systems and for community water systems serving less than 800 population, serving only ground water, shall be met by February 1, 2003. Certification must be appropriate for the type of system operated (treatment and/or distribution).

9. An individual who is issued an Operator Certificate shall be employed by, or an appointed volunteer for, a public drinking water supply located in Utah.

10. If the Distribution or Treatment Plant Manager is changed or leaves a particular water system, the water system management must notify the Secretary to the Operator Certification Commission within ten days by contacting the Division of Drinking Water in writing. Within one year, or four examination cycles, whichever is longer, the operator in the position of plant or system manager that requires certification must have passed an examination of the appropriate grade and discipline. Direct responsible charge experience may be gained later, together with unrestricted certification as experience is gained.

11. The Secretary to the Commission may suspend or revoke a certificate after due notice and opportunity for a hearing. See Section R309-300-9 for further details.

12. An operator may have the opportunity to take any grade of examination higher than the rating of the system which he operates. If passed, the operator shall be issued a restricted certificate at that higher grade. This certificate can be used to demonstrate that the operator has successfully passed all knowledge requirements for that discipline and grade, but that experience is lacking. This restricted certificate will become unrestricted when the experience requirements are met with written verification for the appropriate discipline and grade, provided it is renewed at the required intervals.

13. The Commission will review on a periodic basis each system's compliance with these rules and will refer those systems in violation to the Board for appropriate action. Any requirement can be appealed to the Board where unusual conditions warrant an exemption. Formal action in these areas will be taken on each case. The Commission will work closely with water system managements to ensure that efforts are underway to meet the requirements of these rules.

14. An operator who is acting as the direct responsible charge operator for more than one drinking water system (regional operator) shall not be a grandparent certified operator.

15. The regional operator must have an unrestricted certificate equal to or higher than the grade and discipline of the rating applied to each system he is operating.

16. If the regional operator is operating any system(s) that have both disciplines involved in their rating, the operator must have unrestricted certificates in both disciplines and at the highest grade of the most complex system he is working with.

17. A regional operator shall be within a one hour travel time, under normal work and home conditions, of each drinking water system for which he is considered in direct responsible charge unless a longer travel time is approved by the Operator Certification Commission based on availability of certified operators and the distance between community water systems in the area.

18. If the drinking water system has only one certified operator, with the exception of a drinking water system employing a regional operator, the operator must have a back up operator certified in the required discipline(s) and not more than one grade lower than the drinking water system's grade. The back up certified operator must be within one hour travel time of the drinking water system.

19. At no time will an uncertified operator be allowed to operate a drinking water system covered by these rules.

R309-300-6. Application for Examination.

1. Prior to taking an examination, the operator or specialist must file a written application with the Division of Drinking Water, accompanied by evidence of his qualifications for certification in accordance with provisions of this plan (see tables on minimum qualifications). Such applications shall be made on forms supplied by the Division.

2. An operator may elect to challenge any written examination which he believes can be successfully passed. Persons passing such a challenged examination shall be issued restricted certificates for the appropriate discipline and grade.

R309-300-7. Examinations.

1. The time and place of the examination to qualify for a certificate shall be determined by the Commission. All examinations for certification shall be given not less than twice a year, generally at each of 12 district health department offices. All examinations will be conducted on the same day, graded, and the applicant notified of the results within 30 days. If an operator taking the examination fails to pass, he may file an application for reexamination at the next available date.

2. The minimum passing grade for all certification exams shall be 70 percent correct on all questions asked.

3. An individual who has failed to pass at least two consecutive written exams, at the same grade level and discipline, may appeal the results by making an application for an oral exam. The oral exam will be administered by at least two Commission members. If the individual fails this exam, he will be given written notice of those areas deficient and asked to reapply for a written examination.

4. Examinations will be given in nine grades, four in water treatment and five water distribution. The examinations will cover, but not be limited to, the following areas:

(a) general water supply knowledge;

(b) control processes in water treatment or distribution;

(c) operation, maintenance, and emergency procedures in treatment or distribution;

(d) proper record keeping;

(e) laws and requirements, and water quality standards.

5. The written examination for specialist certification will be the same examination that is given for operator certification.

6. The written examination question bank and text matrix shall be reviewed periodically by the Commission.

R309-300-8. Certificates.

1. All certificates shall indicate the discipline for which they were issued as follows:

(a) Water Treatment Plant Operator, Unrestricted;

(b) Water Treatment Plant Operator, Restricted;

(c) Water Distribution Operator, Unrestricted;

(d) Water Distribution Operator, Restricted;

(e) Water Treatment Specialist;

(f) Water Distribution Specialist;

(g) Small System, Unrestricted;

(h) Small System, Restricted;

(i) Grandparent.

2. A restricted certificate will be issued to those operators who have passed a higher grade examination than the grade for which they have qualified in the experience category. Upon accumulating the necessary experience (see R309-300-19. Table 5 and Table 6), these restricted certificates will become unrestricted with the same renewal date. Certificates issued in the restricted status will be stamped with the word RESTRICTED on the bottom left corner of the certificate.

3. Grandparent certificates will be restricted to the person, position, and water system for which they were issued. These certificates will exempt the holder from further examination but will not be transferable to other persons, drinking water systems or positions.

4. A Specialist Certificate will be issued to those persons who have met the experience requirements and have successfully passed the written examination, but who are not in direct employment with a Utah Public Drinking Water System or in the case of requested conversion (see R309-300-8(5)).

5. An individual who currently holds a valid Utah Operator Certificate and who is no longer directly employed by a Utah drinking water system may request his Operator Certificate be converted to a Specialist Certificate with the same expiration date.

6. All certificates shall continue in effect for a period of three years unless suspended or revoked prior to that time. The certificate must be renewed every three years by payment of a renewal fee and evidence of required training (see R309-300-14). Certificates will expire on December 31, three years from the year of issuance.

7. Failure to remain active in the waterworks field during the three-year life of the Operator Certificate can be cause for denial of the application renewal.

8. Requests for renewal shall be made on the forms supplied by the Division of Drinking Water.

9. A lapsed certificate may be renewed within 6 months of the expiration date, by payment of the reinstatement fee or passing an examination. After the first six months from the expiration date, the operator shall have one year to appeal to the Operator Certification Commission for renewal of the certificate. After considering the training, experience, education and progress made since the certificate lapsed, the Commission may grant reinstatement without examination.

R309-300-9. Certificate Suspension and Revocation Procedures.

1. When the Secretary is considering the suspension or revocation of an Operator's or Specialist's certificate, the individual shall be so informed in writing. The communication shall state the reasons for considering such action and allow the individual an opportunity for a hearing.

2. Grounds for suspending or revoking an Operator's or a Specialist's certificate shall be any of the following:

(a) demonstrated disregard for the public health and safety;

(b) misrepresentation or falsification of figures and reports, or both, submitted to the State;

(c) cheating on a certification exam.

3. Suspension or revocation will be possible when it can be shown that the circumstances and events were under an Operator's or a Specialist's jurisdiction and control. Disasters or "acts of God" which could not be reasonably anticipated will not be grounds for a suspension or a revocation action.

4. Following an appropriate hearing on these matters, the Commission will take formal action. This action shall include a description of the findings of fact to be placed in the Operator's or the Specialist's certification file and mailed to the Operator or the Specialist involved. This communication shall also state the lengths of suspension or revocation, and the procedures to reapply for certification at the end of the specified disciplinary period.

5. Any suspension or revocation may be appealed to the Drinking Water Board by filing a request for a hearing with the Executive Secretary. The Executive Secretary shall place this matter on the agenda of the next regular meeting and so inform the appellant. The request for a hearing must be received by the Executive Secretary at least 14 calendar days prior to a scheduled Board meeting in order to be placed on the Board's agenda.

R309-300-10. Fees.

1. Fees for operator and specialist certification shall be submitted in accordance with Section 63-38-3.

2. Examination fees from applicants who are rejected before examination will be returned to the applicant.

3. Application fees will not be returned.

R309-300-11. Facilities Classification System.

1. All treatment plants and distribution systems shall be classified in accordance with R309-300-19.

2. Classification will be made by either the point system or on a population-served basis, whichever results in a higher classification.

3. When the classification of a system is upgraded or added to existing system ratings, the Secretary to the Commission will make a decision on the timing to be allowed for operators to gain certification at the higher or different level.

R309-300-12. Qualifications of Operators.

1. Minimum qualifications are outlined in Minimum Required Qualifications for Utah Waterworks Operators, Table 5, and Minimum Certification Qualifications for Water System Specialists, Table 6, included with these rules (see Section R309-300-19).

2. Approved high school equivalencies can be substituted for the high school graduation requirement.

3. Education of an operator can be substituted for experience, but no more than 50 percent of the experience may be satisfied by education. Note: The exception to this is in grades I and II, where the "one year of experience" requirement cannot be reduced by any amount of education.

4. Education of a specialist cannot be substituted for the required experience (see Minimum Certification Qualifications for Water System Specialists Table 6).

R309-300-13. Grandparent Certification Criteria.

1. The owner of a non-transient non-community drinking water system or a community water system serving 800 or less population and which utilizes only groundwater or wholesale sources may apply for Grandparent certification for the operators in direct responsible charge of their water system by February 1,2003.

2. Applications for grandparent certification shall be made on applications supplied by the Division of Drinking Water. The applications must be received by the Division of Drinking Water no later than the date listed above, thereafter applications for grandparent certifications will not be accepted.

3. Grandparent certificate will be available for community and non-transient non-community water systems that serve a population of 800 or less and to operators who meet the following criteria:

(a) System serving 500 or less population (Small System operator):

(i) The operator shall have at least 3 years experience operating the water system for which grandparent certification is being applied for.

(ii) The operator shall have operated the water system in compliance with the Utah Public Drinking Water Rules (R309-100 through R309-820) for the most recent 3 year time period. Compliance shall mean that the system shall not have at any time exceeded the 75 percent of allowable number of Improvement Priority points allowed for an "Approved" water system in R309-400. For purposes of compliance determination for grandparent certification qualification only, points assessed for capital improvements that exceed a cost of $1,000 will be excluded from the total.

(b) System serving 501 to 800 population (Distribution I operator):

(i) The operator shall have at least 5 years experience operating the water system for which grandparent certification is being applied for.

(ii) The operator shall have operated the water system in compliance with the Utah Public Drinking Water Rules (R309-100 through R309-820) for the most recent 5 year time period. Compliance shall mean that the system shall not have at any time exceeded the 75 percent of allowable number of Improvement Priority points allowed for an "Approved" water system in R309-400. For purposes of compliance determination for grandparent certification qualification only, points assessed for capital improvements that exceed a cost of $1,000 will be excluded from the total.

4. If an operator is denied certification through the Grandparent process, the decision may be appealed as outlined in R309-300-9(4) and R309-300-9(5) of these rules.

R309-300-14. CEUs and Approved Training.

1. CEUs will be required for renewal of all certificates (grandparent, restricted and unrestricted) according to the following schedule:

2. Grandparent certificates are required to have 2.0 or 3.0 CEUs, as per the water system classification, for certificate renewal. Grandparent certificates issued after the calendar year of 2000 are required to obtain 0.7 CEUs of an approved pre-exam training course as part of the 2.0 CEU renewal requirement. These specific CEUs shall be obtained during the first renewal cycle of said certificate.

3. Groups that currently sponsor approved education activities in Utah are:

The Rural Water Association of Utah;

Salt Lake Community College

Utah Valley State College;

Utah State University at Logan;

Utah Department of Environmental Quality;

Manufacturer's Representatives;

American Water Works Association;

American Backflow Prevention Association.

4. A continuing education unit is defined as 10 contact hours of participation in, and successful completion of, an organized and approved training education experience under qualified instruction.

5. College level education is accepted in drinking water related disciplines upon approval of the Secretary to the Commission as to CEU credits (1 quarter credit hour will equal 1.0 CEU or 1 semester credit hour will equal 1.5 CEUs).

6. All CEUs for certificate renewal shall be subject to review for approval to insure that the training is applicable to waterworks operation and meets CEU criteria. Identification of approved training, appropriate CEU or credit assignment and verification of successful completion is the responsibility of the Secretary to the Commission. Training records will be maintained by the Division of Drinking Water.

7. All in-house or in-plant training which is intended to meet any part of the CEU requirements must be approved by the Secretary to the Commission in writing prior to the training.

8. In-house or in-plant training submitted to the Secretary of the Commission must meet the following general criteria to be approved:

(a) Instruction must be under the supervision of an approved instructor.

(b) An outline must be submitted of the subjects to be covered and the time to be allotted to each area.

(c) A list of the teacher's objectives shall be submitted which will document the essential points of the instruction ("need-to-know" information) and the methods used to illustrate these principles.

9. One CEU credit will be given for registration and attendance at the annual technical program meeting of the American Water Works Association (AWWA), the Intermountain Section of AWWA, the Rural Water Association of Utah, or the National Rural Water Association.

R309-300-15. Validation of Previously Issued Certificates.

1. All current certificates issued by the Executive Secretary will remain in effect until their stated date of expiration and may be renewed at any time before this date in accordance with the rules established herein. Certificates will be issued for a three-year period.

2. Those individuals who were issued Grandparent Certificates and subsequently passed an examination within the same discipline, at the same grade, or a higher grade will be issued a new unrestricted certificate which will nullify the existing "Grandparent " certificate.

R309-300-16. Operator Certification Commission.

1. An Operator Certification Commission shall be appointed by the Drinking Water Board from recommendations made by the cooperating agencies. Cooperating agencies are the Utah Department of Environmental Quality, the Utah League of Cities and Towns, the Training Coordinating Committee of Utah, the Intermountain Section of the American Water Works Association, the Civil or Environmental Engineering Departments of Utah's Universities, and the Rural Water Association of Utah.

2. The Commission is charged with the responsibility of conducting all work necessary to promote the program, recommend certification of operators, and oversee the maintenance of records.

3. The Commission shall consist of seven members as follows:

(a) One member shall be a certified operator from a town having a population under 10,000 and will be nominated by the Rural Water Association of Utah.

(b) One member shall be at least a grade III unrestricted certified distribution operator and will be nominated by the American Water Works Association.

(c) One member shall be at least a grade III unrestricted certified water treatment plant operator and will be nominated by the American Water Works Association.

(d) One member shall represent municipal water supply management and will be nominated by the Utah League of Cities and Towns.

(e) One member shall represent the civil or environmental engineering department of a Utah university cooperating with the certification program.

(f) One member shall represent water supply trainers and will be nominated by the Training Coordinating Committee (TCC).

(g) One member shall be a representative for the Drinking Water Board.

4. Each group represented shall designate its nominee to the Drinking Water Board for a three-year term. Nominations may be accepted or rejected by the Drinking Water Board. Persons may be renominated for successive three-year terms by their sponsor groups. The Executive Secretary for the Drinking Water Board shall notify the sponsoring groups one year in advance of the termination of the Commission member that a nominee will be needed. The initial Commission at its first meeting will draw lots corresponding to one, two, and three-year terms. Thereafter, all Commission member terms will be for three years on a staggered replacement basis. An appointment to succeed a Commission member who is unable to serve his full term shall be only for the remainder of the unexpired term and shall be submitted by the sponsor groups and approved by the Drinking Water Board as mentioned above.

5. Each year the Commission shall elect from its membership a chairperson and vice-chairperson and such other officers as may be needed to conduct its business.

6. It shall be the duty of the Commission to advise in the preparation of examinations for various grades of operators and advise on the certification criteria used by the Secretary. In addition to these duties, the Commission shall also advertise and promote the program, distribute applications and notices, maintain a register of certified Operators and Specialists, set examination dates and locations, and make recommendations regarding each drinking water system's compliance with these rules.

R309-300-17. Secretary to the Commission.

The Executive Secretary of the Drinking Water Board shall designate a non-voting member of the Commission to serve as its Secretary, who shall be a senior public health representative from the Division of Drinking Water. This Secretary shall serve to coordinate the paperwork for the Commission and to bring issues before the Commission. His duties consist of the following:

1. acting as liaison between the Commission and the water suppliers, and generally promote the program;

2. maintaining records necessary to implement these rules;

3. classifying all water treatment plants and distribution systems;

4. notifying sponsor groups of Commission nominations needed;

5. coordinating with Utah's Training Coordinating Committee (TCC) to ensure adequate operator training opportunities throughout the state;

6. serving as a source of public information for operator training opportunities and certified operators available for employment;

7. receiving applications for certification and screen, investigate, verify and evaluate all applications received consistent with policies set by the Board and Commission;

8. bringing issues to the Commission for their review;

9. developing and administering operator certification examinations.

R309-300-18. Non-compliance with Certification Program.

1. After appropriate consideration by the Commission, cases of non-compliance will be referred to the Drinking Water Board for appropriate enforcement action.

2. Non-compliance with the certification rules is a violation of R309-102-8. Whenever such a violation occurs, the water system management will be notified in writing by the Division of Drinking Water and will be required to correct the situation.

R309-300-19. Drinking Water System Classification.

This system applies only to those public water supplies operating coagulation and/or filtration treatment plants. This classification system does not apply to those systems operating only chlorination facilities on distribution systems.

KEY: drinking water, environmental protection, administrative procedure

Date of Enactment or Last Substantive Amendment: November 20, 2000

Notice of Continuation: May 16, 2005

Authorizing, and Implemented or Interpreted Law: 19-4-104; 63-46b-4

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