Wastewater Certification Transition:
JETCC to Coordinate Maine
Wastewater Operator Certification Program
by
Tom Groves, NEIWPCC
Due to organizational changes in Maine’s
Department of Environmental Protection (MeDEP), the state is moving
the responsibility for coordinating its wastewater operator
certification program to the Joint Environmental Training Coordinating
Committee. JETCC currently coordinates the wastewater training program
for Maine under an agreement with the New England Interstate Water
Pollution Control Commission (NEIWPCC), which is based in Lowell,
Massachusetts, and has managed JETCC since 1985. The transition of the
certification program officially begins on January 1, 2006. MeDEP
training and certification staff initially will maintain their
existing roles with the program, but their involvement will diminish
over time as they assist with the transition to JETCC.
JETCC’s role will include coordinating
the state’s wastewater operator certification examinations, which are
traditionally held in May and November. (MeDEP staff will continue to
proctor the exams.) JETCC will distribute and accept exam
applications, and verify the qualifications of the applicants. It will
contract with a testing agency for the development and correction of
the exams, notify applicants of their exam scores, and forward all
exam results to MeDEP’s Commissioner, who will sign and issue
certificates.
JETCC will also coordinate the renewal
of the licenses of Maine’s wastewater operators. By March 1, 2006,
approximately half of the state’s wastewater operators must renew
their licenses; the remaining operators must renew by March 1, 2007.
All operators are required to obtain 18 Training Contact Hours within
the two-year renewal period. JETCC will coordinate sending renewal
notices to all operators, process payments for renewals, verify
training hours of applicants, provide MeDEP with a list of applicants
for renewal, send out renewal authorizations (signed by MeDEP), and
notify operators who do not renew in time that their license is
inactive. MeDEP will continue to issue operator certificates, and
review and act on emergency applications, appeals, and other matters
as required by law.
To assist with the renewal process,
JETCC will maintain the training records for all of Maine’s licensed
wastewater operators. Training organizations must provide JETCC with a
schedule of their training programs, and at the conclusion of a
course, send JETCC a final attendance list with the hours awarded.
MeDEP will still be responsible for reviewing all courses and
assigning the appropriate Training Contact Hours.
The fees generated by these programs
will be used to support JETCC’s activities as it assumes these new
responsibilities. However, since many of the fees charged by MeDEP in
the past did not totally cover the costs of the programs, a revised
fee schedule has been negotiated between JETCC, NEIWPCC, and MeDEP.
This new fee structure will include a $75 application fee for the
wastewater certification exam (both original application and retakes),
a $50 fee for license renewals, and a $25 reactivation fee for
operators who are inactive. The Executive Committee of the Maine
Wastewater Control Association (MWWCA) has endorsed the concept of
outsourcing these programs to JETCC and has agreed to this initial fee
structure.
For more information on the Maine
wastewater operator certification program, contact JETCC at (207)
253-8020 or email
jetcc@maine.rr.com.
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