PRINTER'S NO. 3604
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
2462
Session of
2018
INTRODUCED BY MALONEY, MILLARD, ZIMMERMAN, WATSON, WHEELAND,
GILLEN AND HEFFLEY, JUNE 5, 2018
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY,
JUNE 5, 2018
AN ACT
Providing for registration of on-lot wastewater treatment system
inspectors with the Department of State of the Commonwealth,
for biennial registration and for duties of certifying
organizations.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the On-Lot
Disposal System (OLDS) Homeowner and Real Estate Buyer
Protection Act.
Section 2. Purpose and application.
(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this act is to provide for
training and certification for those individuals performing
inspections for existing on-lot disposal systems for buyers or
sellers in a real estate transaction, or for implementation of a
municipal sewage management program, or to satisfy operation and
maintenance permit conditions under current department
regulations and guidelines and to satisfy certain minimum
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qualifications, including prerequisite training, the passage of
a comprehensive written examination, subsequent continuing
education and for correction of unsatisfactory conditions.
(b) Application.--Nothing in this act shall be interpreted
as legally requiring an on-lot disposal system inspection in a
real estate transaction between private parties.
Section 3. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Absorption area." A reserved portion of a property through
which treatment tank effluent is intended to move as it enters
the soil, air or water environment for final renovation or
dispersal.
"Best performance practices." The process by which the
performance of an on-lot system that has been found to be
performing unsatisfactorily can be improved. The practices shall
be at the discretion of a local agency or its representative.
"Certification exam." A written, time-limited, standardized
examination administered in collaboration with an accredited
college or university at the close of each certification
training event.
"Certified inspector." An individual who has completed a
course of study prescribed by the certifying organization and
attained a passing score on a written examination.
"Certifying organization." An incorporated organization
which has provided instruction dealing with OLDS, courses of
which include location, identification and evaluation of
existing OLDS that leads to a conclusion as defined in the
inspection standards. The organization shall have at least 20
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years of experience in providing the instructions.
"Department." The Department of State of the Commonwealth.
"Inspection standards." A printed or electronically
transmitted set of criteria that has been tested for a minimum
of 10 years, which specifies the conclusion to be reported to a
client when a particular circumstance or characteristic is
observed in an OLDS under inspection and that are set by a
committee of industry-related professionals selected by a
certifying organization.
"On-lot disposal system" or "OLDS." An individual or
community sewage system which uses a system of piping, tanks or
other facilities for collecting, treating and disposing of
sewage into a soil absorption area as recognized by regulations
promulgated by the act of January 24, 1966 (1965 P.L.1535,
No.537), known as the Pennsylvania Sewage Facilities Act, and
includes flow facilities as defined by those regulations.
"Sewage management program." A program authorized by the
official action of a municipality for the administration,
management and regulation for the disposal of sewage.
"Unsatisfactory condition." A condition that signals an OLDS
or any of its components is deemed to be unsatisfactory per the
inspection standards.
Section 4. Inspector training.
(a) General rule.--An OLDS inspector shall complete a
comprehensive training program, including initial training that
consists of a minimum of 15 hours of combined classroom and
field training following a course of study administered by the
certifying organization. In addition, an OLDS inspector shall
complete a minimum of 15 hours of continuing education
biannually as administered by the certifying organization. The
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course curriculum shall include at a minimum:
(1) Methods of investigation that will enable the
inspector to locate and identify existing OLDS.
(2) A description and explanation of the OLDS likely to
be encountered servicing structures in this Commonwealth,
including methods to determine the type of system located.
(3) An explanation of the hand and other tools used to
locate and gather information on existing systems.
(4) An explanation of the published inspection
standards, derivations of standards, the underlying concepts
that support the specified conclusions and how to apply the
standards.
(5) An overview of effective communication in English,
including both report writing and verbal communication
skills.
(6) Certain advanced technologies shall require
additional specified training as prescribed by the certifying
organization.
(b) Review of curriculum.--At a frequency to be determined
by the certifying organization a minimum of every three years,
by a panel of certified inspectors, trainers, professors or
researchers affiliated with soil science or specialized
engineering curricula from an accredited college or university
and sewage enforcement officers shall review the curriculum and
standards. The certifying organization shall appoint the members
of its review panel to the panel described in this subsection.
(c) Demonstration of proficiency.--
(1) At the conclusion of a training session, each
trainee seeking certification or recertification must score
at least 70% on a written examination. The examination shall
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test the skills taught in the respective courses.
(2) The examination results shall be reviewed by an
accredited college or university to assure the statistical
validity of the questions and scores.
Section 5. Inspector registration.
(a) General rule.--An individual conducting or offering to
conduct septic system inspections shall register the
individual's credentials with the department. The department
shall maintain a public list of such individuals who have
complied with this section.
(b) Initial registration.--When registering, an inspector
shall provide a certificate from a certifying organization that
the inspector has completed the requisite training and achieved
a passing score on the certification examination.
(c) Continuing education required for all certified
individuals.--Prior to the expiration of an inspector's
certification, and no less frequently than every two years, an
inspector shall complete a minimum of 15 hours of continuing
education which shall be approved by the certifying
organization. At a minimum, the continuing education shall
address the following subjects:
(1) A review of the inspection standards.
(2) A written examination with a passing score of 70%.
(3) Additional curriculum as required by the certifying
organization.
Section 6. Biennial registration.
(a) General rule.--Every two years following initial
registration, an inspector shall submit to the department a
certificate from a certifying organization indicating that the
inspector has completed the requisite continuing education
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training and achieved a passing score on the posttraining
examination. Registration shall be for a period of two years,
ending on the last day of the month during which the department
receives the appropriate documentation from inspectors and shall
not be transferable. Only a natural person may become registered
with the department. All inspections shall be performed by, and
all inspection reports shall be signed by, a registered
individual.
(b) Public access to list of registered inspectors.--The
department shall maintain a list of all registered inspectors
and make the list available to the public on the department's
publicly accessible Internet website or in writing if so
requested.
Section 7. Certifying organizations.
(a) Duty to register.--A certifying organization shall
register with the department identifying the location of the
organization's principal place of business, the officers of the
corporation and related contact information.
(b) Inspection standards to be filed.--A certifying
organization shall file a copy of the inspection standards which
form the basis for that organization's training curriculum and
for the inspection reports issued by the inspectors that
organization certifies.
(c) Complaint resolution.--A certifying organization shall
establish and maintain a quasi-judicial body to hear complaints
against individuals certified by the organization. The quasi-
judicial body may require additional training and, if the
severity of the circumstances warrants, revoke or suspend an
inspector's certification.
(d) Regulatory oversight.--The department reserves the right
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to assess the capability of a certifying organization based on
the following criteria:
(1) Limiting assessment per certifying organization or
certified trainer to once each two-year period unless the
assessment is in response to a complaint filed to the
department. Nothing in this section shall be construed as
requiring a more frequent assessment for each certifying
organization or certified trainer than is stated above.
(2) Verifying technical experience or background of the
certifying organization.
(3) Observing a specific training session to evaluate
curriculum quality.
(4) Assessing certified trainers based on observation of
a specific training session.
(e) Performance reviews.--An individual may request a
certifying organization to review the performance of an
inspector that the organization has certified, and the request
shall be the venue of first review for all complaints against an
inspector.
Section 8. Trainer selection.
(a) Duty to certify trainers.--A certifying organization
shall certify trainers and, at least once every three years,
evaluate individuals who will train inspector candidates.
(b) Qualifications.--An inspector trainer candidate or
subsequently certified trainer shall:
(1) Before entering a train-the-trainer course and while
performing as a trainer, score at least 85% on the
certification examination.
(2) Participate in a minimum six-hour train-the-trainer
course presented by the certifying organization.
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(3) Be a certified inspector before participating in a
train-the-trainer course.
(4) Remain certified throughout the time during which
performing as trainer.
(c) Train-the-trainer course.--A train-the-trainer course
shall prepare the trainers to teach the organization's
inspection standards and an overview of this act.
(d) Annual notice to department.--A certifying organization
shall notify the department annually of the trainers currently
certified to teach the curriculum.
Section 9. Municipal ordinances.
(a) Prohibitions.--
(1) No municipality, for the purpose of zoning ordinance
compliance or as a condition of the issuance of a certificate
of occupancy or use, may enact or enforce an ordinance,
policy or regulation that requires the inspection of an
existing septic system at the time of change of ownership or
occupancy unless the change in use or occupancy can
reasonably be expected to alter the characteristics of the
sewage generated or the flows to the existing OLDS under the
act of January 24, 1966 (1965 P.L.1535, No.537), known as the
Pennsylvania Sewage Facilities Act.
(2) No municipality may require that an inspection
report resulting from an inspection performed voluntarily by
a homeowner or prospective buyer be given to the
municipality.
(b) Mandatory inspection program permitted.--When
implementing a sewage management program, a municipality may
establish a mandatory inspection program provided that all
inspectors are qualified and registered under the provisions of
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this act. The costs of the inspections shall be borne by the
landowner and performed by an inspector registered under this
act. The municipality shall specify that the sewage management
program requires all OLDS to be inspected. The report resulting
from the inspections shall be provided to both the municipality
and the landowner.
(c) Sewage enforcement officers.--The inspector conducting
inspections under a municipal sewage management program may be
the municipal or local agency sewage enforcement officer if the
officer is registered under this act.
Section 10. Correcting unsatisfactory conditions.
(a) Duty to report and repair.--When, during an inspection
conducted under this act, an unsatisfactory condition is
observed, the condition shall be reported to the inspector's
customer in writing.
(b) Corrective measures.--When considering corrective
measures for an unsatisfactory condition which has been
discovered during an inspection, it shall be the policy of the
Department of Environmental Protection and local agencies
administering the act of January 24, 1966 (1965 P.L.1535,
No.537), known as the Pennsylvania Sewage Facilities Act, to
first consider all Conventional and Alternate OLDS as recognized
by regulations promulgated by the Pennsylvania Sewage Facilities
Act in the correction of existing unsatisfactory conditions and,
when the systems cannot be constructed in accordance with
existing regulations, to employ the best performance practices
possible in attempting to repair, replace or enable the system
to perform to its reasonable maximum potential in order to
diminish, to the greatest extent possible, the system's negative
environmental or health impacts.
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(c) Requirement to issue or replace permit.--A permit to
improve the performance of an OLDS shall be issued by the local
agency at the request of the system owner.
Section 11. Enforcement.
(a) Failure to register.--Every individual offering to or
performing the inspection of an existing on-lot wastewater
treatment system who is not registered with the department as
required by this act commits a violation of this act.
(b) Cause of action.--A party aggrieved by the actions of an
individual in violation of this act may initiate an action in
the magisterial district in which the inspection was or was to
be performed for damages of not less than $1,000 nor more than
$10,000 resulting from a misrepresentation by the unregistered
individual.
(c) Public list of violators.--The department shall maintain
and make available to the public on its publicly accessible
Internet website a list of individuals who, after due
administrative process, were found by the department to be in
violation of this act. The list shall identify each section of
the act the individual has violated. Although the department is
expected to update the list each time an enforcement action is
taken, there shall be an annual review to remove those
individuals from the list whose violation of this act occurred
at least three years prior to the annual review.
(d) Appeals.--An individual who, after due administrative
process is found by the department to be in violation of this
act, may appeal this decision in Commonwealth Court. If the
violation is appealed, the public record cited in subsection (c)
shall insert the words "UNDER APPEAL" after the citation of the
specific section of this act having been violated.
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(e) Suspension.--If a certified trainer or certifying
organization is found to be in violation of this act, the
department may suspend the certified trainer's or certified
organization's registration for a period not exceeding three
months if there has been due administrative process and right to
appeal in Commonwealth Court.
Section 12. Effective date.
This act shall take effect as follows:
(1) This section shall take effect immediately.
(2) Sections 5(c) and 11 shall take effect in 12 months.
(3) The remainder of this act shall take effect in 60
days.
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