PMEP Home Page Pesticide Applicator Certification General Instructions and Information

INSTRUCTIONS FOR

Sponsors of Pesticide Certification 30-Hour Eligibility Courses

August 2005

The following procedures are to be followed by 30-hour eligibility training course sponsors to obtain course approval and assigned credits from New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (Department).

ADVANCE NOTICE

Current regulations (6 NYCRR 325.18) require that pesticide applicator training courses be approved by the Department prior to the course being offered. No retroactive approvals are permitted. Applications for pesticide applicator training courses must be complete and must be submitted at least 45 days prior to the commencement of the course to allow sufficient time for review, approval, and return of course approval documents to the sponsor. Course applications received less than 45 days before the course date will NOT be approved. Course applications are processed on a first in/first out basis. Plan accordingly if you need credit information in advance for course announcements.

submitTING FOR APPROVAL

The course sponsor must submit the training course application Parts A and B [44-10-6] to the NYSDEC, Bureau of Pesticides Management, Pesticide Reporting & Certification Section, 625 Broadway, Albany, New York 12233-7254. The request for course approval must include:

• A fully completed Certified Pesticide Applicator Training Course Application.
  Note: Part B must be completed for each instructor.
  
  
• A detailed course description with time of training in each subject; all subjects listed
  under Section 325.18 must be covered. Applications without adequate subject detail will
  be returned. The course must include a minimum of 15 hours of training in Core Manual
  topics and a specified minimum hours of training in category/subcategory specific topics
  (See Enclosure: Minimum Category Specific Training for 30-Hour Eligibility Courses).
  No "Core only" or "All Category" eligibility courses will be approved. The total length
  of training must be a minimum of 30 hours.
  
  
• A program agenda that includes start/stop times in clock hours for all topics and breaks.
  The start and stop times (e.g. 10:00-10:30) for each subject or speaker as well as any
  breaks or meals must be shown. A maximum of 7.5 hours of training per day will be
  approved for a certification eligibility course. Minimum break periods of 15 minutes for
  every three hours of continuous training must be included. If the course or activity
  involves a tour, you must provide an itinerary which includes travel stops and times.
  
  
• A description of the methods used to ensure that only attendees who sit for a course
  receive a course certificate and that the certificate awards credit only for the time the attendee
  actually sat in the course.
  
  
• Copies of all materials to be handed out at the course, if requested by the Department.
  
  
• A draft copy of the course announcement if one is to be sent to prospective attendees.
  The announcement should not imply in any way that the Department is a course sponsor.
  

Incomplete applications will not be reviewed and will be returned to the course sponsor.

APPROVAL PROCESS

The course outline and instructor qualifications will be reviewed and 30 certification eligibility credits will be awarded for categories with adequate training content to meet or exceed the minimum standards set forth above. The sponsor will receive a Notice of Course Approval listing the approved categories and credits. One NYSDEC course number will be assigned for the entire eligibility course. This course number is to be listed on the course certificate which is issued to candidates attending the entire 30-hour course for initial certification eligibility.

Eligibility course sponsors who wish to have the course considered for recertification credits for existing certified applicators must make this request on the application. In this case, the course will also be evaluated for recertification credits and separate course numbers and credits will be assigned to each session of the course. Up to 7.0 recertification credits per day are allowed. Certified applicators in attendance for recertification training must be issued one course certificate and sign the recertification course roster for each day or session attended.

COURSE SPONSOR RESPONSIBILITIES

At each day's training session, the candidates attending the 30-hour course for initial certification eligibility must record their names and signatures on the Recertification Training Roster [44-14-2].

If recertification credits are also approved for segments of the course, a separate roster is used for each recertification course number assigned. Certified applicators in attendance for recertification credits sign this separate roster.

All original rosters for each day of training must be submitted to the Pesticide Reporting & Certification Section within 21 days of course completion. Failure to follow this procedure may result in rejection of training certificates issued at the course. The sponsor must keep a copy of these records on file for a minimum of 5 years.

Note: Both 30-hour and recertification course attendees are recorded on the Recertification Training Roster form [44-14-2].

The course sponsor must only issue one original course certificate to candidates attending the 30-hour course for initial certification eligibility. However, a separate certificate is to be issued, for each day or session assigned a course number, to existing certified applicators attending for recertification credits.

The sponsor must provide and issue to each candidate attending the 30-hour course for initial
certification eligibility a certificate of proof of attendance which lists the following information:

• name and address of attendee;
  
• name, place and dates of the training course;
  
• NYSDEC Eligibility Course ID Number as assigned by the Pesticide Reporting & Certification Section;
  
• 30 credits assigned to each category/subcategory approved for certification eligibility; and
  
• signature of the sponsor, in color ink.

The sponsor must provide and issue to each certified pesticide applicator attending part of the 30-hour course for recertification credits a certificate of proof of attendance which lists the following information:

• name and Certification ID Number of certified applicator;
  
• name, place and date of the training course;
  
• NYSDEC Recertification Course ID Number as assigned for the course session by the Pesticide Reporting & Certification Section;
  
• number of credits assigned to each category/subcategory for the course session; and
  
• signature of the sponsor, in color ink.

The certificate must be designed in a way as to deter counterfeiting, which may include the use of watermarks, seals, or other printing security methods. At a minimum, the certificate must be in at least two color inks in order to deter mechanical duplication. For example, the signature may be in an ink color different from the rest of the document or the letterhead may be in a color other than black. The sponsor must send in a sample original course certificate to the Pesticide Reporting & Certification Section within 5 days after the course approval is received.

The sponsor should remind candidates attending the 30-hour course for initial certification eligibility that they must submit their original certificate of proof of attendance to the Department at the time the individual applies for the certification examination and that the Department will keep the original certificate.

Appropriate controls must be used to ensure that only attendees who sit for a course receive a certificate and that the certificate awards credit only for the time the attendee actually sat in the course. The course sponsor must describe the methods used to ensure this requirement is met. Include as an attachment to the course application.

Pesticide certification eligibility courses may be re-approved without submitting a complete course application if the course content and instructors are identical to the original course as approved. The course sponsor must notify the Pesticide Reporting & Certification Section at least 48 hours prior to the start of each offering of an approved eligibility course as required under section 325.21(c). Prior notification must include dates, program agenda (with start/stop times for agenda item and breaks) and specific location. Failure to comply with Section 325.21(c) will result in the revocation of this course approval.

The sponsor of a pesticide certification eligibility course plays a key role in ensuring the integrity of the certification training process. In addition to the responsibilities outlined above, the course sponsor must submit any required or requested information to DEC within the requested timeframes and immediately notify DEC of any proposed changes to the approved course content, structure, time, date, and/or location.

Failure to follow these instructions may result in disapproval of future course applications for the sponsoring organization, and the Department's rejection of training certificates issued at the course.

MONITORING OF CERTIFICATION TRAINING COURSES

The Department's pesticide staff routinely monitor pesticide certification training courses for course content, time allocated to topics, etc. As a condition of course approval, sponsors must grant access for Department pesticide staff to monitor any approved course and waive registration fees for Department monitors. If the actual course is found to deviate significantly from the approved course, the pesticide staff person may change the assigned credits, as appropriate, to reflect the deviation or invalidate the course, if necessary.

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For more information relative to pesticides and their use, please contact the PMEP staff at: Pesticide Safety Education Pgm. 5123 Comstock Hall Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14853-0901 (607) 255-1866 Pesticide Sales & Use Reporting Database Grp. Cornell University 20 Thornwood Dr. #106 Ithaca, NY 14850 (607) 257-5706

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