Board agrees to seek legal guidance to clarify internship and supervisor requirements

At a virtual licensing board meeting, members discussed clarifying internship and supervisor training requirements for prospective home inspectors and agreed to seek legal guidance before holding a work session to draft clearer guidance.

The discussion centered on a rule the board previously interpreted to require interns to complete 100 full home inspections, with 10 conducted under direct supervision and the remainder indirect, and that a written report accompany each logged inspection. Board members said differing interpretations of the regulation have created confusion for supervisors and interns.

"He completed those during the month of August," a staff member said about an applicant who submitted certificates, referring to continuing-education documents supplied in the meeting materials. The board approved that applicant's extension to complete required education at the meeting, but members said broader clarity was still needed across the profession.

The need for clarity prompted several board members to propose a work group or a separate work session to produce a clear, written description of supervisor duties, intern responsibilities, and how inspections should be logged. "I'd like to run it through legal, because there is, you know, some requirements in terms of the public being invited to sessions and meetings," one board member said, recommending consultation with legal counsel before scheduling nonpublic work sessions.

Several members reiterated details the board had addressed at a prior meeting: that the 100 inspections must be complete inspections (not partial component checks), that supervisors and interns must keep logs, and that supervisors should be able to produce reports on request. One member referenced the regulations explicitly, saying the requirement that inspections be full inspections is defined in the regulations under "number 28."

Board members disputed how strict the requirements should be. One member warned that the time and cost required to complete an internship could discourage new entrants: "The requirements are so tough and take so long to complete that no one's coming in," he said. Another member countered that comprehensive training and written reporting protect both consumers and supervisors from liability and argued the 100-inspection standard helps teach reporting skills.

Members proposed next steps: staff will consult legal about what type of work session or drafting process is permissible under open-meeting rules; the board will consider a formal work session or draft guidance at a future meeting; and staff might circulate any clarified language or advisory to licensed inspectors once finalized.

The board did not adopt new regulations at the meeting; members said they were aiming to clarify existing regulations and supervisory expectations rather than to promulgate additional regulatory burdens.

Less-critical items discussed in the same segment included references to prior informal understandings about internships made under previous officeholders and members' recognition that training approaches might need to change to accommodate entrants without trade backgrounds.