Bill would expand pro‑tem seats and change registration rules for engineers and surveyors

The Consumer Protection & Business Committee held a public hearing on House Bill 1104 on Jan. 21, a set of revisions to the Professional Engineers Registration Act that would change board composition, educational equivalency and certain administrative rules.

Peter Klotfelter, staff to the committee, summarized seven categories of changes, including increasing authorized pro‑tem board members on the Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors from two to three and revising appointment and qualification language. Under the bill, pro‑tem members would need to “be registered under the engineers registration act for a minimum of 5 years immediately prior to the appointment” rather than meeting the same qualifications as regular board members.

Klotfelter said the bill would also revise educational equivalency: a graduate in a non‑engineering curriculum from a school approved by the board “must be considered for up to 2 years instead of equivalent to 2 years of the required 8 years of experience for professional engineers.” The bill would change how the board determines registration fees (to include application processing and issuance costs rather than examination costs) and allow the board to set certificate periods rather than forcing a renewal every December. It would remove a reference to “joint stock associations” from an exclusion clause and revise mandatory suspension rules so that being out of compliance with certain residential or visitation orders would no longer trigger immediate suspension, while certification of noncompliance with child support orders would still require immediate suspension.

Representative Kevin Waters, the bill’s prime sponsor, said the measure was brought to him by a former senator and local engineering groups seeking to ensure “septic engineers” and other wastewater specialists can serve on the board. Waters said many parts of his district rely on septic systems and that the change would ensure those engineers “have a voice.”

Ken Fuller, a licensed engineer and director of the engineers board for land surveyors and on‑site designers, said the bill “adds a third qualification for a Pro Tem board member, on‑site wastewater designers who are very significant to our acting and rolling committees working with Department of Health on ISO standards.” Fuller said the board is open to an amendment on the U.S. citizenship qualification if members choose to pursue it.

Committee members asked about the purpose of the registration board—Klotfelter summarized its role as registering and ensuring qualified engineers and land surveyors and maintaining continuing education. Representative Santos pressed on the citizenship requirement; staff and the sponsor clarified the bill would remove the U.S. citizenship requirement only for pro‑tem members, not the permanent board members.

The committee closed the public hearing on HB 1104 with questions from members and no recorded committee action on Jan. 21.