Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 24, December 18, 2024
(a) To be accredited by the Department to
provide verification services as required of project sponsors under this
subchapter, an independent verifier shall demonstrate knowledge of:
1. Utilization of engineering
principles;
2. Quantification of
greenhouse gas emissions;
3.
Development and evaluation of air emissions inventories;
4. Auditing and accounting
principles;
5. Information
management systems;
6. The
requirements of this subchapter and other applicable requirements of this
chapter; and
7. The data
collection, quantification, monitoring, and verification requirements for the
individual offset categories specified at N.J.A.C. 7:27C-10.5, 10.6, and
10.7.
(b) In addition to
the knowledge requirements of (a) above, to be accredited by the Department to
provide verification services as required of project sponsors under this
subchapter, an independent verifier shall demonstrate:
1. That there is NO[x] direct or indirect
financial relationship, beyond a contract for provision of verification
services, between the independent verifier or his or her employees and any
offset project developer or project sponsor;
2. That the independent verifier employs
staff with professional licenses, knowledge, and experience appropriate to the
specific category or categories of offset projects at N.J.A.C. 7:27C-10.5,
10.6, and 10.7 to be verified;
3.
Coverage of a minimum of $ 1,000,000 of professional liability insurance. If
the insurance is in the name of a related entity, the independent verifier
shall disclose the financial relationship between the independent verifier and
the related entity, and provide documentation supporting the description of the
relationship;
4. Implementation of
an adequate management protocol to identify potential conflicts of interest
with regard to an offset project, offset project developer, or project sponsor,
or any other party with a direct or indirect financial interest in an offset
project that is seeking or has been granted approval of a consistency
application pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:27C-10.4(e), and remedy any such conflicts
of interest prior to providing verification services; and
5. Prior to submitting an application for
accreditation, successfully complete any training course, workshop, or test
developed by the Department to ensure that an independent verifier has
sufficient demonstrated knowledge pursuant to (a) above to provide verification
services under this subchapter.
(c) An application for accreditation shall
not contain any proprietary information, but shall include the following:
1. The applicant's name, address, e-mail
address, telephone number, and facsimile transmission number;
2. Documentation that the applicant has at
least two years of experience in each of the knowledge areas at (a)
above;
3. A sample of at least one
work product that provides supporting evidence that the applicant meets the
requirements at (a) and (b) above. The work product shall have been produced,
in whole or in part, by the applicant and shall consist of a final report or
other material provided to a client under contract in previous work. For a work
product that was jointly produced by the applicant and another entity, the role
of the applicant in the work product shall be clearly explained;
4. Documentation that the applicant holds
professional liability insurance as required pursuant to (b)4 above; and 5.
Documentation that the applicant has implemented an adequate management
protocol to address and remedy any conflict of interest issues that may arise,
as required pursuant to (b)5 above.
(d) The Department will approve or deny a
complete application for accreditation within 45 days after submission.
Accreditation of an independent verifier is for a period of three years from
the date of application approval.
(e) The Department will accept the
accreditation of an independent verifier who is accredited in another
participating state where the Department has determined that the accreditation
requirements of the other participating state are substantially equivalent to
the requirements of this section.
(f) Prior to engaging in verification
services for a project sponsor, an accredited independent verifier shall
disclose all relevant information to the Department to allow for an evaluation
of potential conflict of interest with respect to an offset project, offset
project developer, or project sponsor. The accredited independent verifier
shall disclose information concerning its ownership, past and current clients,
related entities, as well as any other facts or circumstances that have the
potential to create a conflict of interest.
(g) An accredited independent verifier shall
have an ongoing obligation to disclose to the Department any facts or
circumstances that may give rise to a conflict of interest with respect to an
offset project, offset project developer, or project sponsor.
(h) The Department may reject a verification
report and certification from an accredited independent verifier, submitted as
part of a consistency application required pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:27C-10.4 or
submitted as part of a monitoring and verification report submitted pursuant to
N.J.A.C. 7:27C-10.9, if the Department determines that the accredited
independent verifier has a conflict of interest related to the offset project,
offset project developer, or project sponsor.
(i) The Department may revoke the
accreditation of an accredited independent verifier at any time, for any of the
following:
1. Failure by the accredited
independent verifier to fully disclose any issues that may lead to a conflict
of interest situation with respect to an offset project, offset project
developer, or project sponsor;
2. A
change in staffing or other criteria, SO[2] that the accredited independent
verifier is NO[x] longer qualified;
3. Negligence or neglect of responsibilities
by the accredited independent verifier pursuant to the requirements of this
subchapter; or
4. Intentional
misrepresentation of data or other fraud by the accredited independent
verifier.
