Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 3, March 1, 2024
(1) License required. A person may not
perform sewage disposal services or advertise or represent himself as being in
the business of performing such services without a valid license issued by DEQ
to perform those services. A separate license is required for each business,
organization, or other person conducting sewage disposal services.
(2) Types of licenses. DEQ may issue three
types of sewage disposal service licenses.
(a) Installer license. An installer license
is required for any person to construct or install onsite systems or parts of
onsite systems or to perform the grading, excavating, or earth-moving work
associated with constructing or installing onsite systems.
(b) Pumper license. A pumper license is
required for any person to pump out or clean onsite systems, including portable
toilets or any part of them, and to dispose of the material derived from
pumping out or cleaning onsite systems or portable toilets.
(c) Installer/pumper license. The combined
installer/pumper license authorizes a person to perform the work authorized by
the installer and the pumper licenses.
(3) Duration of license. The duration of a
sewage disposal service license may not exceed three years following the issue
date. DEQ may issue licenses for periods of less than three years to stagger
expiration dates. DEQ will provide licensees written notice of the expiration
date assigned and date application for renewal is due.
(4) Certification requirement.
(a) Each business with an installer or
installer/pumper license must identify at least one person certified under OAR
340-071-0650 who will supervise installation of onsite systems for the
licensee.
(b)Applicants must submit
evidence of the certification required by this section to DEQ with their
application.
(5) New,
renewal, and reinstatement licenses. Persons applying for new, renewal, or
reinstatement of existing licenses must submit the following to DEQ for each
license:
(a) A complete license application
form.
(b) Evidence of a surety bond
or equivalent security DEQ approved in the penal sum of $15,000 for each
installer or installer/pumper license or $5,000 for each pumper license and
evidence that the security or bond will be continued through the license cycle
and satisfies all other requirements of section (7) of this rule.
(c) The applicable license fee in OAR
340-071-0140(6).
(d) Evidence of
certification as required in section (4) of this rule.
(e) For pumper licenses:
(A) A completed Sewage Pumping Equipment
Description/Inspection form documenting inspection by an agent of all pumping
equipment to be used for work under the license; and
(B) On DEQ's request, summary
origin-destination pumping information for pumping services.
(6) Transfer or
amendment of license. DEQ may amend or transfer a valid sewage disposal service
license to reflect changes in business name, ownership, or entity (e.g., from
individual to partnership or corporation). Persons applying for a license
transfer or amendment must submit the following to DEQ:
(a) A complete application to transfer or
amend the license with the applicable license fee in OAR 340-071-0140(6);
(b) A rider to an existing bond or
a new form of security as required in subsection (5)(b) of this rule;
(c) The valid sewage disposal
service license (not suspended, revoked, or expired) being transferred or
amended;
(d) For business name
changes, a new Sewage Pumping Equipment Description/Inspection form for each
vehicle to be used for work under the license; and
(e) For installer licenses, evidence of
certification as required in section (4) of this rule.
(7) Security requirements.
(a) Security this rule requires may be any of
the following.
(A) A surety bond executed in
favor of the State of Oregon on a form the Attorney General approved and DEQ
provides. The bond must be issued by a surety company licensed by the Insurance
Commissioner of Oregon. A surety bond must require at least 45 days' notice to
DEQ before cancellation is effective and must otherwise remain in effect for at
least two years after the sewage disposal service license terminates, except as
provided in subsection (c) of this section.
(B) An insured savings account irrevocably
assigned to DEQ with interest earned by such account made payable to the
depositor.
(C) Negotiable
securities of a character approved by the State Treasurer irrevocably assigned
to DEQ with interest earned on deposited securities made payable to the
depositor.
(b) Any
deposit of cash or negotiable securities under ORS
454.705 must remain in effect
for at least two years following termination of the sewage disposal service
license except as provided in subsection (c) of this section. A claim against
such security deposits must be submitted in writing to DEQ with an
authenticated copy of:
(A) The court judgment
or order requiring payment of the claim; or
(B) Written authority by the depositor for
DEQ to pay the claim.
(c)
When proceedings under ORS
454.705 have been commenced
while the security required is in effect, such security must be held until
final disposition of the proceedings is made. At that time claims will be
referred for consideration of payment from the security so held.
(8) Licensee
responsibilities. Each licensee:
(a) Is
responsible for violations of any statute, rule, or order of the commission or
DEQ pertaining to the licensed business.
(b) Is responsible for any act or omission of
any servant, agent, employee, or representative of such licensee that violates
any statute, rule, or order concerning the license privileges.
(c) Must deliver written notice, before
completing licensed services, to each person:
(A) The rights of the recipient included in
ORS 454.705(2);
and
(B) The name and address of the
surety company that has executed the bond required by ORS
454.705(1);
or
(C) A statement that the
licensee has deposited cash or negotiable securities for the benefit of DEQ to
compensate any person injured by the licensee's failure to comply with ORS
454.605 to
454.745 and rules of this
division.
(d) Inform DEQ
of changes that affect the license, such as changes in the business, ownership,
or entity (e.g., changes from individual to partnership or
corporation).
(9) Misuse
of license.
(a) A sewage disposal service
licensee may not allow anyone to perform sewage disposal services under its
license except the licensee's employees.
(b) A licensee may not:
(A) Display or cause or permit to be
displayed any license that is fictitious, revoked, suspended, or fraudulently
altered;
(B) Fail or refuse to
surrender to DEQ any license that has been suspended or revoked.
(C) Give false or fictitious information or
knowingly conceal a material fact or otherwise commit a fraud in any license
application or any other activities associated with the license.
(10) Denial,
suspension, or revocation of licenses.
(a)
DEQ may refuse to grant, renew, or reinstate or may suspend or revoke any
sewage disposal service license under procedures in ORS
183.310 to
183.540 if it finds:
(A) A material misrepresentation or false
statement in connection with a license application;
(B) Failure to comply with any provisions of
ORS 454.605 through
454.785, the rules of the
commission, or an order of the commission or DEQ;
(C) Failure to maintain in effect at all
times the required bond or other approved equivalent security in the full
amount specified in these rules; or
(D) Nonpayment by drawee of any instrument
the applicant tendered as payment of a license fee.
(b) Whenever a license is suspended or
revoked or expires, the licensee must remove the license from display and
remove all DEQ-issued labels from equipment used for work under the license.
Within 14 days after suspension or revocation, the licensee must surrender the
suspended or revoked license and certify in writing to DEQ that all DEQ-issued
labels have been removed from all equipment.
(c) A sewage disposal service business may
not be considered for re-licensure for a period of at least one year after DEQ
revokes its license.
(d) A
suspended license may be reinstated if:
(A)
The licensee submits to DEQ a complete application for reinstatement of license
accompanied by the applicable license fee in OAR 340-071-0140(6);
(B) The grounds for suspension have been
corrected; and
(C) The original
license would not have otherwise expired.
(11) Requirements for pumping vehicles and
equipment. A licensee who pumps onsite systems must ensure that all pumping
vehicles and equipment comply with the following requirements.
(a) Tanks used for pumping or transporting
septage must:
(A) Have a liquid capacity of
at least 550 gallons, except that tanks for equipment used exclusively for
pumping chemical toilets not exceeding 80 gallons capacity must have a liquid
capacity of at least 150 gallons;
(B) Be of watertight metal construction;
(C) Be fully enclosed; and
(D) Have suitable covers to
prevent spillage.
(b)
Vehicles used for pumping or transporting septage must be equipped with either
a vacuum or other type of pump that is self-priming and will not allow seepage
from the diaphragm or other packing glands.
(c) The sewage hose on vehicles must be
drained, capped, and stored in a manner that will not create a public health
hazard or nuisance.
(d) The
discharge nozzle must be:
(A) Provided with
either a camlock quick coupling or threaded screw cap;
(B) Sealed by threaded cap or quick coupling
when not in use;
(C) Located to
minimize flow or drip onto any portion of the vehicle;
(D) Protected from accidental damage or
breakage.
(e) Pumping
equipment must not have spreader gates unless permitted to land apply
alkaline-stabilized septage under chapter 340, division 050.
(f) Each vehicle must at all times be
supplied with a pressurized wash-water tank, disinfectant, and implements for
cleanup.
(g) Except as specified in
subsection (h) of this section or otherwise authorized in writing by the agent,
pumping equipment must be used exclusively for pumping sewage disposal
facilities.
(h) The following may
be pumped or serviced using pumping equipment without written authorization,
whether or not they are connected to an onsite system or a centralized
community sewer system: pump stations, lift stations, food grease tanks, vaults
or tanks used for domestic sewage not contaminated with industrial or hazardous
waste, and spills and backups of uncontaminated domestic sewage.
(i) Chemical toilet pumping equipment may not
be used for any other purpose if the pump tank has a liquid capacity of less
than 550 gallons.
(j) Equipment
must be maintained in a reasonably clean condition at all times and must be
operated in a manner that does not create a public health hazard or nuisance.
(12) Vehicle
identification. The onsite sewage disposal services licensee must identify
vehicles as follows.
(a) The licensee's name
or assumed business name must be displayed on both sides of the vehicle or the
attached tank and on both sides of a tank trailer.
(A) Letters and numbers must be at least 3
inches high unless DEQ authorizes otherwise.
(B) Letters and numbers must be in a color
contrasting with the background.
(b) Tank capacity must be printed on both
sides of the tank.
(A) Letters and numbers
must be at least 3 inches high unless DEQ authorizes otherwise.
(B) Letters and numbers must be in a color
contrasting with the background.
(c) DEQ-issued labels for each current
license period must be displayed at all times at the front and rear and on each
side of the vehicle. Labels must be returned to DEQ when a vehicle is no longer
being used in conjunction with pumping under a sewage disposal service license.
(13) Septage management
requirements. The licensee and all persons managing septage:
(a) Must avoid spilling sewage or septage
during pumping, cleaning, or transport and must immediately clean up any spill
and disinfect the spill area.
(b)
Must dispose of septage and sewage only in DEQ-approved disposal facilities.
(c) At all times during pumping,
transport, or disposal of septage, must possess origin-destination records for
sewage disposal services rendered.
(d) Must maintain on file for at least three
years complete origin-destination records for sewage disposal services
rendered. The records must be made available for review upon the request of
DEQ. Origin-destination records must include the following information for each
pumping, transport, and disposal occurrence:
(A) Source of septage, including name and
address;
(B) Specific type of
material pumped;
(C) Quantity of
material pumped;
(D) Name and
location of disposal site where septage was deposited;
(E) Quantity of material deposited; and
(F) The license numbers or vehicle
numbers assigned by the licensee for all vehicles or trailers used for pumping,
transport, and disposal.
(e) Must transport septage in a manner that
will not create a public health hazard or nuisance.
(f) Must possess a current DEQ-approved
septage management plan. The plan must be kept current, with any revisions
approved by DEQ before implementation.
(g) Must comply with the approved septage
management plan and the DEQ-issued septage management plan approval
letter.
Publications referenced are available from the
agency.
Statutory/Other Authority: ORS
454.615,
454.625 & 468.020
Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS
454.615,
454.625 &
468.020