Current through May 27, 2025
(1) GENERAL.
(a) A conservation engineering practitioner
certified under this section, or approved under a parallel federal program
identified in par. (b), may implement the agricultural or other conservation
engineering practices in ch. 92, Stats., or s.
281.65, Stats., and perform any
of the following activities consistent with the person's level of certification
under this section:
1. Certify the design
specifications for a conservation engineering practice under sub.
(2).
2. Certify that a conservation
engineering practice under sub. (2) has been installed according to an approved
design, and according to applicable standards and specifications.
3. Engage in planning review and other
engineering functions related to the installation of engineered conservation
practices under sub. (2).
(b) The department shall operate its
certification program under this section, to the extent possible, in
conformance with the NRCS, or any other applicable federal agency system of
engineering job approval authority.
(c) For funding purposes under this chapter
or ch. NR 120, no person, other than a conservation engineering practitioner
certified under this section or a professional engineer registered under ch.
443, Stats., may certify that conservation practices were properly designed or
installed in compliance with standards under this chapter or s.
281.65, Stats.
Note: See ss.
92.18 and
443.14 (10),
Stats. A state or county employee certified under this section is exempt from
the professional engineering registration requirements of ch. 443, Stats., when
engaged in state or county activities under ch. 92, Stats., or s.
281.65, Stats., regardless of
whether the activities are funded under this chapter.
(d) Notwithstanding par. (c), a well driller
or pump installer registered under s.
280.15, Stats., may certify a
well construction or decommissioning under this subsection and an architect
registered under ch. 443, Stats., may certify a roof under this
subsection.
(2)
CONSERVATION ENGINEERING PRACTICES. For purposes of this section, a
conservation engineering practice includes any of those practices identified in
subch. VIII, authorized by the department under s.
ATCP 50.40 (3), allowed under s.
281.65, Stats., or approved and
published, as part of the NRCS field office technical guide or as a formal
technical standard by the DNR.
Note: The DNR publishes its technical
standards on its website at, for example:
http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/stormwater/standards/index.html.
(2m) STATE SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION
ENGINEER. The department may designate an employee as the state soil and water
conservation engineer. The designated person shall be a professional engineer
registered under ch. 443, Stats., and demonstrate sufficient training and
experience to carry out the functions of the position. The state soil and water
conservation engineer shall do all of the following:
(a) Oversee the work of the field engineers
who are responsible for certifying conservation engineering practitioners under
this section.
(b) Conduct
engineering activities requiring job approval authority ratings higher than
those authorized under this section including job class ratings of V and
above.
(3) CONSERVATION
ENGINEERING PRACTITIONER; INITIAL CERTIFICATION AND RECERTIFICATION.
(a) A person who wishes to be certified as a
conservation engineering practitioner shall apply to the department or a county
land conservation committee. The department or the county land conservation
committee shall promptly refer the application to the department's designated
field engineer. The field engineer shall evaluate the applicant and issue a
decision granting or denying the request.
(b) Applicants for certification shall apply
on a form provided by the department. The application form shall include all of
the following:
1. The name and affiliation of
the person applying for certification, and the name and affiliation of each
DATCP, NRCS, or other agency personnel authorized to grant certification to the
applicant.
2. The practices for
which certification may be granted, including specific practice types and
applicable references to the NRCS technical guide and other formal technical
standards authorized under this section.
3. The controlling factor used to distinguish
different classes of certification within each practice, and the specific
application of the factor to the 5 levels for which certification can be
obtained.
4. A maximum
certification rating level in the 3 areas of competency for each practice that
the applicant is qualified to perform, as specified in sub. (5).
5. Any other information the department
determines to be reasonably necessary for certification purposes including
certification for practice standards approved by entities other than NRCS.
Note: A person may obtain a certification form
by visiting the department website at:
https://datcp.wi.gov/Pages/Programs_Services/ATCP50.aspx,
or by writing to the following address:
Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer
Protection
Division of Agricultural Resource Management
P.O. Box 8911
Madison, WI 53708-8911
(c) Certifications issued under this section
are for a term of three years and automatically renew unless any of the
following occur:
1. The practitioner is not
employed by an entity with a supervisor who is authorized to sign the
certification.
2. The practitioner
fails to meet the education requirements.
3. The practitioner has failed to provide or
update information required for certification under par. (b).
4. The practitioner has rescinded the
signature on the certification or otherwise indicates an intent to surrender
the certification.
(4) EVALUATING APPLICANTS FOR CERTIFICATION.
(a) To evaluate an applicant under sub. (3),
the department's field engineer shall complete a department certification form.
The field engineer shall rate the applicant under sub. (5) based on the
applicant's demonstrated knowledge, training, experience, and record of
appropriately seeking assistance. Evaluations shall be fair and
consistent.
(b) To evaluate an
applicant, the department's field engineer may conduct interviews, perform
inspections, and require answers and documentation from the applicant. The
field engineer may ask engineering staff from NRCS to help evaluate an
applicant.
(5)
CERTIFICATION RATING.
(a) For each type of
agricultural or other conservation engineering practice identified in the
required certification form, the department's field engineer shall identify the
most complex of the 5 job classes in the practice for which the applicant is
authorized to do each of the following:
1.
Conduct planning activities, including site inventory and evaluation functions
to define alternative engineering solutions.
2. Certify that design specifications for
jobs in that class comply with those identified in subch. VIII, authorized by
the department under s.
ATCP 50.40 (3), allowed by s.
281.65, Stats., or approved and
published, as part of the NRCS field office technical guide or as a formal
technical standard by the DNR.
3.
Certify that jobs in that class have been installed according to the approved
design, and according to any applicable standards and
specifications.
(c) In
cases where department field engineers may be required to provide a job
certification approval level at a level higher than their own, they should
consult with a person who has appropriate certification levels in the areas
being rated. A person who is certified at a job level under par. (a) may
certify their own work at that level for any purpose including funding
authorized under this chapter.
(6) CERTIFICATION DECISION.
(a) The department's field engineer shall act
on a certification application under sub. (3) within 30 days after the field
engineer receives that application, provided that the applicant promptly
submits relevant information and documentation requested by the field engineer.
Note: When recertifying an applicant who was
previously certified by the department or NRCS, the department's field engineer
may raise one or more rating levels, lower one or more rating levels, or
reaffirm one or more rating levels.
(b) Whenever the department's field engineer
certifies a conservation engineering practitioner, the field engineer shall
issue a written certification on the department's certification form. The
certification becomes effective when signed by all of the following:
2. The practitioner certified.
3. The practitioner's supervisor if
any.
(c) Whenever the
department's field engineer denies a request under sub. (3) for a specific
certification rating, the field engineer shall issue the denial in writing and
shall specify the reasons for the denial.
(d) The department's field engineer shall
retain a copy of each certification under par. (b), each denial under par. (c),
and any other documentation received or compiled in connection with an
application under sub. (3).
(7) REVIEWING CERTIFICATION RATINGS.
(a) A department field engineer shall review
each certification rating under sub. (5) at least once every 3 years, and may
review a rating at any time. A field engineer shall review a rating whenever a
certified conservation engineering practitioner requests that review.
(b) Based on a review under par. (a), a
department field engineer shall issue a new certification rating which
reaffirms or modifies the prior rating under sub. (5). The field engineer shall
provide a copy of each new rating to the person rated. The field engineer may
not reduce a rating except for good cause.
(c) A field engineer shall document, in
writing, the field engineer's reasons for reducing a certification rating under
sub. (5), or for refusing to make a requested rating change. The field engineer
shall provide that documentation to the person rated, and to that person's
supervisor if any.
(8)
APPEALS.
(a) An affected person may appeal a
field engineer's action under sub. (5), (6) or (7). The affected person shall
file that person's appeal in writing, with the field engineer, within 10
business days after the applicant receives notice of the field engineer's
action. The appeal shall identify the specific matters in dispute and the
specific basis for the appeal.
(b)
Within 15 business days after the department's field engineer receives an
appeal under par. (a), the field engineer shall hold an informal meeting with
the appellant. The meeting may include a representative of the county land
conservation committee. The field engineer may hold the informal meeting in
person or by telephone.
(c) If an
appeal cannot be resolved after an informal meeting under par. (b), the field
engineer shall forward the appeal to a department reviewer designated by the
administrator of the department's agricultural resource management division.
The reviewer shall hold an informal hearing on the appeal within 10 business
days after the reviewer receives the appeal, unless the applicant agrees to a
later date for the informal hearing. The reviewer shall hold the informal
hearing by telephone or at a location determined by the reviewer. Within 10
business days after the conclusion of the informal hearing, the reviewer shall
issue a written decision which affirms, reverses, or modifies the field
engineer's action. The reviewer shall provide a copy of the reviewer's written
decision to the applicant. The decision shall include a notice of the
applicant's right to request a contested case hearing under par. (d).
(d) If an applicant disputes the reviewer's
decision under par. (c), the applicant may file a request with the department
under s. 227.42, Stats., for a contested
case hearing under ch. 227, Stats., and ch. ATCP 1.
(9) SUSPENDING OR REVOKING CERTIFICATION.
(a) The department may, for cause, suspend or
revoke a certification under this section. The department may summarily suspend
a certification, without prior notice or hearing, if the department makes a
written finding that the summary suspension is necessary to prevent an imminent
threat to the public health, safety, or welfare.
(b) An order suspending or revoking a
certification shall be signed by the secretary or the secretary's designee.
Proceedings to suspend or revoke a certificate shall be conducted according to
ch. 227, Stats., and ch. ATCP 1.
Note: See ss.
92.18 (6) and
93.06 (7),
Stats.
(c) The department
shall notify all of the following persons of any suspension or revocation under
this subsection:
1. Any land conservation
committee, state agency, or federal agency that employs the individual whose
certification is suspended or revoked.
2. State and federal agencies that provide
cost-share funds for conservation engineering practices.
(d) The reduction of a certification rating
under sub. (7) does not constitute a suspension or revocation under this
subsection.
(10)
CERTIFICATION GUIDELINES. The department may publish guidelines for the
certification of conservation engineering practitioners under this section. The
guidelines may include suggested or required courses, training activities, and
types of knowledge and experience that may help applicants qualify for
certification at specified rating levels, or be required in order to retain
certification at certain rating levels.
(11) SIGNATURE AND DATE REQUIRED; APPROVALS.
(a) Whenever a person certified under this
section approves or submits for approval any document related to the design or
construction of a conservation engineering practice under sub. (2), that person
shall sign and date that document.
(b) Any engineered practice designed by a
person certified under this section shall include project documentation
establishing that the practice was designed according to applicable standards,
and that the design was reviewed and approved for compliance with those
standards. Any person approving a design shall have job approval authority at
the level required by the engineered practice. For practices requiring a job
class authority of III or higher, at least one person other than the practice
designer shall review and sign the design as being checked before the design
can be approved. For practices requiring job class authority of I or II, the
person preparing the design may also review and approve the design.
(12) SCOPE OF CERTIFICATION. No
certified conservation engineering practitioner may, for any purpose, including
funding under this chapter or s.
281.65, Stats., certify any
matter under sub. (5) (a) in a job class more complex than that for which the
practitioner is authorized under sub. (5) (a). In the event a practitioner
exceeds the authority authorized for certifying conservation practices, the
department shall review the matter and may take action under sub. (7) or
(9).
