Department of Pesticide Regulation

LICENSING AND CERTIFICATION RENEWALS

The Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) would like to share with you some important information regarding licensing and certification renewals, and cards issued for 2001.

New Renewal Application Form

An example of the new, individual renewal application form is attached. All DPR licenses and certificates held by an individual are combined on one form so that the person can be notified and submit all renewals at the same time. This change was made as a result of many comments received from stakeholders via the California Environmental Protection Agency's Customer Service Survey Form. If a person does not receive one of the new "combo" renewal forms in the mail, program-specific renewal applications (e.g., adviser, pilot, etc.) can be obtained by accessing DPR's Licensing and Certification Web site at www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/license/renewapps.htm.

Renewal Processing Timeframes

Please remind your staff and other stakeholders that regulations allow DPR 45 days to renew a license or certificate, effective from the date of receipt of the application. Individuals may check DPR's Home Page for the status of a renewal at www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/license/currlic.htm. Since there is a delay of up to 15 days for the postal delivery of new cards to individuals, checking the Web site will provide more timely information.

All licenses and certificates posted on the Web site will be considered valid from the date indicated on the listing, regardless of whether or not the person has received the license/certificate card. Checking the Web site will greatly reduce the number of calls to DPR staff, allowing more time for processing renewal applications.

New License/Certificate Cards

A facsimile of the new plastic card that will be issued in 2001 is attached. DPR will discontinue using the colored plastic cards and will issue a white, embossed plastic card instead. This change has been made to improve the legibility and copy quality of the cards. The license/certificate will be identified on the card by name, as well as a DPR logo of a specific color, as described in the table below:

New Category Code for Maintenance Gardener Qualified Applicators

Qualified applicators for maintenance gardener pest control businesses will receive cards with the code letter "Q". The "Q" category will identify licensed and certified applicators making incidental pesticide applications as part of their maintenance gardening service, separating them from applicators with additional categories. DPR will continue to use the code letter "B" for landscape maintenance when the license or certificate is not limited to incidental pest control. This is an administrative change only; it does not change any of the regulatory requirements pertaining to examinations, fees, or continuing education requirements.

County Registration Forms

A copy of the revised Pilot County Registration Form (PR-ENF-009) is attached. The form was changed to remove information that was not expressly authorized in regulation as a requirement of registration.

DPR is not currently tracking county registration information obtained by the counties. Therefore, you may discontinue mailing copies of county registrations to DPR. The primary reasons for this change are: (1) information on the forms was not retrievable in a timely manner for enforcement purposes; and (2) some county submissions were inconsistent, therefore requiring staff to contact individual counties when this information is needed during investigations. DPR is interested in developing more efficient, electronic methods for capturing and exchanging this county registration information, and will work through the county computer user groups and Personnel Standards Committee to design alternative systems.

Verification of Valid Pilot FAA Medical Certificate

Several counties have asked if they should continue verifying the pilot medical certificate as described in the Manual of Policy and Procedural Guidance (MPPG), page 38. Since the pilot's Federal Aviation Association (FAA) medical certification is checked by DPR when the certificate is issued and renewed, this would appear to be a duplication of effort.

At this time, DPR only verifies the medical certification status during the renewal approval process, and when new certificates are issued. Therefore, the counties can be assured that pilots in the A-L group who register this year had a valid FAA medical certificate at the time the certificate was issued/renewed. Since DPR will not be reviewing the medical status of pilots in the M-Z group this year, we encourage the counties to continue checking the medical certification status of M-Z pilots.

DPR intends to track the medical certificate status of each pilot on an ongoing basis in the next calendar year, and will publish the expiration date of the medical certificate on DPR's Licensing Web site (legal approval pending). When this system is fully functional, it will no longer be necessary for the counties to retain copies of pilot medical certificates in order to meet the requirements of the pesticide regulatory program. DPR will also revise the MPPG to address these changes.

If you have any questions, please contact DPR's Licensing and Certification Program at (916) 445-4038.

cc:  Mr. Daniel J. Merkley, Agricultural Commissioner Liaison (w/Attachments)
      Licensing and Certification Program (w/Attachments)