ARC 7669C

ARC 7669C

ENGINEERING AND LAND SURVEYING EXAMINING BOARD[193C]

Adopted and Filed

Rulemaking related to seal and certificate of responsibility

The Engineering and Land Surveying Examining Board hereby rescinds Chapter 6, "Seal and Certificate of Responsibility," Iowa Administrative Code, and adopts a new chapter with the same title.

Legal Authority for Rulemaking

This rulemaking is adopted under the authority provided in Iowa Code section 542B.6.

State or Federal Law Implemented

This rulemaking implements, in whole or in part, Iowa Code chapter 542B and Executive Order 10 (January 10, 2023).

Purpose and Summary

The revisions to Chapter 6 implement changes recommended by Executive Order 10. The rules of Chapter 6 provide information on compliance for the professional seal and signature.

Public Comment and Changes to Rulemaking

Notice of Intended Action for this rulemaking was published in the Iowa Administrative Bulletin on January 10, 2024, as ARC 7409C. Public hearings were held on January 30, 2024, and January 31, 2024, at 12:50 p.m.at 6200 Park Avenue, Des Moines, Iowa, and virtually. No one attended the public hearings. No public comments were received. No changes from the Notice have been made.

Adoption of Rulemaking

This rulemaking was adopted by the Board on February 15, 2024.

Fiscal Impact

This rulemaking has no fiscal impact to the State of Iowa. No current fees are being changed, and no new fees are being imposed.

Jobs Impact

After analysis and review of this rulemaking, no impact on jobs has been found.

Waivers

Any person who believes that the application of the discretionary provisions of this rulemaking would result in hardship or injustice to that person may petition the Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing for a waiver of the discretionary provisions, if any, pursuant to 481—Chapter 6.

Review by Administrative Rules Review Committee

The Administrative Rules Review Committee, a bipartisan legislative committee which oversees rulemaking by executive branch agencies, may, on its own motion or on written request by any individual or group, review this rulemaking at its regular monthly meeting or at a special meeting. The Committee's meetings are open to the public, and interested persons may be heard as provided in Iowa Code section 17A.8(6).

Effective Date

This rulemaking will become effective on April 10, 2024.

The following rulemaking action is adopted:

Item 1. Rescind 193C—Chapter 6 and adopt the following new chapter in lieu thereof:

CHAPTER 6

SEAL AND CERTIFICATE OF RESPONSIBILITY

193C—6.1(542B) Seal and certificate of responsibility.

6.1(1) The seal, under Iowa Code section 542B.16, should substantially conform to the samples shown below:

6.1(2) The word "licensed" may be added but is not required on the seal. Neither the word "registrant" nor "registered" may be used on the seal.

6.1(3) The certification block, under Iowa Code section 542B.16(2), on engineering or land surveying documents submitted to a client or any public agency, hereinafter referred to as the official copy (or official copies), appears on the first page or attached cover sheet. A certification block should be provided for the licensee in responsible charge and for each professional consultant contributing to the submission. In lieu of each contributing professional consultant providing a certification block on the front page or attached cover sheet for application of a seal, a table shall be provided that identifies the contributing professionals and where their respective certification blocks can be found within the document. The seal and original signature only need to be applied to a final submission. Each official copy (or official copies) of a submission shall be stapled, bound or otherwise attached together so as to clearly establish the complete extent of the submission. Each certification block shall display the seal of the licensee and designate the portion of the submission for which that licensee is responsible, so that responsibility for the entire submission is clearly established by the combination of the stated seal responsibilities. Any nonfinal submission of an engineering or land surveying document to a client or public agency shall be clearly labeled "preliminary" or "draft."

The engineering certification block shall conform to the wording in the sample shown below:

The land surveying certification block shall conform to the wording in the sample shown below. For maps or acquisition plats prepared from public records or previous measurements by others, the following land surveying certification block may be modified by removing the phrase "and the related survey work was performed."

6.1(4) Except for the original signature and handwritten date in contrasting ink color, the information requested in each certification block must be typed or legibly printed in permanent ink on each official copy. The seal implies responsibility for the entire submission unless the area of responsibility is clearly identified in the information accompanying the seal.

6.1(5) It is the responsibility of the licensee to forward copies of all revisions to the submission, which then become a part of the official copy of the submission. Such revisions shall be identified as applicable on a certification block or blocks with professional seals applied so as to clearly establish professional responsibility for the revisions.

6.1(6) The licensee is responsible for the custody and proper use of the seal. Improper use of the seal is grounds for disciplinary action.

6.1(7) Computer-generated seals may be used on final original documents.

6.1(8) Secure electronic signature. An electronic signature as defined in or governed by Iowa Code chapter 554D meets the signature requirements of this rule if it is protected by a security procedure, as defined in Iowa Code section 554D.103(14), such as digital signature technology. It is the licensee's responsibility to ensure, prior to affixing an electronic signature to an engineering or land surveying document, that security procedures are adequate to (1) verify the signature is that of a specific person and (2) detect any changes that may be made or attempted after the signature of the specific person is affixed.

This rule is intended to implement Iowa Code sections 542B.13, 542B.15, 542B.20 and 542B.30.

[Filed 2/15/24, effective 4/10/24]

[Published 3/6/24]

Editor's Note: For replacement pages for IAC, see IAC Supplement 3/6/24.