CPD Requirements
On
February 15, 2005, Governor Taft signed H.B. 322 into law requiring (FAQ) each
Ohio P.E., P.S. or P.E.&P.S. (dual
licensee) to obtain 15 professional development hours (PDH) beginning in 2007
in order to renew registration for 2008 and subsequent years.
H.B. 322 was the result of many years of cooperative efforts between the OSPE, the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC), the County Engineers Association of Ohio (CEAO), the Professional Land Surveyors of Ohio (PLSO) and the Board.
Ohio has required a bachelor's degree for P.E.'s since 1975 and for P.S.'s since 1993, yet there were no requirements that registrants increase their knowledge or stay up to date with new technology after college graduation. Ohio's engineering and surveying societies have been discussing mandatory CPD since 1986.
The CPD requirements are identical to the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying national model law, so P.E.'s and P.S.'s licensed in Ohio and also other states that require CPD will find it easy to obtain CPD credit in almost every state. Ohio does not require any "state specific" courses or activities.
It will be quite easy to obtain the needed 15 PDH per year and the law allows a registrant to carry forward up to 15 PDH into the next year. The law requires "courses or activities in technical, ethical or managerial topics relevant to the practice of engineering or surveying."
This allows all registrants to attend seminars and activities that will benefit them in their particular area of practice during the various stages of their careers. The Board will not approve the courses and activities; each registrant is responsible for choosing courses or activities that fall within the broad range of courses and activities described above.
Registrants will maintain their own records for three years. The required records need only include a log showing the type, date, duration, number of PDHs claimed, instructors' names for the courses or activities and certificates of completion or other evidence of attendance.
PDHs may be earned by any combination of the following methods:
- Attending or teaching relevant courses, seminars or workshops (1 PDH per hour attended, 10 PDH per continuing education unit (CEU) awarded)
- Authoring relevant published papers, articles or books (10 PDH each)
- Being an officer or active committee member of an engineering or surveying society (2 PDH per year per society)
- Completion of relevant college courses (1 quarter hour = 30 PDH, 1 semester hour = 45 PDH)
- Obtaining a patent (10 PDH each)
The CPD records of each registrant will be subject to audit by the Board. If the Board discovers that the required CPD has not been completed, the registrant will be so informed and allowed up to six months to remedy the deficiency.
If the deficiency is not remedied, the Board may revoke or suspend the registrant's license after offering an adjudication hearing.
In summary, the proposed CPD requirements are supported by all of the statewide engineering and surveying societies, will not be difficult for the registrants to comply with or for the Board to enforce and, most importantly, will provide additional protection to the citizens of Ohio.