GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1997

H	1 

HOUSE BILL 1133

Short Title:  Engineering & Land Surveying.	(Public)

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Sponsors: Representative Wood (By Request).

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Referred to:  Rules, Calendar and Operations of the House.

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April 21, 1997

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT AMENDING THE NORTH CAROLINA ENGINEERING AND LAND SURVEYING ACT.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1. G.S. 89C-3(6) reads as rewritten:
"(6)	Practice of engineering. – 
a.	Any service or creative work, the adequate performance of which requires engineering education, training, and experience, in the application of special knowledge of the mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences to such services or creative work as consultation, investigation, evaluation, planning, and design of engineering works and systems, planning the use of land and water, engineering surveys, and the observation of construction for the purposes of assuring compliance with drawings and specifications, including the consultation, investigation, evaluation, planning, and design for either private or public use, in connection with any utilities, structures, buildings, machines, equipment, processes, work systems, projects, and industrial or consumer products or equipment of a mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic or thermal nature, insofar as they involve safeguarding life, health or property, and including such other professional services as may be necessary to the planning, progress and completion of any engineering services.
		A person shall be construed to practice or offer to practice engineering, within the meaning and intent of this Chapter, who practices any branch of the profession of engineering; or who, by verbal claim, sign, advertisement, letterhead, card, or in any other way represents himself to be a professional engineer, or through the use of some other title implies that he is a professional engineer or that he is registered under this Chapter; or who holds himself out as able to perform, or who does perform any engineering service or work not exempted by this Chapter, or any other service designated by the practitioner which is recognized as engineering.
b.	The term ‘practice of engineering' shall not be construed:
1.	To permit the location, description, establishment or reestablishment of  property lines or descriptions of land boundaries for conveyance.
2.	To be the practice of meterology, chemistry, biology, physics, ecology, geology, or any other natural, physical, and biological sciences.
3.	To include the assessment of an underground storage tank required by applicable rules at closure or change in service unless there has been a discharge or release of the product from the tank."
Section 2. G.S. 89C-4 reads as rewritten:
"§ 89C-4. State Board of Registration; appointment; terms.
A State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors, whose duty it is to administer the provisions of this Chapter, is created. The Board shall consist of nine registered professional engineers, three registered land surveyors and two public members, who are neither professional engineers nor land surveyors.  Of the engineer members, five shall be from the manufacturing sector.  One of these five may be from the public utility sector, unless that person is employed by a firm that is registered as a professional corporation under Chapter 55B of the General Statutes. Of the land surveyor members, one and only one may hold dual registration as a land surveyor and professional engineer. All of the members shall be appointed by the Governor. Appointments of the engineer and land surveyor members shall preferably, but not necessarily, be made from a list of nominees submitted by the professional societies for engineers and land surveyors in this State. Each member of the Board shall receive a certificate of appointment from the Governor and shall file with the Secretary of State his written oath or affirmation for the faithful discharge of his duties.
Members of the Board serve for staggered five-year terms, and no member may be appointed for more than two full terms. Members serve until the expiration of their respective terms and until their respective successors are appointed. If a vacancy occurs during a term, the Governor shall appoint a successor from the same classification as the person causing the vacancy to serve for the remainder of the unexpired term. If the vacancy is not filled within 90 days after it occurs, the Board may appoint a provisional member to serve until the appointment by the Governor becomes effective. The provisional member during his tenure has all the powers and duties of a regular member.”
Section 3. G.S. 89C-8 reads as rewritten:
"§ 89C-8. Organization of the Board; meetings; election of officers.
The Board shall hold at least two regular meetings each year. Special meetings may be held at such times and upon such notice as the rules and regulations of the Board may provide. The Board shall elect annually from its members a chairman, a vice-chairman, and a secretary. A quorum of the Board shall consist of not less than eight members. The Board shall operate under its rules and regulations supplemented by Robert's Rules of Order."
Section 4. G.S. 89C-13(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	Engineer Applicant. – To be eligible for admission to examination for professional engineer an applicant must be of good character and reputation. An applicant desiring to take the examination in the fundamentals of engineering only must submit three character references. An applicant desiring to take the examination in the principles and practice of engineering must submit five references.
The following shall be considered as minimum evidence satisfactory to the Board that the applicant is qualified for registration:
(1)	As a professional engineer (shall meet one):
a.	Registration by Comity or Endorsement. – A person holding a certificate of registration to engage in the practice of engineering, on the basis of comparable qualifications, issued to him by a proper authority of a state, territory, or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia, or of Canada, who in the opinion of the Board, meets the requirements of this Chapter, based on verified evidence may, upon application, be registered without further examination.
		A person holding a certificate of qualification issued by the Committee on National Engineering Certification of the National Council of Engineering Examiners, whose qualifications meet the requirements of this Chapter, may upon application, be registered without further examination.
b.	E.I.T. Certificate, Experience, and Examination. – A holder of a certificate of engineer-in-training issued by the Board, and with a specific record of an additional four years or more of progressive experience on engineering projects of a grade and character which indicates to the Board that the applicant may be competent to practice engineering, shall be admitted to an eight-hour examination in the principles and practice of engineering. Upon passing such examination, the applicant shall be granted a certificate of registration to practice professional engineering in this State, provided he is otherwise qualified.
c.	Graduation, Experience, and Examination. – A graduate of an engineering curriculum of four years or more approved by the Board as being of satisfactory standing, and with a specific record of an additional four years or more of progressive experience on engineering projects of a grade and character which indicates to the Board that the applicant may be competent to practice engineering, shall be admitted to an eight-hour written examination in the fundamentals of engineering, and an eight-hour written examination in the principles and practice of engineering. Upon passing such examinations, the applicant shall be granted a certificate of registration to practice professional engineering in this State, provided he is otherwise qualified.
d.	Graduation, Experience, and Examination. – A graduate of an engineering or related science curriculum of four years or more, other than the ones approved by the Board as being of satisfactory standing or with an equivalent education and engineering experience satisfactory to the Board and with a specific record of eight years or more of progressive experience on engineering projects of a grade and character which indicates to the Board that the applicant may be competent in the fundamentals of engineering, shall be admitted to an eight-hour written examination in the fundamentals of engineering, and an eight-hour written examination in the principles and practice of engineering. Upon passing such examinations, the applicant shall be granted a certificate of registration to practice professional engineering in this State, provided he is otherwise qualified.
e.	Long-Established Practice. – An individual with a specific record of 20 years or more of progressive experience on engineering projects of a grade and character which indicates to the Board that the applicant may be competent to practice engineering shall be admitted to an eight-hour written examination in the principles and practice of engineering. Upon passing such examination, the applicant shall be granted a certificate of registration to practice professional engineering in this State, provided he is otherwise qualified.
At its discretion the Board may require an applicant to submit exhibits, drawings, designs, or other tangible evidence of engineering work executed by him and which he personally accomplished or supervised.
The following shall be considered as minimum evidence that the applicant is qualified for certification:
(2)	As an engineer-in-training (shall meet one):
a.	Graduation and Examination. – A graduate of an engineering curriculum or related science curriculum of four years or more, approved by the Board as being of satisfactory standing, shall be admitted to an eight-hour written examination in the fundamentals of engineering. The applicant shall be notified if the examination was passed or not passed and if passed he shall be certified as an engineer-in-training, if he is otherwise qualified.
b.	Graduation, Experience, and Examination. – A graduate of an engineering or related science curriculum of four years or more, other than the ones approved by the Board as being of satisfactory standing, or with equivalent education and engineering experience satisfactory to the Board and with a specific record of four or more years of progressive experience on engineering projects of a grade and character satisfactory to the Board, shall be admitted to an eight-hour written examination in the fundamentals of engineering. The applicant shall be notified if the examination was passed or not passed and if passed he shall be certified as an engineer-in-training if he is otherwise qualified."
Section 5. G.S. 89C-24 reads as rewritten:
"§ 89C-24.  Registration of corporations and business firms that offer engineering services to the public or engage in the practice of land surveying.
A corporation or business firm may not offer engineering services to the public or engage in the practice of land surveying in this State unless it is registered with the Board and has paid the required registration fee.  A corporation or business firm is subject to the same duties and responsibilities as an individual registrant.  Registration of a corporation or business firm does not affect the requirement that all engineering or land surveying work done by the corporation or business firm be performed by or under the responsible charge of individual registrants, nor does it relieve the individual registrants within a corporation or business firm of their design and supervision responsibilities.
This section applies to every corporation that offers engineering services to the public or is engaged in the practice of land surveying, regardless of when it was incorporated. A corporation that is not exempt from Chapter 55B of the General Statutes by application of G.S. 55B-15 must be incorporated under that Chapter."
Section 6. G.S. 89C-25 reads as rewritten:
"§ 89C-25.  Limitations on application of Chapter.
This Chapter shall not be construed to prevent or affect:
(1)	The practice of architecture, landscape architecture, or contracting or any other legally recognized profession or trade; or
(2)	The practice of professional engineering or land surveying in this State or by any person not a resident of this State and having no established place of business in this State when this practice does not aggregate more than 90 days in any calendar year, whether performed in this State or elsewhere, or involve more than one specific project; provided, however, that such person is legally qualified by registration to practice the said profession in his own state or country, in which the requirements and qualifications for obtaining a certificate of registration are satisfactory to the Board; in which case the person shall apply for and the Board will issue a temporary permit; or
(3)	The practice of professional engineering or land surveying in this State not to aggregate more than 90 days by any person residing in this State, but whose residence has not been of sufficient duration for the Board to grant or deny registration; provided, however, such person shall have filed an application for registration as a professional engineer or registered land surveyor and shall have paid the fee provided for in G.S. 89C-14, and provided that such a person is legally qualified by registration to practice professional engineering or land surveying in his own state or country in which the requirements and qualifications for obtaining a certificate of registration are satisfactory to the Board, in which case the person shall apply for and the Board will issue a temporary permit; or
(4)	Engaging in engineering or land surveying as an employee or assistant under the responsible charge of a professional engineer or registered land surveyor or as an employee or assistant of a nonresident professional engineer or a nonresident registered land surveyor provided for in subdivisions (2) and (3) of this section, provided that said work as an employee may not include responsible charge of design or supervision; or
(5)	The practice of professional engineering or land surveying by any person not a resident of, and having no established place of business in this State, as a consulting associate of a professional engineer or registered land surveyor registered under the provisions of this Chapter; provided, the nonresident is qualified for such professional service in his own state or country; or
(6)	Practice by members of the armed forces or employees of the government of the United States while engaged in the practice of engineering or land surveying solely for said government on government-owned works and projects; or
(7)	The internal engineering or surveying activities of a person, firm or corporation engaged in manufacturing, processing, or producing a product, including the activities of public service corporations, public utility companies, authorities, State agencies, railroads, or membership cooperatives, or the installation and servicing of their product in the field; or research and development in connection with the manufacture of that product or their service; or of their research affiliates; or their employees in the course of their employment in connection with the manufacture, installation, or servicing of their product or service in the field, or on-the- premises maintenance of machinery, equipment, or apparatus incidental to the manufacture or installation of the product or service of a firm by the employees of the firm upon property owned, leased or used by the firm; inspection, maintenance and service work done by employees of the State of North Carolina, any political subdivision thereof, or any municipality therein including construction, installation, servicing, maintenance by regular full-time employees of streets, street lighting, traffic-control signals, police and fire alarm systems, waterworks, steam, electric and sewage treatment and disposal plants; the services of superintendents, inspectors or foremen regularly employed by the State of North Carolina or any political subdivision thereof, or municipal corporation therein; provided, however, that the internal engineering or surveying activity is not a holding out to or an offer to the public of engineering or any service thereof as prohibited by this Chapter. 
(8)	The (i) preparation of fire sprinkler planning and design drawings by a fire sprinkler contractor licensed under Article 2 of Chapter 87 of the General Statutes, or (ii) the performance of internal engineering or survey work by a manufacturing or communications common carrier company, or by a research and development company, or by employees of such corporations provided that such work is in connection with, or incidental to products of, or nonengineering services rendered by such corporations or their affiliates.
(9)	The routine maintenance or servicing of machinery, equipment, facilities or structures, the work of mechanics in the performance of their established functions, or the inspection or supervision of construction by a foreman, superintendent, or agent of the architect or professional engineer, or services of an operational nature performed by an employee of a laboratory, a manufacturing plant, a public service corporation, or governmental operation. 
(10)	The preparation of environmental permit applications, environmental reports, and assessment reports that concern (i) health hazard substances in air, soil, and water; (ii) chemical and emissions inventories; (iii) contingency plans; (iv) environmental audits and related field investigations; and (v) emissions testing that is submitted to federal, state, and local governments."
Section 7.  This act is effective when it becomes law.