Provides for licensing of occupational safety and hygiene professionals, creates state board for industrial hygiene and safety; specifies requirements for a license and authorizes limited permits; specifies exempt persons; provides that every licensed occupational safety and hygiene professional shall have a seal which shall contain the words "occupational safety and hygiene professional" and such other words or figures as the board deems necessary.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4107
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 1, 2011
___________
Introduced by M. of A. MORELLE -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Higher Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to providing for the
regulation and practice of the industrial hygiene and safety
professions
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new article 146 to
2 read as follows:
3 ARTICLE 146
4 INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE AND SAFETY PROFESSIONALS
5 Section 7250. Legislative intent.
6 7251. Definitions.
7 7252. Practice of the industrial hygiene and safety professions.
8 7253. State board for industrial hygiene and safety.
9 7254. Requirements for license as an occupational safety and
10 hygiene professional.
11 7255. Limited permits.
12 7256. Exempt persons.
13 7257. Special provisions.
14 § 7250. Legislative intent. It is the legislature's intent and the
15 purpose of this article to protect public health by recognizing that
16 exposures arising in or from the work-place may cause illness, impaired
17 health, injury, or inefficiency among employees and the public. It is
18 recognized that it is the purpose of the industrial hygiene profession
19 to anticipate, recognize, evaluate and control such exposures. It is
20 recognized that it is the purpose of the safety profession to preserve
21 human and material resources through systematic anticipation, identifi-
22 cation, and implementing and advising others on control of immediate
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06502-01-1
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1 physical hazards and hazardous practices. It is recognized that public
2 health will be served by the regulation of the admission to and practice
3 of the industrial hygiene and safety professions as provided for in
4 article one hundred thirty of this title. This article applies to the
5 professions of industrial hygiene and safety. The general provisions
6 contained in article one hundred thirty of this title apply to this
7 article.
8 § 7251. Definitions. As used in this article the following terms shall
9 mean as follows:
10 1. "Industrial hygiene" shall mean the science and practice devoted to
11 the anticipation, recognition, evaluation and control of those environ-
12 mental factors and stresses arising in or from the workplace that may
13 cause sickness, impaired health and well-being, or significant discom-
14 fort among workers and may also impact the general community.
15 2. "Certified industrial hygienist", "CIH", or "C.I.H." shall mean a
16 person meeting the education, experience, examination, continuing educa-
17 tion, and code of ethics requirements established by the American Board
18 of Industrial Hygiene, which includes having been granted a certif-
19 ication number and a certificate in the practice of industrial hygiene.
20 3. "American board of industrial hygiene", "ABIH" or "A.B.I.H." shall
21 mean the Pennsylvania non-profit corporation providing national certif-
22 ication to certified industrial hygienists, whose purpose is to improve
23 the practice and educational standards of the profession of industrial
24 hygiene.
25 4. "Safety profession" shall mean the science and art concerned with
26 the preservation of human and material resources through the systematic
27 application of principals drawn from such disciplines as engineering,
28 education, psychology, physiology, enforcement, and management for
29 anticipating, identifying and evaluating hazardous conditions and prac-
30 tices; developing hazard control designs, methods, procedures and
31 programs; and measuring, auditing, and evaluating the effectiveness of
32 hazard controls and hazard control programs.
33 5. "Certified safety professional", "CSP" or "C.S.P." shall mean a
34 person meeting the education, experience, examination, continuing educa-
35 tion, and code of ethics requirements established by the Board of Certi-
36 fied Safety Professionals, which includes having been granted a certif-
37 ication number and a certificate in the practice of the safety
38 profession.
39 6. "Board of certified safety professionals", "BCSP", or "B.C.S.P."
40 shall mean the non-profit corporation providing national certification
41 to certified safety professionals.
42 7. "Occupational safety and hygiene professional", "OSHP", or
43 "O.S.H.P." shall mean a person licensed under this article to practice
44 the industrial hygiene and safety professions.
45 § 7252. Practice of the industrial hygiene and safety professions.
46 Only persons licensed or otherwise authorized under this article shall
47 practice the industrial hygiene and safety professions or use titles or
48 certifications to suggest qualification or competence as an industrial
49 or occupational hygienist or occupational safety professional.
50 § 7253. State board for industrial hygiene and safety. A state board
51 for industrial hygiene and safety shall be appointed by the board of
52 regents on recommendation of the commissioner for the purpose of assist-
53 ing the board of regents and the department on matters of professional
54 licensing and professional conduct in accordance with section sixty-five
55 hundred of this title. The board shall be composed of not less than five
56 licensed occupational safety and hygiene professionals. An executive
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1 secretary to the board shall be appointed by the board of regents on the
2 recommendation of the commissioner, and shall be licensed as an occupa-
3 tional safety and hygiene professional. Board membership shall represent
4 a balance of safety and industrial hygiene practice.
5 § 7254. Requirements for license as an occupational safety and hygiene
6 professional. To qualify as a licensed occupational safety and hygiene
7 professional, an applicant shall fulfill the following requirements:
8 1. Application. File an application with the department;
9 2. Education. Have received as a minimum a bachelors degree in:
10 industrial hygiene, safety, or chemistry, or physics, or chemical engi-
11 neering, or mechanical engineering, or sanitary engineering, or civil
12 engineering, or biology, or toxicology, or epidemiology or other appro-
13 priate degree from an institution accredited by one of the bodies recog-
14 nized by the Commission on Higher Education and Accreditation, and
15 acceptable to the board in accordance with the commissioner's regu-
16 lations;
17 3. Experience. Document five years of full time employment as an
18 industrial hygienist and/or safety professional who by virtue of his or
19 her knowledge, skill, education and training has acquired accepted
20 competency in safety and hygiene in accordance with the commissioner's
21 regulations;
22 4. Examination. Pass an examination acceptable to the board and in
23 accordance with the commissioner's regulations. The commissioner's regu-
24 lations shall accept certification from a nationally recognized profes-
25 sional safety or hygiene organization accredited by the national commis-
26 sion on certifying agencies or the council of engineering and scientific
27 specialty boards such as the American Board of Industrial Hygiene as a
28 certified industrial hygienist or certification by the Board of Certi-
29 fied Safety Professionals as a certified safety professional in lieu of
30 the need for completion of any other examination, experience, or educa-
31 tional requirements. Any examinations established by the board and the
32 commissioner shall be equivalent to the certification examinations of
33 the American Board of Industrial Hygiene and the Board of Certified
34 Safety Professionals.
35 Within two years of the effective date of the commissioner's regu-
36 lations, individuals providing documentation verifying five or more
37 years of industrial hygiene or safety professional practice acceptable
38 to the board in accordance with the commissioner's regulations shall be
39 accepted as having fulfilled the education, examination, and experience
40 requirements for a license as an industrial hygienist or safety profes-
41 sional. Following this two year period all new applicants shall fully
42 comply with all education and examination requirements of this article;
43 5. Continuing education. Document completion of continuing education
44 programs in accordance with the commissioner's regulations which shall
45 be adequate to maintain competency in the area of actual practice, and
46 which shall be equivalent to the certification maintenance procedures
47 established by the American Board of Industrial Hygiene or the Board of
48 Certified Safety Professionals. Maintenance of A.B.I.H. certification
49 as a certified industrial hygienist, or maintenance of B.C.S.P. certif-
50 ication as a certified safety professional shall be considered accepta-
51 ble continuing education;
52 6. Age. Be at least twenty-one years of age;
53 7. Character. Be of good moral character as determined by the depart-
54 ment.
55 § 7255. Limited permits. On the recommendation of the board, the
56 department may issue a limited permit to practice industrial hygiene or
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1 as a safety professional to an industrial hygienist or safety profes-
2 sional not a resident of this state nor having established place of
3 practice in this state, who is a certified industrial hygienist or
4 certified safety professional, or who is qualified to practice in his or
5 her own country or state, and who submits satisfactory certifications as
6 to character and qualifications. Limited permits shall be issued solely
7 in connection with the specific project for which such a limited permit
8 is granted.
9 1. A limited permit issued under this section shall apply to no more
10 than an aggregate of thirty days in any calendar year, which may
11 commence on the date the application is submitted unless the applicant
12 has had a previous application for a limited permit rejected or a previ-
13 ous license as an occupational safety and hygiene professional revoked.
14 The permit shall specify the dates within the calendar year when such
15 right may be exercised.
16 2. In lieu of a limited permit, a non-resident of the state may choose
17 to submit a full application for practice as an occupational safety and
18 hygiene professional.
19 § 7256. Exempt persons. This article shall not be construed to affect
20 or prevent the following, provided that no title, sign, card or device
21 shall be used in such manner as to tend to convey the impression that
22 the person rendering such service is a licensed occupational safety and
23 hygiene professional.
24 1. Practice of industrial hygiene or safety as an employee of a feder-
25 al, state, county or municipal agency or public employer, provided that
26 such practice is limited to work performed for these employers.
27 2. Practice of industrial hygiene or safety by an employee of a
28 private company provided that such practice involves only work performed
29 for that company and that company's employees.
30 3. Use of titles or degree initials by individuals having completed
31 programs from accredited academic institutions or other programs accept-
32 able to the board and in accordance with the commissioner's regulations.
33 4. Employment of any person as a junior assistant, or industrial
34 hygienist in training, or associate safety professional, provided that
35 such individuals act under the general direction of, and are subject to
36 regular technical performance review by, a licensed occupational safety
37 and hygiene professional.
38 5. Practice of industrial hygiene or safety by individuals as an offi-
39 cer or employee of a corporation solely engaged in interstate commerce.
40 6. Practice as an occupational safety and hygiene professional in this
41 state by any person not a resident, nor having established place of
42 practice in this state, or any person resident in this state but who has
43 arrived in this state within six months, provided, however, such a
44 person has filed an application for a license as an occupational safety
45 and hygiene professional, and who is a certified industrial hygienist or
46 a certified safety professional or who is legally qualified to practice
47 in the state or country in which he or she had a place of residence or
48 practice, and has not had a previous application for licensure or a
49 limited permit rejected or a previous license as an occupational safety
50 and hygiene professional revoked. Such exemption shall continue only for
51 such reasonable time as the board requires to grant or deny the applica-
52 tion for license. A person intending to practice under this subdivision
53 shall so state on the application.
54 § 7257. Special provisions. 1. No act, regulation or order shall
55 restrict the practice of the industrial or occupational hygiene or safe-
56 ty professions as authorized by this article.
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1 2. Every licensed occupational safety and hygiene professional shall
2 have a seal which shall contain the words "Occupational Safety and
3 Hygiene Professional" and such other words or figures as the board may
4 deem necessary. The seal may be used to stamp reports and drawings which
5 relate to the practice of the industrial hygiene and safety professions.
6 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
7 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
