Dimension

Law Lookout

The Virginia General Assembly has made two changes that affect the regulants of the APELSLA Board. HB1324, passed during the 1996 Session, clarifies the requirements for contractors engaging in design-build. §54.1-406.F, License required, of the Code of Virginia was added to read: Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, a contractor who is licensed pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 11 (§54.1-1100 et seq.) of this title shall not be required to be licensed or registered to practice in accordance with this chapter when negotiating design-build contracts or performing services other than architectural, engineering or land surveying services under a design-build contract. The architectural, engineering or land surveying services offered or rendered in connection with such contracts shall only be offered and rendered by an architect, professional engineer or land surveyor licensed in accordance with this chapter.

HB2383, passed during the 1997 Session, grants civil immunity to licensed architects who utilize their professional skills in providing, without charge, rescue or relief assistance. The immunity does not apply to gross negligence or willful misconduct. The same immunity currently exists for licensed professional engineers. The new language is: §8.01-226.2. Civil immunity for licensed professional engineers and licensed architects participating in rescue or relief assistance. Any licensed professional engineer or licensed architect who, in good faith and without charge or compensation, utilizes his professional skills in providing rescue or relief assistance at the scene of or in connection with a natural or manmade disaster or other life-threatening emergency, shall not be liable for any civil damages for acts or omissions on his part resulting from the rendering of such assistance or professional services in the absence of gross negligence or willful misconduct.

Complaints

The Enforcement Division of the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation is charged with and has established procedures for investigating all complaints filed against regulants of the APELSLA Board. These procedures ensure that each complaint is considered in a fair and impartial manner and provide a mechanism for the licensee to respond to the complaint that has been filed. Contacting a Board member about a complaint may bias the Board member and prevent him from being able to act on the matter. If you need a complaint form, one may be obtained by dialing (804) 367-8504.

Fair Housing

The Virginia Real Estate Board administers and enforces the Virginia Fair Housing Law and Regulations through the Virginia Fair Housing Office (VFHO). The law provides rights and remedies that are substantially equivalent to those granted under the federal Fair Housing Act. The Virginia Fair Housing Law prohibits housing discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status, handicap, or elderliness (Virginia only). Both state and federal laws require that new multifamily housing built for first occupancy on or after March 13, 1991, be designed and constructed in such a manner that it is accessible to and usable by disabled persons. Therefore, architects, builders and other persons involved in the design and construction of housing must be aware of the requirements.

For information concerning the Fair Housing Amendments Act design and construction requirements, contact the Fair Housing Information Clearing House at 1-800-343-3442. In addition, VFHO staff is available to educate consumers, housing providers, architects and others regarding their rights and responsibilities under the fair housing law. If you are interested in fair housing training, contact John P. Cancelleri, Fair Housing Administrator or Carol A. Mitchell, Fair Housing Conciliator/Trainer at (804) 367-8530.

Restricted Titles

Architect," "professional engineer," "land surveyor," "certified landscape architect," and "certified interior designer" are all protected titles according to the Statutes of Virginia. All titles are protected through licensure or certification and are defined in §54.1-400 of the Code of Virginia.

Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors have a licensure tract which includes early testing. After passing the test, an individual is allowed to use the title of "engineer-in-training" (EIT) or "land surveyor-in-training" (LSIT) respectively.

Architects, Certified Landscape Architects, and Certified Interior Designers have no licensure/certification tract that allows the use of any derivative of the "titles" protected by the Statutes prior to licensure or certification. In the case of the "certified" professions, the use of the title without inclusion of the word "certified" is not prohibited by the Rules and Regulations or Statutes.

The use of the title "architect" or any derivative thereof is protected and therefore prohibited from use by anyone other than licensees. The use of titles such as "intern architect," "architectural designer," "architectural technician," "architectural intern," "architectural historian," etc., although often (mis)used terms, is not permitted by anyone other than licensees.

To avoid misleading the public through the use of a protected title or derivative thereof, one should be cautious when notifying the public of position or "title". The unlawful use of a protected title is a misdemeanor and potentially damaging when applying for licensure or certification.

Renewals

Licenses, certificates and registrations are renewable every two years. The APELSLA Board mails renewal notices to all regulants; however, regulants are ultimately responsible for the renewal of their license, certificate or registration even if they do not receive a renewal notice. If you move or have your address changed due to post office renumbering or implementation of an Emergency 911 system, you should notify the APELSLA Board and not rely on the postal service to forward your renewal notice. The late renewal or reinstatement of a license, certificate or registration could result in fines, having to complete application forms, or in certain cases, submitting to retesting. Changes of address may be sent to: APELSLA Board, DPOR, 3600 West Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia, 23230-4917 or sent via facsimile to the attention of the APELSLA Board at (804) 367-2475. Changes of address are not accepted by telephone.

Examination Statistics

Here are the statistics from the most recent exam administrations in Virginia. There was no December Architect Registration Exam (ARE) due to the conversion to the computerized version of the ARE.

DIMENSIONS

Compiled Plats

§5.10.C(2)(n) of the Board's Rules and Regulations states:

"If the land boundaries shown on the plat are the result of a compilation from deeds or plats, or both, or based on a survey by others, that fact will be clearly stated and the title of the plat shall clearly depict that the plat does not represent a current boundary survey."

The application of the surveyor's seal on the plat makes the surveyor responsible for all information on the plat and indicates that the work was his/hers. When the plat is a compilation and the proper note and title are not applied to the plat, it must be assumed that a current survey was performed.

§5.10, 5.11 and 5.12 of the Board's Rules and Regulations should be carefully read.

FEMA Flood Maps

In 1996, the Board received a complaint against a regulant regarding the location of a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Flood Zone Line.

The regulant surveyed the property in 1994 and used the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map to scale the location of the flood zone line. (Scaling is an accepted method of locating the flood zone lines.) In this case, the scaled location of the flood hazard zone indicated the dwelling was located well out of the flood hazard zone.

In 1995, a stream located adjacent to the property overflowed its banks and flooded the first floor of the structure. After the flood, the surveyor's field crew traced the contour of the flood hazard zone and found that it actually was located through the structure. For this reason, the property owner felt justified in filing a complaint against the surveyor with the Board.

In preparing the 1994 survey, the regulant relied on a FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map dated 1978. Although the map was revised in 1983, it appeared that no graphic changes were made to the flood zone line that would affect the complainant's property.

Since FEMA considers the Flood Insurance Rate Map to be the "official" source for flood zone information, the Board found there was no violation of the Rules, Regulations and Statutes.

However, the Land Surveyor Section suggests that if the regulant suspects a structure is located close to a flood hazard zone line, it would probably be wise to recommend to the client that actual field elevations be determined and

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that an Elevation Certificate be prepared. If the client elects not to choose this option, it is recommended that the flood zone note on the survey reflect, at a minimum, that the property appears to be in a certain zone or zones, a reference to the FEMA community panel number, the effective date of the community panel and, if applicable, that the flood zone line or lines were scaled from the FEMA community panel.

Computerized Architect Registration Exam

Please share this information with those members of your staff who are candidates for the examination.

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

Beginning in February, 1997, all divisions of the ARE will be offered year round, six days a week at a network of test centers across the United States. Candidates will be able to take the exam in any order at any test site. The paper and pencil exam is no longer available.

NEW APPLICANTS

1. Request an application from the Board. 2. Send completed application and application fee to the Board. All requirements for examination must be met prior to application. 3. The APELSLA Board determines eligibility. 4. The Board staff completes the Test Eligibility Form and forwards it to the central testing center database. 5. The central testing center sends the applicant a confirmation letter ("Authorization to Test" or ATT) indicating the divisions for which the applicant is eligible, and a Bulletin of Information which provides scheduling information. 6. Eligibility information is sent to all testing centers in the United States. 7. The applicant calls a testing center to schedule an appointment. 8. Testing fees will no longer be collected by the Board, but by the testing centers in the form of check, money order, or credit card.

REAPPLICANTS

Applicants who are already approved for the ARE can skip steps 1-4. The Board will complete the Eligibility Form and transmit this information to the central testing center.

EXAMINATION STRUCTURE

DIVISION TIME LIMIT COST

See previous newsletter for Division abbreviations

PD (mult choice) 4 hours $92.00

GS (mult choice) 4.5 hours $108.00

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DIMENSIONS

MM (mult choice) 3.5 hours $90.00

CD (mult choice) 4 hours $99.00

SP (graphic) 5 hours $129.00

BP (graphic) 7.5 hours $155.00

BT (graphic) 7 hours $145.00

9 Parts 42 hours $980.00

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Do I have to reapply to the Board to retake divisions of the ARE? - No. One application is sent to the Board office. The Board sends the Eligibility Form to the central testing center making you eligible for the exam. All exam scheduling is done directly with the testing center. However, should an applicant not pass the entire examination within three (3) years after being approved, the applicant must reapply and meet all current entry requirements.

If I fail a division, how long will I have to wait until I can retake that division? - You must wait six months after failing a division before repeating that division.

What kinds of practice programs will be available for use before taking the graphic exams on computer? - The software used is not commercially available and, therefore, does not give unfair advantage to applicants who are familiar with commonly used programs. A request form for tutorial disks or CD format, with a practice vignette, will be sent to applicants who sign up for any of the three graphic divisions. There is no cost for these practice programs, but they will be sent only to applicants who have been made eligible by this Board. If a candidate does not have access to a computer, he or she can schedule practice time at a testing center for $12.00 per hour.

Will I be able to stop working on one vignette within a division and move to another, then come back to the first vignette? - Yes. Your work will be saved automatically every time you leave a vignette to move to another and you can move to the second or third vignette, come back to the first, etc., but only within the same section of a division.

Where are the testing centers? - There are four testing centers in Virginia; Arlington, Newport News, Richmond and Roanoke.

Do I need to take all exam divisions at the same testing center? - No. Your exam scores will be kept at the central testing center allowing you to take the divisions at any testing center.

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An additional source of information for the ARE is:

The National Council of Architectural Registration Boards

1735 New York Avenue, NW

Suite 700

Washington, DC 20006

(202) 783-6500, (202) 783-0290 - FAX

http://www.ncarb.org

Disciplinary Actions

The following is a summary of recent actions taken against regulants by the APELSLA Board.

FILE NUMBER

95-02449, David R. Gardy, LS

VIOLATION

BOARD ACTION

REGULATIONS VIOLATED

EFFECTIVE DATE

FILE NUMBER

95-02227, George C. Belford, PE

VIOLATION

BOARD ACTION

REGULATIONS VIOLATED

EFFECTIVE DATE

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FILE NUMBER

93-01704, Robert A. Crowley, PE

VIOLATION

BOARD ACTION

REGULATIONS VIOLATED -

EFFECTIVE DATE

Reciprocity Validation for Landscape Architects

Virginia Certified Landscape Architects who were certified under the Grandfather Clause may soon be eligible for CLARB Certification under a proposed Reciprocity Validation Process. The process should be of particular benefit when seeking licensure in Canadian provinces, which are open markets for U.S. citizens under the terms of NAFTA, or when approaching those U.S. jurisdictions which do not recognize the CLARB Senior (Oral) Examination.

Individuals who may benefit from the proposed process are those who were certified/licensed as Landscape Architects without taking the recognized national examination - either the Landscape Architect Registration Examination or its predecessor the Uniform National Examination; those who sat for California's Professional Examination for Landscape Architects; those registered under Canadian provincial examinations, and those who are certified/licensed without taking a written exam.

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The Reciprocity Validation Process, as proposed, will have the following requirements:

All CLARB Certification Standards must be met.

Satisfactory experience after licensure must be demonstrated. The specific requirements, in terms of years, will vary depending upon the candidates' exam history.

Candidates will take a written examination prepared by the CLARB Examination Committee.

The exam will address the most important health, safety, and welfare issues and will be designed to validate the process used to achieve initial certification. As proposed, the Reciprocity Validation Examination will be completed in one day and will be graded on a pass/fail basis. Those who fail will not qualify for CLARB Certification. Candidates will not be allowed to use the new exam as an alternative to the LARE.

Final approval of the Reciprocity Validation Process will be put to a vote at the CLARB annual meeting in September. Regulants with comments or questions regarding the new process should address them to the Landscape Architecture Section of the APELSLA Board.

Reformatting of the Land Surveyor "A" Exam

Please share this information with those members of your staff who are candidates for the examination.

The Department and the Land Surveyor Section conducted a task analysis survey for the state specific portion of the Land Surveyor "A" examination, an exam developed by the Land Surveyor Section and administered to all candidates seeking to be licensed as a Land Surveyor in Virginia. This exam is given in addition to the NCEES Fundamentals and Principles and Practice of Land Surveying examinations.

A task analysis is used to determine those services performed by the professional related to public protection and the underlying knowledge and skills needed to properly perform those services. This information is then used to develop examination content outlines which guide the development of practice-related questions for the examination which reflect critical aspects of the profession.

The task analysis survey was developed with the aid of a panel of Virginia licensed land surveyors working in concert

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with the Land Surveyor Section and mailed to a portion of the Virginia licensed surveyors. The respondents were asked to rate each area as to (1) the amount of time spent at that activity, (2) the risk to the public if not practiced correctly, and (3) what the proficiency level of a newly licensed surveyor performing that activity should be. The results were reviewed to determine what percentage of the examination should be allocated to each content area. The final summation provided the "blueprint" for the development of the examination.

The results of the survey recommended an increase in the number of content areas for the exam from eight to sixteen. Because of the limitation to a two hour exam, reformatting the exam was necessary. The new exam will consist of the core area and two optional areas. All candidates must take the core area and will be allowed to select one of the two optional areas. The following outlines the content areas of the core and two optional areas:

CORE EXAMINATION CONTENT AREAS:

Boundary Surveys

Physical Improvement Systems

Rules and Regulations

Virginia Law Relating to the Practice of Land Surveying

Drainage, Erosion and Sediment Control

OPTIONAL I

Incidental Plans and Profiles for Roads

Hydrographic Surveys

Topographic Surveys

Route Systems for Transportation of Transmission Corridors

Construction Layout<

OPTIONAL II EXAMINATION CONTENT AREAS:

Geodetic Surveys and Global Positioning Systems

Photogrammetric Control Surveys

LIS/GIS Systems

>Wetlands Delineation Surveys

Land Planning and Design

 

License Verifications

Just a reminder that the Virginia Board will provide a verification of your license, certificate or registration to another jurisdiction with a written request accompanied

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APELSLA & CCVID: The Simple Difference

APELSLA stands for Architects, Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Landscape Architects.

CCVID stands for Council for Certification of Virginia Interior Designers.

APELSLA is a State regulatory board within the Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation. Its members are appointed by the Governor for a four-year term. Currently there are two Interior Designers who sit on the Board. They are Sara L. Cowherd and M. Lou Barnett. Both Ms. Cowherd and Ms. Barnett will be up for reappointment in 1998.

CCVID is an organization made up of volunteers who have worked to institute certification of interior designers in the Commonwealth of Virginia and are continuing to lobby to ensure that this legislation remains valid.

While the CCVID is a private organization that lobbies the General Assembly, the APELSLA Board is the governmental entity. The APELSLA Board has been charged by the General Assembly with establishing and overseeing the regulations for those interior designers who wish to become "certified" by the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The Interior Design Section of the APELSLA Board meets four times a year. At these meetings, the Board members discuss issues relating to certification of Interior Designers, state regulations, disciplinary actions taken against regulants and reviewing of applications. In the last two years, the Interior Design board members have accomplished several goals that have benefited Interior Designers in Virginia:

NCIDQ Examination Review: Formerly, a candidate was required to travel out of state to review the examination. In 1995 the Board entered into an agreement with NCIDQ to allow for a review and an appeals process in Virginia. In February 1996, the first examination review was available.

Regulatory Review Task Force: The Interior Design Section Chair will represent interior design regulants on the task force which is made up of one member of each

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discipline from the full APELSLA Board. This task force will meet 3 times during 1997 to review regulations as they relate to each profession.

NCIDQ Equivalent Examinations: The Interior Design Section is investigating examinations equivalent to NCIDQ for the purpose of potentially broadening the testing standards currently recognized by the Board.

Certification Applications: Applications have been revised to reflect the current regulations. There are two categories of application qualifications: by degree, experience and examination; and by comity from another state.

NCIDQ Legislative Symposium: Lou Barnett attended the Fifth Annual Interior Design Symposium in Nashville, Tennessee. Discussions centered around development of legislation, residential building codes and title versus practice acts.

Interior Design Section meetings are open to the public and designers are welcome to attend. For additional information about meeting times and locations, or if you have questions, please contact the APELSLA Board at (804) 367-8514.

Sealing Construction Documents

Requirements for sealing drawings are often misinterpreted. By sealing documents, an architect or professional engineer assumes responsibility for assuring the work contained therein adheres to all applicable public health, safety and welfare regulations. Section 105.5 of the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code, Volume 1 - New Construction Code, requires that plans and specifications submitted for permit must "include the seal and signature of the architect and professional engineer under whose supervision they were prepared".

All regulants of the Board are required to seal documents submitted to building departments for review whether or not the work is exempt. Each sheet of a set of construction documents is to be sealed and signed by the professional responsible for that portion of the work. Sheets containing the work of more than one discipline are to be sealed and signed by each responsible professional with each assuming responsibility for the portion of work of their discipline. The cover sheet of a set of documents is to be signed and sealed by the person in responsible charge from each discipline. In projects where the work performed is (CONTINUED TOP OF NEXT COLUMN)

Permit officials, clients, and other individuals are encouraged to verify the currency of an applicant's registration by calling the APELSLA Board.

The APELSLA Board is researching the development of standards for signing and sealing electronically produced construction documents. Please forward pertinent information on this subject to the APELSLA Board addressed to the attention of the Assistant Director.

PE Application Review

Please share this information with those members of your staff who are candidates for the examination or licensure.

Applicants for comity may consider applying to the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying for a Council Record. A compilation of the professional's education, experience, exam and reference history is used to facilitate the interstate licensing process. These records do not ensure automatic approval, however, they can decrease the time needed for the review process.

The APELSLA Board staff is currently trying to streamline the application process and to that end, will soon have the EIT/PE applications available at our web site. Applicants will be able to bypass the mailing time after making the initial request to receive an application and regulations by being able to readily access the information at their convenience. After accessing the forms, applicants can complete the forms at their workstation, print them, and mail the completed packages to the Board. We anticipate the availability of forms by fall and will have an update in the next edition of Dimensions.