Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 44, November 2, 2024
Section 963.19 - Continuing education of system operators(a) An applicant for financial assistance shall include a 5-year operator training plan as part of the assistance application. The operator training plan shall be reviewed and updated at 5-year intervals-or more often if appropriate-and shall be submitted to the Authority for approval within 3 months of the end of each 5-year cycle. The 5-year training plan shall specify the education programs in which identified system operators or supporting staff plan to participate each year. The minimum level of educational topics included in the training plan shall correlate to the classification of the treatment facility being operated.(b) Education sources to be included in the 5-year training plan may include the following: (1) Water and wastewater treatment facility operator training courses conducted or certified by the Department of Community Affairs or equivalent courses conducted or approved by the Department.(2) Appropriate related courses provided by an accredited university or institution or approved by the Department.(3) Specialty courses, professional seminars or operator outreach training programs conducted or sponsored by State or Federal agencies, organizations such as the Water Pollution Control Federation, the Water Pollution Control Association of Pennsylvania, the American Water Works Association, the American Society of Civil Engineers and the National Rural Water Association.(4) Reasonable substitutions or modifications may be made to the plan if projected training courses are unavailable or become inappropriate.(c) Certification or other documentation demonstrating participation in the education programs, as identified in each 5-year training plan, shall be submitted as support to training plan renewals.(d) Failure to submit, maintain, update or follow the approved operator training plan may result in the Authority ceasing financial assistance and recovering prior payments including, but not limited to, the immediate repayment of outstanding loans and interest and grants. This section cited in 25 Pa. Code § 963.4 (relating to applicant eligibility).