Bill Text: NY A06557 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Requires certain engineering plans or specifications for engineering work or services that could pose a material risk to public safety to bear a stamp of approval of a professional engineer and authorizes the public service commission to promulgate rules and regulations relating to such requirement.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to higher education [A06557 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A06557-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          6557
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                     March 11, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced by M. of A. CUSICK -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Higher Education
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  education  law  and  the public service law, in
          relation to certain engineering plans or specifications for  engineer-
          ing work or services that could pose a material risk to public safety
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 7208 of the education law, as added by chapter  987
     2  of  the  laws  of 1971, the section heading as amended by chapter 475 of
     3  the laws of 2014, subdivision g as amended by chapter 994 of the laws of
     4  1971, subdivision l as amended by section 15 of part A of chapter 173 of
     5  the laws of 2013, and subdivision p as added by chapter 954 of the  laws
     6  of 1972, is amended to read as follows:
     7    § 7208.  Exempt  persons  for  the professions of engineering and land
     8  surveying. 1. This article shall not be construed to affect  or  prevent
     9  the  following,  provided  that  no title, sign, card or device shall be
    10  used in such manner as to tend to convey the impression that the  person
    11  rendering  such  service  is  a professional engineer or a land surveyor
    12  licensed in this state or is practicing engineering or land surveying:
    13    a. Offering to practice in this state as a  professional  engineer  or
    14  land surveyor by any person not a resident of, and having no established
    15  place  of  practice  in this state, provided that such person is legally
    16  qualified for such practice in his own state or country;
    17    b. Practice as a professional engineer or land surveyor in this  state
    18  by any person not a resident, or having no established place of practice
    19  in  this state, or any person resident in this state but who has arrived
    20  in this state within six months, provided, however, such a person  shall
    21  have filed an application for license as a professional engineer or land
    22  surveyor,  and  is  legally  qualified for such practice in the state or
    23  country in which he resides or has his place of practice or in which  he
    24  had his previous residence or place of practice, such exemption continu-
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD08398-01-9
        A. 6557                             2
     1  ing for only such reasonable time as the board requires to grant or deny
     2  the  application  for  license, and a person intending to practice under
     3  this subdivision shall so state on the application;
     4    c.  Practice  of  engineering  or  land surveying, by an employee of a
     5  county or town, in the construction, improvement  or  maintenance  of  a
     6  county  road  or town highway, or by an employee of a county, city, town
     7  or village, in the  construction,  improvement  or  maintenance  of  any
     8  public  work  wherein  the  contemplated  expenditure  for the completed
     9  project does not exceed five thousand dollars;
    10    d. Operation or maintenance of steam, power, or  refrigeration  plants
    11  by legally authorized persons not licensed under this article or persons
    12  engaged  or  employed as an engine man, operator or driver of any engine
    13  or of any mechanical, electrical, chemical or other device or machine;
    14    e. Making of surveys by professional engineers, except that the deter-
    15  mination of real property boundaries may be done only by a licensed land
    16  surveyor;
    17    f. Employment or supervision of interns or other persons qualified  by
    18  education  or  experience by professional engineers or land surveyors as
    19  assistants in the performance of engineering or land  surveying,  or  as
    20  consultants  or  employees in special fields related to but not uniquely
    21  engineering or land surveying,  provided  that  the  engineers  or  land
    22  surveyors employing or supervising such persons shall not be relieved of
    23  any  responsibility  whatsoever  by  delegation  to  such  persons,  and
    24  provided further that such persons  who  have  attained  the  bachelor's
    25  level  of  studies in accordance with the requirements of section seven-
    26  ty-two hundred six of this title may be employed as junior or  assistant
    27  engineers  or  junior or assistant land surveyors, or similar titles, to
    28  act under the general direction  of  a  professional  engineer  or  land
    29  surveyor, or in work not covered by this article;
    30    g.  Employment  of  any  person  as  a junior or assistant engineer or
    31  junior or assistant land surveyor in the civil service of the  state  or
    32  its political subdivisions in a position the title of which was approved
    33  and in use as of July first, nineteen hundred seventy-one, provided such
    34  person acts under the general direction of a licensed professional engi-
    35  neer or land surveyor;
    36    h.  Execution  by  a  contractor  or  by  others of work designed by a
    37  professional engineer, or land surveyor, or the superintendence of  such
    38  work as a superintendent, foreman, or inspector;
    39    i.  The  practice  of  architecture  by  an architect licensed in this
    40  state, or the practice of landscape architecture by a  landscape  archi-
    41  tect  licensed  in  this state, provided that no such architect or land-
    42  scape architect shall use the designation  "engineer"  or  "engineering"
    43  unless licensed as a professional engineer in this state;
    44    j.  The  practice of engineering or land surveying or having the title
    45  "engineer" or "surveyor" solely as an officer or an employee of a corpo-
    46  ration engaged in interstate commerce;
    47    k. The practice of engineering by a manufacturing  corporation  or  by
    48  employees  of  such  corporation, or use of the title "engineer" by such
    49  employees, in connection with or incidental to  goods  produced  by,  or
    50  sold by, or nonengineering services rendered by, such corporation or its
    51  manufacturing affiliates;
    52    l.  The  practice of engineering or land surveying, or using the title
    53  "engineer" or "surveyor" (i) exclusively as an officer or employee of  a
    54  public  service  corporation  by  rendering  to  such  corporation  such
    55  services in connection with its lines and property which are subject  to
    56  supervision  with  respect  to  the  safety  and security thereof by the
        A. 6557                             3
     1  public service commission of this state, the interstate commerce commis-
     2  sion or other federal regulatory body and so long as such person is thus
     3  actually and exclusively employed and no longer, or (ii) exclusively  as
     4  an officer or employee of the Long Island power authority or its service
     5  provider, as defined under section three-b of the public service law, by
     6  rendering to such authority or provider such services in connection with
     7  its  lines  and  property  which are located in such authority's service
     8  area and so long  as  such  person  is  thus  actually  and  exclusively
     9  employed and no longer;
    10    m.  The  making  of land surveys by a professional engineer where such
    11  land surveys are essential to  engineering  projects,  provided  he  was
    12  licensed as a professional engineer in this state on or before the first
    13  day  of  January  in  the  year in which this act shall become a law and
    14  files evidence satisfactory to the board on or before the first  day  of
    15  July  in  the year next succeeding the year in which this act shall have
    16  become law, that he is competent and experienced in such land surveys;
    17    n. The design by a land surveyor of roads, drainage, water  supply  or
    18  sanitary sewerage facilities of a minor nature in connection with subdi-
    19  visions  and  the  extension  and  inspection thereof, but not including
    20  sewage disposal or treatment plants, lift  stations,  pumping  stations,
    21  commercial buildings or bridges, provided the surveyor was licensed as a
    22  land surveyor in this state on or before the first day of January in the
    23  year in which this act shall have become a law and files evidence satis-
    24  factory to the board on or before the first day of July in the year next
    25  succeeding the year in which this act shall have become a law, attesting
    26  that  he  is  competent  and experienced in the engineering required for
    27  design of such facilities appurtenant to subdivisions; or
    28    o. Using the title "marine operating engineer", "stationary engineer",
    29  "port of customs surveyor", or "ship surveyor".
    30    p. Contractors or builders from engaging  in  construction  management
    31  and administration of construction contracts.
    32    2.  The  exemptions  provided  for  in this section shall not apply to
    33  engineering work or services that could pose a material risk  to  public
    34  safety,  as determined by the public service commission, performed by or
    35  on behalf of a gas company that distributes and  sells  gas  within  the
    36  state.
    37    § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 7213 to read
    38  as follows:
    39    §  7213.  Engineering  plans;  public safety. Any engineering plans or
    40  specifications for engineering work or services that could pose a  mate-
    41  rial  risk to public safety, as determined by the public service commis-
    42  sion, developed by or on behalf of a gas company shall bear the stamp of
    43  approval of a professional engineer; provided, however,  that  any  such
    44  plan  or specification shall be housed within the applicable gas company
    45  subject to review and audit by  the  public  service  commission.    The
    46  public  service  commission  may  promulgate  any  rules and regulations
    47  necessary for the implementation of this section.
    48    § 3. Section 5 of the public service law is amended by  adding  a  new
    49  subdivision 7 to read as follows:
    50    7.  The  commission may promulgate rules and regulations necessary for
    51  the implementation of section seventy-two hundred thirteen of the educa-
    52  tion law relating to engineering plans or specifications for engineering
    53  work or services that could pose a material risk to public safety devel-
    54  oped by or on behalf of a gas company.
    55    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.