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DESIGN BOARDS
The past year has brought many changes to the professional design boards’ staff, to include a new executive director and assistant executive director. Our new executive and assistant executive directors bring with them decades of leadership and customer service experience. As always we are committed to providing outstanding service to our customers. We welcome your comments and suggestions so do not hesitate to contact your board’s staff.
Executive Director Joseph Cullingford 410-230-6262
Assistant Executive Director Rory Wise 410-230-6263
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Effective July 1, 2019, the Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation (DLLR) changed its name to the Department of Labor. Our new web address is www.labor.maryland.gov. Even though our name has changed, our services are still the same. You can expect the same great service from our board members and staff.
Don’t miss out on important information regarding your license! Effective this year, all design boards will have regulations requiring licensees to update their addresses so the board is able to send official communications. In addition to updating your mailing address, it is important to ensure the board has a current email address associated with your license or permit. As more services are transitioned to electronic means, email communications will become increasingly necessary. For information on updating your contact information see the following webpages:
Architects
Professional Engineers
Land Surveyors
Landscape Architects
Certified Interior Designers
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PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS
During the July 2019 meeting, David G. Mongan, P.E. was elected chairman of the Maryland Board for Professional Engineers. As a member of the board, Mongan has displayed enormous passion and dedication for the advancement of the profession nationally and within the state of Maryland. Mongan retired as the president of Whitney, Bailey, Cox & Magnani, LLC, an architectural/engineering/construction firm headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. WBCM provides professional services in architecture, highway and bridge engineering, design of institutional, commercial and industrial structures, transportation planning, environmental engineering, land development and site engineering, planning and urban design, design of waterfront and marine-related facilities, construction management/inspection and field surveying.
Mongan is active with the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) at the national level, having served as president in 2008. He has been the District 5 director, Zone 1 vice president, treasurer and chair for numerous committees. He is a past chair of the Council on Federal Procurement of Architectural and Engineering Services. He is a past member of the Maryland Chamber of Commerce board of directors, past member of the board of directors of the Engineering Society of Baltimore, and past co-chair of the American Council of Engineering Companies/Maryland Legislative Committee. Additionally, he is past chair of the American Association of Engineering Societies and a past president of the board of directors for Engineers Without Borders-USA. He received the Engineering Society of Baltimore’s Meritorious Service Award in 2012. In 2003 he was awarded the William H. Wisely American Civil Engineer Award by ASCE. He holds a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Maryland and a Master of Business Administration from Loyola College of Baltimore, Maryland.
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Recently, the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying® (NCEES) unveiled a new continuing education tracking tool that gives you a standardized system for organizing your training. Use of this system is not mandatory but will make the auditing process more efficient through the use of standardized continuing professional competency (CPC) transmittal to all jurisdictions. Learn more about NCEES's free CPC tracking.
Beginning in winter 2019, the board will offer web-based ethics training. This free training will be offered to provide licensees the most up-to-date information on Maryland ethical issues affecting professional engineers. Completion of this optional training will satisfy the Maryland state ethics requirement for professional engineers. Information will be sent out to licensees once registration opens.
Did you know that Maryland has a list of preapproved continuing education providers? This growing list contains over 200 providers, preapproved by the board, to ensure that you have a variety of options in completing your continuing education requirements. Keep in mind that the board preapproves providers, not individual courses. It is the licensee’s responsibility to ensure that the course meets the standard of COMAR. A list of providers can be found online.
Regular meetings of the State Board for Professional Engineers are typically scheduled on the second Thursday of each month. They are open to the public and are held at 500 N. Calvert Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202 at 9:00 a.m. Any changes to regularly scheduled meetings are posted in advance on our website.
2019 Meeting Dates
October 10, 2019
November 14, 2019
December 12, 2019
PROFESSIONAL LAND SURVEYORS
by John V. Mettee, Chairman
Technology, services and applications are ever-changing in the surveying profession, far faster than at any other time in history. Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) data acquisition, asset inventories, mobile mapping, as well as other new and emerging technologies, applications and services and constantly evolving. Advancement in technologies has led to evolving tools such as drones, 3D scanners, robotics and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) that are continually changing how land surveyors are doing business.
However, the definition of the practice of surveying in Maryland has not changed in some time. In the February 2015 issue of the NCEES newsletter, Gary Thompson of the North Carolina licensing board wrote an article, “It’s Time to Take a Fresh at State Definitions of Surveying.” So, one might ask, “is it time for us in Maryland to take a fresh look at the definition of surveying?” The answer is “YES” and work in this area is well underway.
Nonetheless, our board predecessors were very forward-thinking when our current definition was crafted, and until most recently, did not warrant changes. But now we are facing challenges that require a new look. Over the past couple of years, the board had a “mapping committee” that was reviewing the Kentucky model with the intent of making regulatory changes to address some of the issues that arose. That process was delayed due to several factors. Later, the board determined that it would be necessary to take a “fresh look” at the statute as opposed to only making regulatory changes.
The board appointed a special committee at the September 2018 meeting to review the current language of the Land Surveyor Practice Act. This committee is comprised of two state license board members and two MSS members and has met several times already. The goal for this committee is to take a comprehensive look at our state’s definition of surveying and recommend changes. The actual charges to this committee from the board chairman are as follows:
Charge 1
This special committee is to make a comprehensive review of the current Land Surveyor Practice Act and make recommendations for changing the law with consideration to the following items:
- Not reducing the current scope of practice (minor engineering aspects)
- Current trends in technology, equipment, methods, and practice
- The Kentucky model for authoritative, precise, and general location precision
- NCEES Model Law and Rules
- Current practice laws of other states, such as but not limited to Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Florida
- Potential changes to the Maryland surveyor license categories
Charge 2
The outcome will consist of written proposed law change recommendations for the board’s approval and support. The licensing board’s approved proposed changes will be used by the MSS legislative committee for proposed bill draft preparation and introduction to the state legislature.
The committee continues to meet on a regular basis and hopes to present its outcomes in the near future.
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As of October 2018, board approval is no longer required to take the FS examination. In order to take the examination, go directly to ncees.org to register. You may apply to the board for the Professional Land Surveyors Exam (PS), state exams, and licensure at any time, once you meet the qualifications. For more information please contact the board staff.
The 53rd Annual Fall Conference & Exhibition of the Maryland Society of Surveyors will be held October 16-19, 2019, at the Princess Royale Hotel in Ocean City. More than 70 hours of Continuing Professional Competency (CPC)/Professional Development Hour (PDH)/Continuing Education Unit (CEU) will be offered on a variety of technical, practice, ethics, law, and standards topics. The Maryland Board for Professional Land Surveyors, Department of Labor, will hold town hall meeting at lunch (12:00 pm) on Friday, October 18 as part of the conference program.
Regular meetings of the State Board for Professional Land Surveyors are typically scheduled on the first Wednesday of each month (unless there is a conflict with a holiday). They are open to the public and take place at 500 N. Calvert Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202 at 10 a.m. Any changes to regularly scheduled meetings are posted in advance on our website.
2019 Meeting Dates
October 18, 2019 (Time: TBD and Location: Ocean City, MD)
November 6, 2019
December 4, 2019
ARCHITECTS
On January 23, 2019, the Board of Architects adopted amendments to the regulation for failure to respond to the board. Under this change licensees now have 30 days to respond to an official communication from the board. This change also requires an applicant or licensee to update the board in writing if there is a change in address. Failing to update your address could result in missing an important communication from the board.
View current rules of conduct for architects in the Code of Maryland Regulations: http://www.dsd.state.md.us/comar/comarhtml/09/09.21.02.01.htm
Regular meetings of the State Board of Architects are typically scheduled on the 4th Wednesday of the month, except for July and November, at 500 N. Calvert Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. Any changes to regularly scheduled meetings are posted in advance on our website.
2019 Meeting Dates
September 25, 2019
October 23, 2019
December 18, 2019
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS
Recently, the board had received several inquiries regarding the preparation of preliminary plans by licensed landscape architects. The board had addressed this by issuing an opinion to county permitting officials in an effort to clarify the responsibilities that fall under multiple design professions.
The board had requested that permitting officials recognize the ability of landscape architect to sign and seal preliminary plans. The board states, “The preparation of a Preliminary Plan is multidisciplinary effort and landscape architects are very well qualified to coordinate between disciplines. Additionally, there are aspects of a preliminary plan that can be performed by landscape architects, surveyors and professional engineers. In other words, these are overlapping practice skills and abilities by all three professions…”
To view the board’s full letter and other overlapping practice issues, please visit our Joint Design Board’s homepage at www.labor.maryland.gov/license/design/.
Regulations for landscape architects list several sources for continuing education including:
- National (ABET/EAC), regional, or state-accredited academic institutions
- National, state or regional landscape architectural professional or technical societies or organizations
- Activities accredited by ASLA, LACES, or CLARB
- Other entities that have been approved by the board
In an effort to expand the activities that are available for meeting the CE requirement, the board recently instituted a new process for the preapproval of educational providers. Providers interested in becoming preapproved should visit http://www.labor.maryland.gov/license/la/laeduc.shtml to obtain an application form.
Regular meetings of the State Board of Examiners of Landscape Architects are typically scheduled on a quarterly basis on the third Monday of the month (unless there is a conflict with a holiday). They are open to the public and take place at 500 N. Calvert Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. Any changes to regularly scheduled meetings are posted in advance on our website.
2019 Meeting Dates
October 21, 2019
CERTIFIED INTERIOR DESIGNERS
The state of Maryland requires that all certified interior designers complete 10 hours of continuing education per two-year certification period. Keep in mind that the board requires one of these 10 hours to be focused on sustainable design. Sustainable design is defined in our regulations as “…the design process that utilizes an integrative approach aimed at: (1) The conservation of energy, water, and raw material resources; (2) The prevention of environmental degradation; and (3) The overall creation of healthy, livable, and productive environments.”
The sustainable design course must be approved by the Interior Design Continuing Education Council and the U.S. Green Building Council. The remaining nine hours of continuing education can be selected from a variety of topics that have been preapproved by the board. For more information on approved continuing education, including the procedures for submitting a course for board approval, contact the board staff or visit http://www.labor.maryland.gov/license/cid/cideduc.shtml.
Regular meetings of the State Board of Certified Interior Designers are typically scheduled on a quarterly basis. Please contact the board staff or view the board website for the next scheduled meeting.
ENFORCEMENT — DESIGN BOARDS
The design boards welcomed their first full-time investigator, Frazier West, this past year. As a retired state police officer, West’s investigative experience is a great addition to our team. He will ensure that the boards are better equipped to perform their primary mission of protecting the health, safety, and welfare of the public.
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Enforcement actions are posted online once an order becomes final. Please visit the appropriate board’s webpage to view uploaded enforcement actions. The design boards average over 150 complaints per year that are investigated and reviewed by our staff.
Historically, the majority of the disciplinary actions taken by the design boards have been a result of licensees’ failure to complete continuing education. Currently, however, the boards are receiving an increase of valid complaints that stem from unlicensed practice. These unlicensed practice complaints are often discovered by permitting authorities who are in the best position to spot these issues. Over the past four months, the board had investigated five instances of individuals using design professionals’ stamps without their knowledge. Two of these cases are still being investigated, while the other three have been referred for criminal prosecution. If you suspect that someone is engaged in unlicensed practice, please contact the board’s investigator, Frazier West, or our assistant executive director, Rory Wise.
BOARD MEMBERS AND STAFF
Professional Engineers
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Land Surveyors
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Architects
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