Merger of geologist registration board with contractors proposed

Legislation was introduced in the Arizona Senate to move the Board of Technical Registration into the Registrar of Contractors office. BTR oversees registration of technical professions, including geologists. The bill, SB1171, introduced by Sen. Kenneth Cheuvront, had its first reading in the Commerce Committee today.

This legislation has been rumored in geologic community and other circles for the past week and seems to be drawing intense interest from the professions regulated by BTR.

"The Board is a regulatory agency for the following professions and occupations: Architects, Assayers, Certified Remediation Specialists, Clandestine Drug Laboratory Site Remediation On-Site Workers and On-Site Supervisors, Engineers, Geologists, Home Inspectors, Landscape Architects, and Surveyors."

The ROC has 146 employees overseeing 48,521 licensed contractors (as of January 2003). BTR has 18 employees. It's not readily evident how many licencees they regulate.