ASSEMBLY, No. 2023
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
216th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2014 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman LOUIS D. GREENWALD
District 6 (Burlington and Camden)
Assemblyman DANIEL R. BENSON
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
SYNOPSIS
Revises definition of “responsible charge” as it pertains to licensed professional engineers and licensed architects.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As reported by the Assembly Regulated Professions Committee on December 4, 2014, with amendments.
An Act concerning the practice of professional engineering and 1[land surveying] architecture,1 and amending P.L.1938, c.342 1, P.L.1989, c.275, and P.L.1989, c.2771.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 2 of P.L.1938, c.342 (C.45:8-28) is amended to read as follows:
2. (a) The term "professional engineer" within the meaning and intent of this chapter shall mean a person who by reason of his special knowledge of the mathematical and physical sciences and the principles and methods of engineering analysis and design, acquired by professional education and practical experience, is qualified to practice engineering as hereinafter defined as attested by his license as a professional engineer.
(b) The terms "practice of engineering" or "professional engineering" within the meaning and intent of this chapter shall mean any service or creative work the adequate performance of which requires engineering education, training, and experience and the application of special knowledge of the mathematical, physical and engineering sciences to such services or creative work as consultation, investigation, evaluation, planning and design of engineering works and systems, planning the use of land and water, engineering studies, and the administration of construction for the purpose of determining compliance with drawings and specifications; any of which embraces such services or work, either public or private, in connection with any engineering project including: utilities, structures, buildings, machines, equipment, processes, work systems, projects, telecommunications, or equipment of a mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic or thermal nature, insofar as they involve safeguarding life, health or property, and including such other professional services as may be necessary to the planning, progress and completion of any engineering services. The design of buildings by professional engineers shall be consistent with section 7 of the "Building Design Services Act," P.L.1989, c.277 (C.45:4B-7).
The practice of professional engineering shall not include the work ordinarily performed by persons who operate or maintain machinery or equipment. The provisions of this chapter shall not be construed to prevent or affect the employment of architects in connection with engineering projects within the scope of the act to regulate the practice of architecture and all the amendments and supplements thereto.
A person shall be construed to practice or offer to practice engineering, within the meaning and intent of this chapter, who practices any branch of the profession of engineering; or who, by verbal claim, sign, advertisement, letterhead, card, or in any other way represents himself to be a professional engineer, or through the use of some other title utilizing or including the word engineer, implies that he is a professional engineer; or who represents himself as able to perform, or who does perform any engineering service or work or any other professional service recognized by the board as professional engineering.
Nothing herein shall prohibit licensed architects from providing or offering services consistent with the "Building Design Services Act," P.L.1989, c.277 (C.45:4B-1 et seq.).
(c) The term "engineer-in-training" as used in this chapter shall mean a person who is a potential candidate for license as a professional engineer who is a graduate in an approved engineering curriculum of four years or more from a school or college accredited by the board as of satisfactory standing, and who, in addition, has successfully passed an examination in the fundamental engineering subjects, as defined elsewhere herein.
(d) The term "land surveyor" as used in this chapter shall mean a person who is a professional specialist in the technique of measuring land, educated in the principles of mathematics, the related physical and applied sciences, and the relevant requirements of law, all requisite to the practice of land surveying as attested by his license as a land surveyor.
(e) The term "practice of land surveying" within the meaning and intent of this chapter shall mean any service or work the adequate performance of which involves the application of special knowledge of the principles of mathematics, the related physical and applied sciences and the relevant requirements of law to the act of measuring and locating distances, directions, elevations, natural and man-made topographical features in the air, on the surface of the earth, within underground workings, and on beds of bodies of water for the purpose of determining areas and volumes, and for the establishing of horizontal and vertical control as it relates to construction stake-out, for the monumentation of property boundaries and for the platting and layout of lands and subdivisions thereof and for the preparation and perpetuation of maps, record plats, field notes, records and property descriptions in manual and computer coded form that represent these surveys. The practice of land surveying shall include the establishment and maintenance of the base mapping and related control for land information systems that are developed from the above referenced definition of the practice of land surveying.
For purposes of this subsection, "land information systems" means any computer coded spatial database designed for multi-purpose public use developed from or based on property boundaries.
A person who engages in the practice of land surveying; or who, by verbal claim, sign, advertisement, letterhead, card or in any other way represents himself to be a land surveyor or professional surveyor; or who represents himself as able to perform any land surveying service or work or any service which is recognized as within the practice of land surveying shall be deemed to practice or offer to practice land surveying.
Nothing in this chapter shall preclude a person licensed by the board as a professional engineer from performing those measurements necessary for the design, construction stake-out, construction and post-construction records of an engineering project, provided that these measurements are not related to property lines, lot lines, easement lines, or right-of-way lines, the establishment of which are required to be made by a land surveyor.
(f) The term "board" as used in this chapter shall mean the State Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors.
(g) The term "responsible charge" as used in this chapter 1for professional engineers1 shall mean the [rendering of regular and effective supervision by a competent professional engineer or land surveyor to those individuals performing services] 1[providing of oversight by a competent professional engineer or land surveyor] rendering of regular and effective supervision by a competent professional engineer1 by means calculated to provide personal direction to, and quality control over, the efforts of subordinates of the licensee which directly and materially [affect] affects the quality and competence of the professional services rendered by the licensee. A licensee engaged in any of the following acts or practices shall be deemed not to have [rendered regular and effective] 1[direct control and personal] rendered regular and effective1 supervision:
(1) [The regular and continuous absence from principal office premises from which professional services are rendered, except for performance of field work or presence in a field office maintained exclusively for a specific project] (Deleted by amendment, P.L. , c. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) ;
(2) The failure to personally inspect or review the work of subordinates where necessary and appropriate;
(3) The rendering of a limited, cursory or perfunctory review of plans or projects in lieu of [an appropriate detailed review] providing necessary and appropriate direction to, and quality control over, the efforts of subordinates of the licensee;
(4) The failure to personally be available on a reasonable basis or with adequate advance notice for consultation and inspection where circumstances require personal availability.
(h) The term "certificate of authorization" shall mean a certificate issued by the board pursuant to this amendatory and supplementary act.
(i) The term "joint committee" shall mean the Joint Committee of Architects and Engineers established pursuant to the "Building Design Services Act," P.L.1989, c.277 (C.45:4B-1 et seq.).
(j) The term "closely allied professional" as used in this chapter shall mean and is limited to licensed architects, professional engineers, land surveyors, and professional planners.
(k) The term "telecommunications" as used in this chapter, shall mean, as it is applied to the practice of engineering, subjects which deal with the generation, transmission, receiving, and processing of information bearing signals for the purpose of fulfilling a particular communication need. The most common forms of signals are those encountered in voice, image and data transmission. Subjects relevant to telecommunications include but are not limited to: analog and digital circuits, propagation of electromagnetic energy through guided media such as a transmission line, fibers, wave guides, and unguided media such as free space as in broadcast and mobile communication systems, communication theory, including modulation, noise interference, and the interface with computers.
(l) The term "surveyor-in-training" as used in this chapter shall mean a person who is a potential candidate for licensure as a land surveyor, who is a graduate in an approved surveying curriculum of four years or more from a school or college accredited by the board as of satisfactory standing, and who, in addition, has successfully passed an examination in the fundamental surveying subjects, approved by the board pursuant to section 9 of P.L. 1938, c.342 (C.45:8-35).
1(m) The term “responsible charge” as used in this chapter for land surveyors shall mean the rendering of regular and effective supervision by a competent land surveyor to those individuals performing services which directly and materially affect the quality and competence of the professional services rendered by the licensee. A licensee engaged in any of the following acts or practices shall be deemed not to have rendered regular and effective supervision:
(1) The regular and continuous absence from principal office premises from which professional services are rendered, except for performance of field work or presence in a field office maintained exclusively for a specific project;
(2) The failure to personally inspect or review the work of subordinates where necessary and appropriate;
(3) The rendering of a limited, cursory or perfunctory review of plans or projects in lieu of an appropriate detailed review;
(4) The failure to personally be available on a reasonable basis or with adequate advance notice for consultation and inspection where circumstances require personal availability.1
(cf: P.L.1992, c.64, s.1)
12. Section 1 of P.L.1989, c.275 (C.45:3-1.1) is amended to read as follows:
1. For the purposes of this act:
a. "Aesthetic principles" means the concepts of order, balance, proportion, scale, rhythm, color, texture, mass and form as used in the design process.
b. "Architect" means an individual who through education, training, and experience is skilled in the art and science of building design and has been licensed by the New Jersey State Board of Architects to practice architecture in the State of New Jersey.
c. "Architecture" means the art and science of building design and particularly the design of any structure for human use or habitation. Architecture, further, is the art of applying human values and aesthetic principles to the science and technology of building methods, materials and engineering systems, required to comprise a total building project with a coherent and comprehensive unity of structure and site.
d. "Board" means the New Jersey State Board of Architects.
e. "Certificate of authorization" means a certificate issued by the board pursuant to this amendatory and supplementary act.
f. "Closely allied professional" means and is limited to licensed architects, professional engineers, land surveyors, professional planners, and certified landscape architects, and persons that provide space planning services, interior design services, or the substantial equivalent thereof.
g. "Engineering systems" means those systems necessary for the proper function of a building and the surrounding site, the proper design of which requires engineering knowledge acquired through engineering or architectural education, training, or experience. These systems include but are not limited to structural, electrical, heating, lighting, acoustical, ventilation, air conditioning, grading, plumbing, and drainage. Drainage facilities for sites of ten acres or more or involving stormwater detention facilities or traversed by a water course shall only be designed by a professional engineer.
h. "Joint committee" means the Joint Committee of Architects and Engineers established pursuant to the "Building Design Services Act," P.L.1989, c.277 (C.45:4B-1 et seq.).
i. "Human use or habitation" means the activities of living, including, but not limited to fulfilling domestic, religious, educational, recreational, employment, assembly, health care, institutional, memorial, financial, commercial, industrial and governmental needs.
j. "Human values" means the social, cultural, historical, economic and environmental influences that have an impact on the quality of life.
k. "Practice of architecture" or "architectural services" means the rendering of services in connection with the design, construction, enlargement, or alteration of a building or a group of buildings and the space within or surrounding those buildings, which have as their principal purpose human use or habitation. These services include site planning, providing preliminary studies, architectural designs, drawings, specifications, other technical documentation, and administration of construction for the purpose of determining compliance with drawings and specifications.
l. "Responsible charge" means the rendering of regular and effective supervision by a competent licensed architect [to those individuals performing services] by means calculated to provide personal direction to, and quality control over, the efforts of subordinates of the licensee which directly and materially [affect] affects the quality and competence of architectural services rendered by the licensee. A licensee engaged in any of the following acts or practices shall be deemed not to have rendered regular and effective supervision:
(1) [The regular and continuous absence from principal office premises from which professional services are rendered, except for performance of field work or presence in a field office maintained exclusively for a specific project] (Deleted by amendment, P.L. , c. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill);
(2) The failure to personally inspect or review the work of subordinates where necessary and appropriate;
(3) The rendering of a limited, cursory or perfunctory review of plans for a building or structure in lieu of [an appropriate detailed review] providing necessary and appropriate direction to, and quality control over, the efforts of subordinates of the licensee;
(4) The failure to personally be available on a reasonable basis or with adequate advance notice for consultation and inspection where circumstances require personal availability.
m. "Interior design services" means rendering or offering to render services, for a fee or other valuable consideration, in the preparation and administration of interior design documents, including, but not limited to, drawings, schedules and specifications which pertain to the design intent and planning of interior spaces, including furnishings, layouts, non-load bearing partitions, fixtures, cabinetry, lighting location and type, outlet location and type, switch location and type, finishes, materials and interior construction not materially related to or materially affecting the building systems, in accordance with applicable laws, codes, regulations and standards.1
(cf: P.L.2001, c.378, s.1)
13. Section 3 of P.L.1989, c.277 (C.45:4B-3) is amended to read as follows:
3. For the purposes of this act:
a. "Architectural project" means any building or structure the plans for which may be prepared, designed, signed, and sealed by a licensed architect pursuant to section 7 of this act.
b. "Boards" means the New Jersey State Board of Architects and the State Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors.
c. "Closely allied professional" means and is limited to licensed architects, professional engineers, land surveyors, professional planners, and certified landscape architects.
d. "Engineering project" means a building or structure the plans for which may be prepared, designed, signed, and sealed by a professional engineer pursuant to section 7 of this act.
e. "Engineering systems" means those systems necessary for the proper function of a building and surrounding site, the proper design of which requires engineering knowledge acquired through engineering or architectural training and experience. These systems include but are not limited to structural, electrical, heating, lighting, acoustical, ventilation, air conditioning, grading, plumbing and drainage. Drainage facilities for sites of 10 acres or more or involving storm water detention facilities or traversed by a water course shall only be designed by a professional engineer.
f. "Joint committee" means the Joint Committee of Architects and Engineers created pursuant to section 4 of this act.
g. "Owner" means any person, agent, firm, partnership or corporation having a legal or equitable interest in the property or any agent acting on behalf of such individuals or entities.
h. "Practice of architecture" or "architectural services" means the rendering of services in connection with the design, construction, enlargement, or alteration of a building or a group of buildings and the space within or surrounding those buildings, which have as their principal purpose human use or habitation. These services include site planning, providing preliminary studies, architectural designs, drawings, specifications, other technical documentation, and administration of construction for the purpose of determining compliance with drawings and specifications.
i. "Practice of engineering" or "engineering services" means any service or creative work the adequate performance of which requires engineering education, training, and experience and the application of special knowledge of the mathematical, physical and engineering sciences to such services or creative work as consultation, investigation, evaluation, planning and design of engineering works and systems, planning the use of land and water, engineering studies, and the administration of construction for the purpose of determining compliance with drawings and specifications; any of which embraces such services or work, either public or private, in connection with any engineering project including: utilities, structures, buildings, machines, equipment, processes, work systems, projects, telecommunications, and industrial or consumer products or equipment of a mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic or thermal nature, insofar as they involve safeguarding life, health or property, and including such other professional services as may be necessary to the planning, progress and completion of any engineering services. The design of buildings by professional engineers shall be consistent with section 7 of this act. The practice of professional engineering shall not include the work ordinarily performed by persons who operate or maintain machinery or equipment.
j. "Responsible charge" means the rendering of regular and effective supervision by a competent licensed architect or professional engineer as appropriate [to those individuals performing services] by means calculated to provide personal direction to, and quality control over, the efforts of subordinates of the licensee which directly and materially [affect] affects the quality and competence of professional work rendered by the licensee. A licensee engaged in any of the following acts or practices shall be deemed not to have rendered regular and effective supervision:
(1) [The regular and continuous absence from principal office premises from which professional services are rendered, except for the performance of field work or presence in a field office maintained exclusively for a specific project] (Deleted by amendment, P.L. , c. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill);
(2) The failure to personally inspect or review the work of subordinates where necessary and appropriate;
(3) The rendering of a limited, cursory or perfunctory review of plans for a building or structure in lieu of [an appropriate detailed review] providing necessary and appropriate direction to, and quality control over, the efforts of subordinates of the licensee; and
(4) The failure to personally be available on a reasonable basis or with adequate advanced notice for consultation and inspection where circumstances require availability.1
(cf: P.L.2001, c.378, s.2)
1[2.] 4.1 This act shall take effect immediately.