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and the National Propane Gas Association (NPGA) education and compliance,” said NPGA Chairman
have reached an agreement on terms to transfer
the certification assets of the Certified Employee
Training Program (CETP) from NPGA to PERC, effective
December 31, 2019. This action was mutually
agreed upon by the officers and leadership of both
organizations to help improve safety and training in
the propane industry by moving all assets under one
roof.
Currently, a permanent record is maintained through
an online database where all candidate CETP training
tests and evaluations can be accessed by candidates
and their employers. As part of the transfer process,
protocols will be in place to ensure the transfer
includes all training records, tests, and skill evaluations
for more than 100,000 propane professionals who
have gained certification since the program began in
1987.
The certification program helps employers and
employees comply with various federal and state
codes and standards that require documentation of
employee training. The program facilitates compliance (FMCSA) is proposing to delay the compliance
by providing a formal structure for testing and
verifying propane employees’ knowledge and skills
in 14 different certification areas to ensure safe and
effective work performance.
Since 2002, PERC has owned and developed the
content portion of the training, while NPGA continued
to operate the certification aspect. Members of
NPGA’s CETP Certification Committee have been
invited to join PERC’s Safety & Technical Training
Working Group to maintain consistency in program
development and deployment.
“The safety and training program has always been
a key focus and top priority for PERC,” said PERC
President and CEO Tucker Perkins. “Our restructured
safety, education, and compliance team is going
to build on that foundation by creating innovative
training and safety materials and new ways to deploy
the material and access the training. Our goal is to
continue and improve on the world-class safety and
training program to provide the very best to the
industry.”
“NPGA remains committed to the industry’s safety,
GPGA MARKETER November 2019
Randy Thompson. “Through NPGA’s continued
in-depth engagement with codes and standards NPGA NEWS
development organizations and regulatory
agencies, this transaction will facilitate a more
streamlined process of information sharing with
PERC that will feed into the development of new
safety and training materials.”
As the transaction will not become effective until
December 31, there will be no changes to the current
certification program through the end of 2019.
Any questions may be sent to PERC’s vice president
safety, education and compliance Eric Kuster at eric.
kuster@propane.com or 704-233-6881.
FMCSA: Drug & Alcohol
Clearinghouse
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
deadline by which State Driver Licensing Agencies
(SDLAs) must utilize the Commercial Driver’s License
Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse (Clearinghouse).
FMCSA created the Clearinghouse to share
information about commercial drivers’ alcohol
and drug violations among employers, state law
enforcement, and SDLAs. FMCSA will require
that employers of CDL drivers submit and review
information about commercial drivers’ alcohol and
drug violations. The compliance date for employers
is January 6, 2020. FMCSA is proposing to extend the
compliance deadline for SDLAs to January 6, 2023. If
the extended compliance deadline is finalized, SDLAs
may voluntarily request drivers’ information from the
Clearinghouse prior to issuing commercial licenses
or endorsements; however, SDLAs must use the
Clearinghouse by the 2023 compliance deadline.
The January 6, 2020, compliance date would remain
in effect for all other requirements, including the
requirement for motor carriers to input drivers’
information. FMCSA requires that CDL holders’ drug
and alcohol testing program violations must be
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