Page 7 - 2023 Spring

By: Aaron Blaisdell and James Wengler

HIGHLIGHTS FROM BRPELS MEETING MINUTES

he following items of interest to land surveyors have been Work with DNR on the Survey Recording Act and associated
Textracted from the board packets and minutes of the August WACs to determine our regulatory direction for “intelligent inter-
through December 2022 meetings of the Board of Registration pretation” and other items The committee determined that they
for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (BRPELS): would discuss this with staff from DNR while working on WAC
196-29.
The LSIT webpage requirements list only 2 approved 2-year
colleges. The Board survey committee will review and provide Board member Aaron Blaisdell, PLS reviewed the “Survey
recommendations. Checklist” from WAC 332-130-050 at the Washington State As-
sociation of County Auditors Licensing and Recording Confer-
(10-20-22) Questions were posed to the BRPELS by the Wash-
ington State Public Land Survey Office (PLSO) and Survey Advi- ence held September 19-22 in Pasco. n
sory Board as follows:
1) In the case of removal, or replacement, of a monument,
not at a property corner, but marking a road centerline or
right-of-way “reference line”:
a. Is it mandatory for a surveyor to file an ROS following the
removal, or replacement, of a monument marking a road
centerline, or right-of-way “reference line”?
b. If the filing of an ROS is not required, is some other form
of public record required?
Open Case Status
c. If other forms of public record are sufficient in lieu of filing
an ROS, what are the other forms of public record?

The complete letter from the PLSO and SAB, and the BRPELS
response, can be viewed on pages 47 through 52 at https://
brpels.wa.gov/sites/default/files/public/docs/10-20-22%20
Board%20Packet.pdf
(06-23-22) Control of stamp and electronic documents:
The committee discussed the issue of what is the professional’s
responsibility and what liability does a professional have when
a previously signed and sealed document is used by other pro- Status of open disciplinary investigations by the BRPELS as of
fessionals or even the public for another project? If it becomes October 2022:
an issue of a complaint, and the licensee can provide documen-
tation of as it left their office, they would not be in violation of
any RCW/WAC under the Board’s authority. Also, if something
gets changed on the document, it is not the responsibility of the
licensee.
(06-23-22) Survey titles: Since the Practice Committee is work-
ing on professional titles in RCW 18.43, the survey committee
asked to consider if there should be language regarding “project
surveyor,” “review surveyors,” “construction surveyors.” Does use
of these titles have the public assume they are licensed profes-
sional land surveyors? Comments that putting the word “land”
before surveyor may be problematic.

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