Ohio Administrative Code|Rule 3745-7-19 | Examination providers.

                                                
The director may approve an entity to be an
		examination provider.
(A) To be eligible for approval as an
		  examination provider, the applicant shall do the following:
(1) Submit an application
			 on a form acceptable to the director.
(2) In accordance with
			 division (O) of section 3745.11 of the Revised Code, pay the agency an
			 application fee.
(3) Demonstrate the development of
			 multiple classifications of water treatment, water distribution, wastewater
			 collection and wastewater treatment examinations for the purpose of assessing
			 the entry-level skills necessary for each professional operator classification.
			 The examinations shall meet the requirements listed in paragraph (B) of this
			 rule.
(4) Be the responsible body for
			 overseeing the development and scoring of the examinations.
(5) Demonstrate the ability to proctor
			 and enforce requirements for conduct during the examinations that are
			 consistent with the provisions in rule 3745-7-18 of the Administrative
			 Code.
(6) Provide security guidelines for
			 protecting the confidentiality and integrity of examination development,
			 examination questions and the grading of examinations.
(7) Demonstrate the
			 ability to enforce the security guidelines documented in paragraph (A)(6) of
			 this rule.
(8) Document policy for
			 the amount of time required before an examinee may retake an examination. Such
			 policy shall at a minimum require an applicant to wait thirty days prior to
			 retaking an examination.
(9) Demonstrate an
			 ability to provide computerized examinations at a minimum of four locations
			 throughout the state of Ohio. The examinations shall be available at each
			 location on multiple days and varying times throughout the year.
(10) Demonstrate an
			 ability to provide the examinee with immediate feedback and allow the examinee
			 to provide feedback regarding questions on the examination they have taken. The
			 feedback shall include the score achieved on the examination and identify core
			 competencies or "Need to Know Criteria" where the examinee scored
			 poorly. Examinees shall have the ability to print a hard copy of the
			 examination results which identifies the examinee, examination classification,
			 score and provider name.
(11) Demonstrate the
			 ability to provide examinations for examinees who document a disability that
			 necessitates special accommodation.
(12) Document the
			 application process and that applicants are required to meet minimum
			 eligibility requirements for taking examinations that are equivalent or more
			 stringent than those contained in rule 3745-7-06 of the Administrative
			 Code.
(13) Submit copies of the question
			 database and examinations to be used for each classification to the Ohio EPA.
			 The professional operator certification advisory council and agency staff will
			 determine the equivalency of the examinations to the Ohio EPA's previously
			 administered examinations and consistency with professional standards.
			 Examination questions and databases shall be treated as trade secrets and be
			 exempt from the public records provisions of Chapter 149. of the Revised
			 Code.
(14) Demonstrate that questions and
			 examinations are available for the Ohio EPA's class I and class II water
			 distribution and wastewater collection system classifications, as well as class
			 A, class I, class II and class III water supply and wastewater treatment
			 classifications. These examinations shall meet the criteria established in
			 paragraph (B) of this rule.
(B) The applicant shall demonstrate the
		  examinations meet the following:
(1) The purpose of the
			 examination shall be to test a professional operator's knowledge of
			 entry-level standards of practice that shall be common to each water and
			 wastewater professional operator classification.
(2) Be developed based on
			 a job analysis and survey process (updated at least every five years) conducted
			 with individuals representative of the classification for the examination. The
			 job analysis and survey process shall identify the core competencies and
			 "Need to Know Criteria" for each classification.
(3) Incorporate items
			 based on "Need to Know Criteria" which serve as an outline for each
			 examination classification. The content of the examinations shall be weighted
			 so as to represent the most critical job duties performed by a professional
			 operator in each classification.
(4) Consist of questions which have been
			 developed and validated in a manner consistent with the professional standards
			 contained in the most recent version of "Standards for Educational and
			 Psychological Testing (2014)".
(5) Have been reviewed by a
			 psychometrician to ensure consistency with psychometric principles regarding
			 examination validation and cut score development.
(6) The examinations and
			 questions undergo statistical review following the administration of the
			 examinations to ensure they are performing as intended. The procedures, process
			 and the details associated with actions taken based on the statistical review
			 shall be provided.
(C) Approval of an examination provider
		  shall be based upon the criteria in paragraph A of this rule and an examination
		  equivalency review by the Ohio EPA and the professional operator certification
		  advisory council.
(D) Upon approval by the director, the
		  approved examination provider shall do the following:
(1) Begin giving
			 examinations to Ohio professional operators within one year of the
			 director's approval.
(2) Upon delivering the
			 first Ohio based examination, provide monthly reports to the professional
			 operator certification program documenting analysis of the examination
			 questions and the amount of fees collected during the month from professional
			 operators seeking certification in Ohio. The monthly report shall be submitted
			 within ten business days of the end of the reporting month.
(3) Upon delivering the
			 first Ohio based examination, provide a weekly report of individuals taking the
			 examinations, the classification of the examination, and their scores in a
			 format approved by the director.
(4) Pay an annual fee in accordance with
			 division (O) of section 3745.11 of the Revised Code. The fee shall be submitted
			 no later than forty-five days after the end of the preceding calendar year. The
			 fee shall be based on the amount of fees collected in the preceding calendar
			 year from professional operator taking examinations who intend to seek
			 certification in Ohio.
(5) At a minimum of every three years,
			 question databases and examinations for each classification will be reviewed by
			 the agency. Reviews may be conducted more frequently at the discretion of the
			 director.
(E) Written examinations developed by or
		  for the agency may include trial test questions for the purpose of evaluating
		  the statistical or psychometric qualities of new or revised questions prior to
		  their use in an examination. Trial test questions will not be identified to the
		  candidates as trial test questions on the examination.
(1) The maximum number of
			 trial test questions included in a single examination shall not exceed twenty
			 per cent of the total number of questions on examination.
(2) Trial test questions
			 shall not be counted toward a candidate's score on the
			 examination.
(F) Failure to maintain the standards
		  under which the provider was approved or meet the criteria above may result in
		  the withdrawal of the director's approval and invalidation of examination
		  scores.
[Comment: This rule incorporates, by reference
		  the "Standards for educational and psychological testing (2014)." At
		  the effective date of this rule, a copy may be obtained from "American
		  Educational Research Association, 1430 K Street NW, Suite 1200, Washington, DC
		  20005," (202) 238-3200, http://www.aera.net. The reference is available
		  for review at "Ohio EPA, Lazarus Government Center, 50 West Town Street,
		  Suite 700, Columbus, OH 43215."]