EJCDC’s sponsoring organization, NSPE, and the Nevada Society of Professional Engineers beat back legislation (A.B. 353) that would erode occupational licensure in the state.
In an April 11, 2017 letter to the Nevada Assembly Committee on Commerce and Labor, NSPE President Kodi Jean Verhalen, P.E., Esq., F.NSPE, and NSPE-NV President Craig Sisco, P.E., emphasized the importance of occupational licensure for professional engineers. “The professional engineer’s foremost responsibility is to practice in a manner that protects the public health, safety, and welfare. Nevada’s professional engineers design and administer the construction of bridges, tunnels, buildings, waste-water treatment facilities, plants, factories, processing centers, and many other public and private development projects. The professional engineer (PE) license demonstrates an engineer’s commitment to the highest standards of engineering practice and ethical conduct and shows that the individual has the proper education, experience and qualifications to provide these engineering services to the public.”
At the last minute, the bill was scheduled for an April 12 hearing by the Nevada Assembly Committee on Commerce and Labor. NSPE and the Nevada Society were notified late on April 11 that a comment needed to be submitted immediately. Working together, NSPE and the Nevada Society put together a joint response in three hours. As a result of the opposition to the bill, the bill was dropped from the committee’s agenda the next day. This is a fantastic example of what the national-state partnership can achieve to protect the integrity of the PE license. “NSPE stands ready to assist our state partners in legislative and advocacy efforts to ensure the protection of the PE license and the public health, safety, and welfare,” Verhalen says.