UST Program - Certification and Training Information

New ICC Information

Operator

Facility Employee

Installer

Inspector

Service Technician

New Information on California UST ICC Exams

The International Code Council (ICC) began administering revised California specific ICC UST exams August 1, 2019. Specifically, the California UST Inspector, California UST Service Technician, and California UST System Operator exams were revised to reflect changes in UST statute, regulations, and reference materials. The revisions include but are not limited to; issuance of UST operating permits, red tag requirements, and overfill prevention equipment inspection requirements. In addition, the references used to study for these exams have been updated to include the most recent published editions.

Designated UST Operator [CCR, title 23, section 2715(b) – (c)]

" Designated UST Operator" is an individual designated by the UST owner to be responsible for training facility employees and conducting a monthly visual inspection at the UST facility. The Designated UST Operator must comply with other applicable state, federal or local requirements, and must comply with the following requirements of the UST law:

Possess a current "California UST System Operator" certificate issued by the International Code Council (ICC). Initial certification was required by January 1, 2005. Certification must be renewed every 24 months.
Provide on-the-job training for facility employee(s). Individuals assuming the responsibilities of a “facility employee" on and after October 13, 2018 must be trained before assuming the responsibilities of a “facility employee.”
Perform visual inspections at least once every 30 days, record results on the “Designated Underground Storage Tank Operator Visual Inspection Report”, and submit the written report to the owner/operator within 48 hours of completing the inspection.

Who can serve as a Designated UST Operator?

Any of the following individuals may serve as the Designated UST Operator:

Facility Owner
Operator
Employee
Service Technician, or
a Third Party

How many UST facilities can an individual be the Designated UST Operator for?

The number of facilities an individual can be the Designated UST Operator for is limited by the individual’s ability to conduct on-site inspections at least once every 30 days and to provide employee training prior to an employee assuming the responsibility of the "facility employee" at the facility. The Designated UST Operator may perform the inspection and training for new "facility employees" on the same day.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Facility Employee [CCR, title 23, section 2715(c)]

“Facility Employee” is an individual who is employed on-site at an UST facility, and who may be called upon to respond to spills, overfills, or other problems associated with the operation of the UST system. A "facility employee" must:

Individuals assuming the responsibilities of a “facility employee" on and after October 13, 2018 must be trained before assuming the responsibilities of a “facility employee.” Initial training must include a practical demonstration that provides both sharing information and evaluating knowledge for responding to emergencies, leak detection monitoring alarms, spills, and overfills associated with operating the UST system. All training and retraining for "facility employees" must be site-specific and include, but is not limited to:
- The operation of the UST system in a manner consistent with the facility’s best management practices.
- The facility employee’s role with regard to the monitoring equipment as specified in the facility’s monitoring plan.
- The facility employee’s role with regards to spills and overfills as specified in the facility’s response plan.
- The name of the contact person(s) for emergencies and monitoring equipment alarms

UST Installer [CCR, title 23, section 2715(e)]

"Installer" is a person installing UST systems or components. The UST "installer" must:

New Requirement:

By January 1, 2005, a UST Installer must have possessed or worked under the direct and personal supervision of an individual physically present at the work site who possesses a current "UST Installation/Retrofitting" certification issued by the ICC. Certification must be renewed every 24 months.

Existing Requirement:

Possess the appropriate current CSLB license.
Obtain or work under the direct and personal supervision of an individual physically present at the work site that has obtained a certificate(s) of training from the manufacturer(s) of the UST system component(s) being installed. Re-certification is required at the time interval recommended by the manufacturer, or every 36 months, whichever is shorter.

Note: Installers must meet the service technician requirements to perform secondary containment testing or annual monitoring system certification.

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Frequently Asked Questions

UST Inspector [CCR, title 23, section 2715(g)]

"Inspector" is a local agency inspector or special inspector who conducts UST inspections. The UST "inspector" must:

Possess a current ICC “California UST Inspector” certification as of September 1, 2005. Certification must be renewed every 24 months, by either passing the “ICC California UST Inspector” exam or satisfying equivalent criteria as approved by the SWRCB UST Program Manager.
UST inspectors hired on or after September 1, 2005 must possess a current ICC “California UST Inspector” certification within 180 days from their date of hire.

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UST Service Technician [CCR, title 23, section 2715(f)]

"Service Technician" is any individual performing work on release detection and monitoring equipment, including installing, repairing, maintaining, calibrating, and conducting regulatory certifications, periodic testing, and inspections. Repair and maintenance work includes replacing equipment (including spill buckets, overfill prevention equipment, and ancillary piping equipment like flex connectors, penetration fittings, etc.) located within sumps and under-dispenser containment. An individual performing UST Service Technician work as described above must meet all of the following requirements:

Possess or be employed by a person that possesses the correct license issued by the CLSB and approved for UST service work, or a Tank Tester License issued to the individual by the State Water Resources Control Board if the value of the work is less than $500;
Possess or work under the direct and personal supervision of an individual physically present at the work site who possesses a current California UST Service Technician certificate issued by the ICC. Certification must be renewed every 24 months; and
Possess a current certificate of training from:

The manufacturer(s) of the equipment being installed, repaired, maintained, calibrated, tested, or inspected (if no training or certification exists, the local agency may approve comparable alternate training or certification).
The developer of the testing equipment or test method used for secondary containment testing.
Recertification is required at the time interval recommended by the manufacturer or developer of the testing equipment, but not to exceed 36 months.

Service technicians performing UST work may not combine licenses and training certifications with other on-site individuals to meet the above requirements. Individuals working under the direct supervision of a qualified service technician must, at a minimum, be employed by a person with the CSLB license and possess all manufacturers’ certificates of training for those equipment on which they are installing, repairing, upgrading, maintaining, testing, or inspecting.

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