In Texas, a person who meets minimum qualifications may obtain a first time drivers license after successfully completing a written exam, a driving exam, and paying the appropriate fees. These requirements have been put into place in order to increase the safety of all drivers and passengers on the road.

In an effort to protect public health and the environment, the state of Texas also requires that "At least one individual that supervises or manages the operation of a municipal solid waste facility or the collection or transportation of municipal solid waste must meet the qualifications … and be licensed …" in accordance with the rules found in the Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Title 30, Environmental Quality. Title 30, Rule 30.210 covers the Qualifications for an initial license, and Rule 30.212 covers the Qualifications for a license renewal. In both cases, an applicant is required to complete training that has been approved by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).

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A logical conclusion may be drawn that obtaining and maintaining a solid waste license is a very important issue. Pursuant to the rules, all permitted facilities require a minimum of one licensed individual or supervisor, and in some cases a license may be a condition of your employment. Therefore it is imperative that every licensed person be aware of the rules and requirements for solid waste licenses in Texas. Because of these facts, the TxSWANA Board of Directors has been in contact with the TCEQ and their staff concerning training credit hours, and they are working with the TCEQ to seek approval of conferences and training events to ensure that TxSWANA conference attendees receive training credits.

Recently I contacted Joe Austin with the TCEQ Compliance Support Division, and shared concerns that I had with my solid waste license. I found out that the TCEQ database showed my address was at a location I had not lived for over 5 years. This resulted in a delayed submittal of my renewal application. In order to ensure that the acquisition or renewal of your solid waste license flows smoothly, TCEQ staff suggested the following:
  1. Be sure that the TCEQ has your current information including your mailing address. By rule, a license holder is required to notify the executive director of any change in the previously submitted application information (i.e. address change) within ten days after the month in which the change occurs. License renewal forms are mailed to the address in the TCEQ database. If your address changed and the TCEQ does not have your current mailing address, this may delay or prevent you from receiving the required renewal form for your license. Notices of a change of address may be faxed to the TCEQ Compliance Support Division at (512) 239-6272. Be sure and include your complete name, address, telephone number, your solid waste license number, and be sure to sign the fax. If you don't know what your current license number is, you may use your social security number instead.

  2. Before attending a training class or event, be sure that the course has received pre-approval from the TCEQ for training credit(s). The TCEQ has prepared a regulatory guide concerning the submission of training for approval. That document may be found of the web at http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/comm_exec/forms_pubs/pubs/rg/rg-373_201672.pdf. This document contains form TCEQ-10152, Application for Approval of Training for Occupational Licensing, which must be signed, completed, and submitted to the TCEQ for approval at least 30 days prior to any advertisement or training. The TCEQ informed me that it is the training provider's responsibility to submit the application for the approval of all association training events. In addition, the TCEQ requires that upon completion, the training provider submit documentation of attendees and credit hours in the correct electronic format. If this fails to take place, the issuance of training credit may be delayed. Pre-approval of training credit is required for training classes, conferences, association meetings, paper training, and technology based training.

  3. Check with the TCEQ to verify that they have all of your approved training credits recorded. The TCEQ now has a web site that allows license holders to verify their training credits by using their 9-digit license number. The TCEQ is no longer using social security numbers for license numbers and you will need your new solid waste license number to access their database. The database will not recognize your social security number. The website for checking your training credits is http://www.tceq.state.us/compliance_support/data/training_search.html.

  4. In the event that you believe that all of your approved solid waste continuing training has not been credited, you are encouraged to fax or mail copies of your course completion certificates or course rosters to: Joe Austin, TCEQ, Compliance Support Division, MC178, Box 13087, Austin, TX, 78711-3087. Joe's email address is jaustin@tceq.state.tx.us; his telephone number is (512) 239-6789; and his fax number is (512) 239-6272.

Providing documentation of the minimum hours of required training records is an important portion of the license process. If you have any specific issue concerning your solid waste license, you are encouraged to contact Joe Austin with TCEQ Compliance Support Division, or you may also contact any TxSWANA board member.