32-106. Powers and duties

A. The board shall:

1. Adopt rules for conducting its meetings and performing duties imposed on it by law.

2. Adopt an official seal for attesting certificates of registration and other official papers and documents.

3. Consider and act on or delegate the authority to act on applications for registration or certification.

4. Conduct examinations for in-training and professional registration, except for an alarm business, a controlling person or an alarm agent.

5. Hear and act on complaints or charges that are specified by the complainant or direct an administrative law judge to hear and act on complaints and charges that are specified by the complainant.

6. Compel attendance of witnesses, administer oaths and take testimony concerning all matters coming within its jurisdiction. In exercising these powers, the board may issue subpoenas for the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, records, documents and other evidence it deems relevant to an investigation or hearing.

7. Keep a record of its proceedings.

8. Keep a register that shows the date of each application for registration or certification, the name of the applicant, the practice or branch of practice in which the applicant has applied for registration, if applicable, and the disposition of the application.

B. The board shall specify the proficiency designation in the branch of engineering in which the applicant has designated proficiency on the certificate of registration and renewal card issued to each registered engineer and shall authorize the engineer to use the title of registered professional engineer. The board shall decide what branches of engineering it shall recognize.

C. The board may investigate a complaint pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 5 of this section and may take any necessary disciplinary or enforcement action resulting from a complaint only if the complainant either:

1. Currently has a contractual relationship with the person who is the subject of the complaint or had a contractual relationship with the person at the time of the alleged misconduct.

2. Was harmed by the alleged misconduct or possesses firsthand knowledge of the alleged misconduct.  For the purposes of this paragraph, "firsthand knowledge" includes knowledge of the outcome of the misconduct, witnessed by a person with relevant professional experience in the course of that person's contractual duties with the harmed individual.

D. The board may hold membership in and be represented at national councils or organizations of proficiencies registered under this chapter and may pay the appropriate membership fees.  The board may conduct standard examinations on behalf of national councils and may establish fees for those examinations.

E. The board may employ and pay on a fee basis persons, including full-time employees of a state institution, bureau or department, to prepare and grade examinations given to applicants for registration or review an applicant's submissions of required documents for home inspector certification and regulation and may fix the fee to be paid for these services. These employees are authorized to prepare, grade and monitor examinations, review an applicant's submissions of required documents for home inspector certification and regulation and perform other services the board authorizes, and to receive payment for these services from the technical registration fund.  The board may contract with an organization to administer the registration examination, including selecting the test site, scheduling the examination, billing and collecting the fee directly from the applicant and grading the examination if a national council of which the board is a member or a professional association approved by the board does not provide these services. If a national council of which the board is a member or a professional association approved by the board does provide these services, the board shall enter into an agreement with the national council or professional association to administer the registration examination.

F. The board may rent necessary office space and pay the cost of this office space from the technical registration fund.

G. The board may adopt rules establishing rules of professional conduct for registrants.

H. The board may require evidence it deems necessary to establish the continuing competency of registrants as a condition of renewal of licenses.

I. Subject to title 41, chapter 4, article 4, the board may employ persons as it deems necessary.

J. The board shall issue or may authorize the executive director to issue a certificate or renewal certificate to each alarm business and each controlling person and a certification or renewal certification card to each alarm agent if the qualifications prescribed by this chapter are met.