1. (a)

   1. (1) Registered agents must be a minimum age of eighteen (18).
   2. (2) License holders of Classification 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 shall register with the Department of Agriculture all individuals employed by them for the purpose of performing pest control services, including those employed for solicitation as their agent.
   3. (3) Clerical staff are excluded.
   4. (4) Each agent shall be registered only in the classification of pest control for which the license holder is licensed to perform.

   5. (5)

      1. (A) Agent trainees must be on-the-job trained by the license holder within twenty (20) working days of their employment.
      2. (B) In accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 171.201(e)(2), license holders should verify safety training requirements before RUPs are applied by the agent trainee.
      3. (C)

2. (i) Within forty-five (45) working days of their employment and after the completion of the on-the-job training, the agent trainee must take an exam administered by the department or a representative appointed by the department.

   1. (ii) Registered agent exams will be given on Wednesday of each week at a time and location designated by the department.

      1. (iii) In the event of technological advances that allow for changes in the administration of the exams, circumstances beyond the control of the department occur, or any of the designated dates occur on a day when state offices are closed, the Director of the State Plant Board may designate alternate dates for the examinations.
      2. (D) Until registered, and only during the initial forty-five-day on-the-job training and examination period, the agent trainee may apply pesticides only in the physical presence of a commercial applicator or registered agent.
      3. (E) Agent applicants failing to pass the exam are prohibited from performing pest control service work until such time the agent applicant passes the exam.
   2. (6) If at any time an employee, other than a commercial applicator, registered agent, or agent trainee undergoing the initial forty-five (45) days of on-the-job training and examination preparation, is found handling pesticides or performing pesticide applications the license holder and/or the licensed operator or operators will be subject to enforcement action as per the State Plant Board Pest Control Enforcement Response Rules, Subpart 14 of this part, Penalty Matrix, Violation 9, beginning at the third level of enforcement.

3. (b) Training.

   1. (1) Forty (40) hours of verifiable on-the-job training, performed under the direct supervision, direction, and control of a qualified trainer.
   2. (2) A qualified trainer shall be a commercial applicator or agent with at least one (1) year of experience in the pest control industry or other individual approved by the department.
   3. (3) During the application of pesticides a qualified trainer must be physically present on the job site.
   4. (4) On-the-job training must be documented by the license holder on an agent training verification form provided by the department.

   5. (5) The information shall include the:

      1. (A) Names of the trainee and trainer;
      2. (B) Dates of training; and

      3. (C) Total hours worked for each date of the training.

         1. (c) Examination and registration.
   6. (1) The department shall provide an agent examination and registration application form.

   7. (2)

      1. (A) The license holder shall complete the form and submit it to the Pest Control Program with a copy of the agent trainee’s on-the-job training verification form and the examination fee.
      2. (B) Examination and registration forms submitted without the on-the-job verification and/or the examination fee will be considered incomplete, and the trainee will not be eligible to take the examination.
   8. (3) Complete agent exam and registration applications must be submitted to the department at least five (5) working days prior to the examination.
   9. (4) Upon passing the exam, agents will be considered registered.
   10. (5) Official agent registration identification cards will be provided to the license holder within thirty (30) days of the exam date.
   11. (6) Registered agents who cease to be employed by a license holder must receive forty (40) hours of on-the-job training before being eligible for reregistration.
   12. (7) Agents not registered for more than twenty-four (24) months will lose eligibility for reregistration and must complete the initial training and examination requirements to be reregistered.

   13. (8)

       1. (A) Registered agents under the minimum age of eighteen (18) are restricted from performing pesticide applications or being in sole possession of pesticides.

       2. (B) License holders and commercial applicators found in violation of allowing employees of their pest control firm under the age of eighteen (18) to perform pesticide applications or being in sole possession of pesticides will be subject to enforcement action as per the State Plant Board Pest Control Enforcement Response Rules, Subpart 14 of this part, Penalty Matrix – Violation 2C.

          1. (d) Continuing education.
   14. (1) To maintain registration, agents shall be kept abreast of pest control technology and receive a minimum of six (6) hours of continuing education each year.
   15. (2) Continuing education may be achieved by completing a license holder’s in-house training program or attendance of department-approved seminars sponsored by the various associations, manufacturers, or suppliers affiliated with the pest control industry or the cooperative extension service.

   16. (3) Agent annual continuing education training shall consist of:

       1. (A) Applicator safety (PPE, label instructions, human and/or nontarget species exposure, safe storage, and transportation of pesticides, etc.), two (2) hours;
       2. (B) Integrated pest management (IPM), one (1) hour;
       3. (C) Application equipment maintenance and methods of application, one (1) hour;
       4. (D) Environmental concerns (container disposal, spill clean-up, drift, etc.), one (1) hour; and
       5. (E) Laws and rules, one (1) hour.

   17. (4)

       1. (A) License holders shall document in-house training on forms provided by the department.
       2. (B) Ongoing education provided to agents by attending approved seminars, training, or schools shall be documented with appropriate forms issued by the training’s sponsors to the attendees.

   18. (5)

       1. (A) Records of training must be kept by the license holder for as long as the agent is employed.
       2. (B) Such records shall be available for review by the department during normal business hours.
   19. (6) At any time should the department determine that training requirements have not been met, the license holder may be subject to enforcement action in accordance with the State Plant Board Pest Control Enforcement Response Rules, Subpart 14 of this part, Penalty Matrix – Violation 7.

Codification Notes: “PPE” means personal protective equipment.