The agency has been busy over the last several months adjusting to the new norm resulting from the COVID-19 virus. We are operating almost 100% remotely, with only essential staff coming into the office to process mail, or deal with the various technical issue that arise from a remote workforce. All of our meetings have been held remotely since mid-March and will be conducted that way for the foreseeable future, including the meeting of the full Inspector Committee scheduled for July 20th via teleconference. Please check the TREC website for more details on how to call in to be a part of that meeting.

As a result of the pandemic, TREC extended all application and renewal deadlines until July 31, 2020 for any initial or renewal applications that had deadlines from mid-March until July 31. That date is quickly approaching, so if your deadline was extended, make sure you have finished all of your renewal requirements by that date.

The SOP Subcommittee has continued the process of reviewing the SOP rules to ensure they are up to date and current. The Subcommittee has met twice since the Inspector meeting in April and has another meeting scheduled for July 13 at 9 am. The Subcommittee is making progress and will bring its recommendations to the full Inspector Committee for consideration once the Subcommittee has finished the review of all of the SOP rules. As mentioned above, the full Inspector Committee will be meeting remotely on July 20. The Committee will be discussing the education rules that were proposed at the May Commission for possible recommended adoption by the Commission. In addition amendments to the Consumer Protection report will be discussed and an update on the status of the Plumbing Board rule that prohibited anyone other than a licensed plumber from performing camera inspections of drain lines will be given. As always, I encourage your participation in the inspector regulatory process. I know it is tough during these unusual times, but your involvement helps the Inspector Committee and the agency make informed policy decisions.