Georgia Board of Examiners for Certification of Water & Wastewater Treatment Plant Operators and Laboratory Analysts FAQ

Complaints should be submitted from within GOALS.  Learn more about filing online complaints on the How To Submit A Licensing Complaint page. Complaints are confidential by Georgia law in OCGA § 43-1-2 (k) (4) and OCGA § 43-1-19 (h) (2) and are not subject to the Open Records Act.  The Board encourages complainants to provide as much detail and supporting documents as possible. 

Find out if an individual holds an active license or certification using the Licensee Search. Enter the requested information, click "search", and the information should populate.

Refer to the Fee Schedule for a current listing of the various fees. 

All licenses or certifications expire on June 30, of the odd-numbered years.

You do not need to submit proof of completion directly to the Board. However, you should submit proof of completion to CE Broker, the official CE tracking system of the Board. The Board has provided you with a free Basic Account, so you’ll have their helpful CE tracking tools right at your fingertips. You will never have to pay for the free,  Basic Account. However, licensees do have the option to subscribe to an upgraded account, which offers additional CE tracking tools. Within the free Basic Account, you will have access to your Course History and CE Compliance Status. This lists all the courses which have been reported thus far and indicates whether you have satisfied your renewal requirements. From here, you may easily find and report any CE that might be missing. 

An individual who passes the Board-required certification exam is exempt from CE requirements for only that certificate for the first renewal period after initial issuance of the certificate. You will need to obtain continuing education points for renewal of any other certificates you hold.

You cannot get credit for the same class during the same renewal cycle. However, you can attend the same class for credit in a different renewal cycle.

• Class I Operator Water: 24 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Water. 
• Class I Operator Wastewater: 24 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Wastewater. 
• Class II Operator Water: 18 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Water. 
• Class II Operator Wastewater: 18 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Wastewater. 
• Industrial Wastewater Operator: 18 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Wastewater. 
• Laboratory Analyst Water: 18 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Water. 
• Laboratory Analyst Wastewater: 18 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Wastewater. 
• Class III Operator Water: 12 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Water.
• Class III Operator Groundwater: 12 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Water.
• Class III Operator Wastewater: 12 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Wastewater. 
• Water Distribution System Operator: 12 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Water. 
• Wastewater Collection System Operator: 12 points - At least 50% of the points must be courses approved for Wastewater. 
• Class IV Operator Water: 6 points - All of the points must be courses approved for Water. 
• Class IV Operator Wastewater: 6 points - All of the points must be courses approved for Wastewater. 

FOR RENEWAL: 

You must have earned the highest number of continuing education points required for the highest class of certification held. Training course work required to be eligible for an examination, which has also been approved by the Board for a specified number of recertification points, may be used for renewal of currently held certificates. If any current certifications require a higher number of continuing education points for renewal than the course work was approved for, then additional continuing education points must be collected to fulfill the full amount of continuing education points required for renewal of currently held certifications. An operator who holds dual certificates (i.e., a water certificate and a wastewater certificate) is required to obtain continuing education points in each discipline. Such operator must obtain a minimum of 25% of the required continuing education points in each discipline to satisfy renewal requirements.

View the Reinstatement section on the How-To Guide relevant to your certification for more complete reinstatement application information. 

If your certification lapsed less than 2 years ago, you must complete an application for Reinstatement and obtain the CE which would have been required if the certificate had been maintained in a current status.

If your certification lapsed more than 2 years ago, you must complete an application for Reinstatement, as well as retake and pass the examination OR submit a verification of license or certification in good standing issued by another country, or by any state, territory, or possession of the United States which has requirements for certification substantially similar to the Board.

Many state Boards will accept a printout of the on-line verification showing the Secretary of State logo. However, if you need a Board certified verification, you may request one through your GOALS account. After logging in, go to the “Licenses” section, click “Take Action” for the license that you need to purchase a verification for, and then click “Request License Verification”. 

Login into your GOALS account to print a copy of your license or certification or to purchase a paper copy of your or certification to be mailed to you. After logging in, go to the “Licenses” section, click “Take Action” for the license or certification that you need a copy of, and then click “Print License”. 

Application requirements are detailed in Board Rule 750-4-.02. Additionally:

• To be eligible to apply for the Class I Water certificate, you must hold a Class II Water certificate;
• To apply for the Class II Water certificate you must hold a Class III Water or Class III Groundwater certificate;
• To apply for the Class I Wastewater certificate, you must a hold Class II Wastewater certificate;
• To apply for the Class II Wastewater certificate, you must hold a Class III Wastewater certificate. 

Each class of certificate must have been given to you by the Board before you apply for the next class of certificate. 

Course requirements by certification type can be found in Board Rule 750-3-.04. 

A list of Board approved course providers and courses can be found on GOALS >>>

View the Endorsement/Reciprocity section on the How-To Guide relevant to your certification for more complete reinstatement application information. 

The Board may, upon application, issue a certificate without examination to any person who holds a certificate in good standing issued by another country or by state, territory, or possession of the United States when the following criteria are fulfilled: 

• The country, state territory, or possession of the United states has, in the opinion of the Board, requirements substantially similar to those of the Board. 
• The applicant must submit a complete application for Certification by Endorsement.
• A verification of certification must have been received or an endorsement affidavit form must be completed by the certifying state specifying that the applicant has a current certification in good standing. 
• The applicant must submit an application fee. 
• The applicant must have earned a minimum of a high school diploma or GED certificate. 

The following Need-To-Know guides have been developed by ABC/WPI to assist operators in understanding the content that will be covered on the exam:

• Georgia Water Operator Class I
• Georgia Water Operator Class II
• Georgia Water Operator Class III
• Georgia Water Operator Class IV
• Georgia Water Laboratory Analyst
• Georgia Groundwater Operator Class III
• Georgia Water Distribution System Operator
• Georgia Wastewater Operator Class I
• Georgia Wastewater Operator Class II
• Georgia Wastewater Operator Class III
• Georgia Wastewater Operator Class IV
• Georgia Wastewater Collection System Operator
• Georgia Wastewater Industrial Operator
• Georgia Wastewater Laboratory Analyst

These licenses are issued through the Environmental Protection Division. Visit EPD's website for verification of Water Well Contractors, Certified Pump Contractors, and Bonded Drill Contractors.

Download a list of Board approved course providers >>>