Take Action! Join NSPE in Opposing Proposed Regulation’s Weakening of PE Requirements

On April 21, NSPE submitted a public comment in fervent opposition to a proposed rule that would weaken certain requirements for a professional engineer as part of the licensing process of deepwater ports. The proposed regulation, issued on April 9 by the US Coast Guard of the Department of Homeland Security, includes two provisions that gravely concern NSPE given their tremendous impact on the public health, safety and welfare: a change to allow unlicensed engineers from within the US, as well as foreign engineers, to perform engineering services that only a licensed PE can perform and a change to allow these unlicensed engineers to submit design and construction plans on behalf of the licensee. In its response to the Coast Guard, NSPE urged that the final rule reflect the important role of the professional engineer “…by maintaining the requirements for a professional engineer and not ‘providing an alternative…(through) the use of foreign engineers who may not be registered professional engineers’”. Read the full comment here. To take action and comment on the rule, please visit: http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=USCG-2012-0061-0001