Section 892.40  Waiver of Licensed Plumber Requirement

A written request for a temporary waiver shall be submitted to the Department when the number of licensed plumbers employed by the irrigation contractor or with whom the contractor has a contractual agreement for the installation or inspection of lawn sprinkler systems is below the number of licensed plumbers required in Section 892.30.

a)         The written waiver request shall specify the steps taken by the irrigation contractor to maintain the required number of licensed plumbers.  A waiver will not be issued unless the irrigation contractor provides documentation of the steps taken to employ or contract with the required number of licensed plumbers.  This information shall include one or more of the following items:

1)         Copy of advertising by the irrigation contractor soliciting the services of licensed plumbers.

2)         Copies of letters to unions, trade organizations or other groups that represent plumbers, requesting referral of licensed plumbers to the irrigation contractor.

3)         Copies of letters to plumbing contractors soliciting the services of licensed plumbers.

4)         Copies of responses to the irrigation contractor from the organizations and businesses contacted by the irrigation contractor to obtain the services of licensed plumbers.

b)         The waiver request shall be submitted within 10 days after the number of licensed plumbers goes below the number required for the irrigation contractor, as specified in Section 892.30.

c)         The Department will review the waiver request and notify the contractor if approval of the waiver request is issued.

d)         A temporary waiver will be granted for a period not to exceed three consecutive months after the date the waiver is issued. A temporary waiver will not be granted to an irrigation contractor for more than a total of six months in a two-year period.

e)         An irrigation contractor shall ensure that a licensed plumber inspects every sprinkler system installed by an irrigation contractor to ensure that the provisions of the Law have been met and that the system works mechanically.  An irrigation contractor shall ensure that a licensed plumber makes the physical connection between a sprinkler system and the backflow prevention device.

f)         An irrigation contractor to whom a waiver has been issued may request the services of a State plumbing inspector to inspect a lawn irrigation system after installation has been completed.  A non-refundable fee of $500 will be charged for inspection services by a State plumbing inspector.

(Source:  Amended at 38 Ill. Reg. 22222, effective November 12, 2014)