1.2 Becoming Certified in Alabama: Exam Application, Operator Intern Status, Experience, Renewal & CEHs

1.2 Becoming Certified in Alabama: Exam Application, Operator Intern Status, Experience, Renewal & CEHs

Alabama separates testing from experience. Rule 335-10-1-.06 describes a two-step process: Step 1 is the examination (Rule .07) and Step 2 is the certification application once experience is complete (Rule .08). You may test before you have any plant experience, and you may also earn experience before you test. This section follows a candidate through both steps and then through renewal.

Step 1: Eligibility, Application and the Exam

• Education. Rule .07 requires a high school diploma from an accredited school or a passing score on the GED tests.
• Application. ADEM moved the program to OpCert Online, which went live on March 9, 2026. Candidates need an ADEM Web Portal account, request access to OpCert Online, then register and pay for the exam there. Once ADEM approves the request it is forwarded to PSI; PSI emails a registration link, and the candidate chooses the test center, date and time. New applicants receive an ADEM number that becomes the operator number after certification.
• Fees. ADEM's Fee Schedule G (ADEM Admin. Code r. 335-1-6-.07, Division 1 revised effective February 14, 2026) sets the operator fees:

• Forms. ADEM's form index lists Form 505 (Water and Wastewater Operator Exam Application), Form 506 (Experience Verification), Form 507 (Reciprocal Application) and Form 508 (Operator for Multiple Systems). OpCert Online now handles these steps electronically.
• Passing score. Rule .07(3) sets the minimum passing grade at 70 percent. ADEM's exam page confirms that candidates learn at the PSI center whether they passed and that a grade of 70 or higher passes.

The 2007 rule text still describes ADEM holding at least one exam a year and receiving applications 30 days before a scheduled exam. In practice the exams are on-demand computer-based tests at PSI, so follow the current OpCert Online process.

Operator Intern Status

A candidate who passes but lacks the required experience becomes an operator intern (Rule .02(i)). Under Rule .07(4), the intern must obtain the experience within five years of passing, or must retest. ADEM's exam page says experience must be attained at a facility of the same or higher grade and classification as the certificate sought; the rule's combined-experience options in the table below also name the lower-grade plants that can count, and ADEM evaluates each application. An intern is not a certified operator, so Rule .14 applies: an uncertified person works only under the direct supervision of a properly certified operator.

Step 2: Experience Requirements (Rule 335-10-1-.08)

Two conversion rules turn hours into months:

• Rule .08(i): 1,900 hours of applicable experience equals 12 months.
• Rule .08(j): approved training substitutes for experience at 15 hours = 3 months, 30 hours = 6 months, 45 hours = 9 months and 60 hours = 12 months, never beyond the grade's cap in the table.

Experience claimed must be verified in writing by the intern's direct supervisor or another certified operator familiar with the work (Rule .08(k)). In OpCert Online the facility manager or supervisor designates the operator to the facility, the system tracks experience and approved training, and a nightly check notifies interns when they qualify to apply for the certificate. After ADEM approves the application, the operator downloads the certificate and wallet cards.

Worked example. An intern who passed the Grade II water exam has 2,280 documented hours at a Grade II well plant and 30 hours of approved training.

$$\text{Experience} = \frac{2{,}280\text{ hr}}{1{,}900\text{ hr}} \times 12\text{ months} = 14.4\text{ months}$$

The 30 training hours are worth 6 months, which is within the Grade II cap of 9 months, so the total is 20.4 months. That meets the 18-month requirement.

Re-Examination (Rule 335-10-1-.09)

• After one failure, the candidate may retest by submitting a new application and fee.
• After two failures of the same classification, the candidate must also prove completion of 8 hours of additional approved training before a third attempt. ADEM's exam page adds that these CEHs must relate to the exam (water hours for a water retest, wastewater hours for a wastewater retest) and must be earned after the last attempt.

Reciprocity (Rule 335-10-1-.05)

ADEM may issue a comparable certificate to someone holding a current certificate earned by examination in another state whose requirements are comparable to or higher than Alabama's, but only from states that reciprocate with Alabama. The application needs the nonrefundable fee, a copy of the current certificate and supporting documents.

Renewal and Continuing Education (Rules 335-10-1-.10 and .11)

• Term. Certificates remain in effect for three years unless revoked or suspended.
• On-time renewal. A complete renewal application is due at least 30 days before expiration.
• Late renewal. A late application must include the late fee and be received within 180 calendar days after expiration. The new certificate takes effect when ADEM processes it and expires three years after the previous expiration date. Between expiration and the new effective date the operator may not practice as a certified operator.
• Hours required. One water certificate needs 24 CEH of water training; one wastewater certificate needs 24 CEH of wastewater training. An operator holding a water and a wastewater certificate needs 15 CEH for each certificate in the proper field. Training is counted only once and must be attended during the three years before expiration, except carryover.
• Carryover. Up to 10 CEH per certificate may carry into the next three-year period.
• Capped topics per renewal period. Chemical safety training up to 8 hours; CPR up to 4; trenching and shoring up to 8; confined space entry up to 4; laboratory safety up to 8; legal liability up to 4; stormwater pollution prevention up to 4; temporary traffic control up to 4; university-sponsored defensive driving up to 8; system management or finance up to 4; computer training up to 8; first aid up to 4. Backflow prevention counts for water certificates, and ADEM's OpCert Online notice says that from June 23, 2026 backflow prevention CEH are capped at 8 hours per renewal cycle.
• Not accepted. Regularly scheduled safety meetings, general management or personnel law courses, repeated teaching of an unchanged course, meetings that are not educational, and courses unrelated to the certificate.
• Conversions. 1 college semester hour = 45 CEH; 1 quarter hour = 30 CEH; an audited course earns one-third of those values; 1 CEU = 10 CEH; 1 hour of teaching = 2 CEH; 1 hour of acceptable training = 1 CEH.
• Records. Keep attendance documents for at least three years after the certificate expires. If ADEM disallows hours, the operator has until 180 days after expiration to substantiate the claim or earn replacement credit.

ADEM does not pre-approve courses; the operator is responsible for choosing training that fits the certificate.

Worked example. An operator holds a Grade IV water certificate and a Grade III wastewater certificate. During the cycle she earns 21 water CEH and 19 wastewater CEH. She needs 15 of each, so both certificates renew. She may carry over the excess in each field (6 water and 4 wastewater), because both amounts are within the 10-CEH-per-certificate limit.