In the City of Altoona there shall be an Electrical and Plumbing Board, which shall consist of three licensed Electricians, three licensed Plumbers, one General Contractor, and one layperson from the general public. The Board members shall be appointed by the Mayor with the approval of Altoona City Council per Section
4.3A and
B of the City of Altoona Charter.
A. The Board shall meet at such interval of not less than twice a year.
B. For the three licensed plumber members, the initial terms shall be
staggered, and thereafter said terms shall be for a period of five
years.
C. In case of any dispute or difference of opinion existing between
the City of Altoona and any person, firm, or corporation, as aforesaid,
regarding testing for plumbing certificates, journeyman or master,
the same shall be submitted by either party to the City of Altoona
Electrical and Plumbing Examiners Board.
D. The Board shall establish standards and procedures for the qualifications,
examinations, and licensing of master plumbers and journeyman plumbers
to provide for appropriate licenses to each person who meets the qualifications
thereof and successfully passes the examination established by the
Board. The Electrical and Plumbing Examiners Board shall keep an official
record of all its transactions.
The City of Altoona Electrical and Plumbing Examiners Board,
through the Department of Codes and Inspections, is hereby authorized
to issue licenses under three classifications. These three classifications
consist of master plumber, journeyman plumber and apprentice plumber.
In order to qualify for a master plumber's license or a
journeyman license, the applicant shall, in addition to successfully
completing the specific test for the type of plumber license required,
present documented evidence to the City of Altoona Electrical and
Plumbing Examiners Board of the following:
A. Master plumber. A master plumber is:
(1) A person who has passed the master plumber examination and has completed
the requirements for journeyman plumber of at least 8,000 hours (four
years) of practical experience at the journeyman plumber or similar
level which may be comprised of working experience, education, training,
or directly applicable military service.
(2) A person who is certified as a master plumber in any jurisdiction
where the requirements for training and experience are comparable
to the City of Altoona.
B. Journeyman plumber. A journeyman plumber is:
(1) A person who has passed a journeyman examination as required by the
City of Altoona after completing the following:
(a)
Completed a training program as an apprentice plumber, consisting
of the successful completion of a Pennsylvania Bureau of Apprenticeship
Training approved course for plumbers, an on-the-job training program
of 4,000 hours (two years) duration under the direct supervision of
a master plumber and 4,000 hours (two years) under the direction and
control of a master plumber 8,000 hours total; or
(b)
Attended and passed a three-year plumbing course with an accredited
vocational technical school, two years' postsecondary plumbing
training or has a military plumbing training certificate and completed
an on-the-job training program of 2,000 hours (one year) duration
under the direct supervision of a master plumber and 4,000 hours under
the direction and control of a master plumber 6,000 hours total. Proof
of trade experience while serving in the military and proof of employment
and licensing in a trade union will also be accepted as documentation
in lieu of schooling.
(2) A person who is certified as a journeyman plumber in any jurisdiction
where the requirements for training and experience are comparable
to the City of Altoona.
C. Apprentice plumber. An apprentice plumber is:
(1) A person who is registered with the City of Altoona prior to completion
of 40 hours of on-the-job training; pays the required registration
fee prior to his or her six-month anniversary or December 31, whichever
comes first.
No person shall be issued a master plumber certificate or journeyman
plumber certificate until said person shall have applied for the same,
as follows:
A. Application for these certificates shall be made on a form supplied
by the Code Official. Any person who has met the qualifications and
has been issued a certificate for journeyman plumber shall have the
option to take the ICC National Standard Master Plumber examination.
Any candidate whose application for a license has been refused
shall not make a new application until after the expiration of six
months from the date of such refusal.
Every master plumber, journeyman plumber, or apprentice plumber
shall have in his or her possession, at all times when engaged in
plumbing work, a card to be furnished by the City of Altoona showing
that he or she is the holder of a license issued pursuant to these
regulations, and he or she shall exhibit same upon request.
Fees shall be in accordance with a fee schedule adopted pursuant
to a resolution of the City Council upon the enactment of this chapter
or as such schedule may be amended from time to time.
All licenses shall be renewed each year prior to the first day
of January. Such licenses shall be issued for one year beginning January
1 and expiring on December 31 in the same year.
Upon failure of any person to renew his or her license prior
to the expiration date, a sum of twice the annual license fee shall
be paid to the City of Altoona for renewal. If the license is not
renewed within 90 calendar days, a reexamination shall be required.
Each place of business engaged in the work of plumbing with
the City of Altoona shall have no more than one apprentice plumber
to one journeyman plumber or one master plumber.
No individual, firm, partnership, or corporation shall engage
in the business of installing, repairing, or altering plumbing work
which requires a permit unless the plumbing work performed in the
course of such business is under the direction and control of a licensed
master plumber or as excepted below.
A. Exceptions:
(1) Installation of sewers in and for the municipal sewerage system by
the City acting through the Altoona Water Authority.
(2) A bona fide owner of a single- and/or duplex-family dwelling which
is occupied for his/her own living purposes may do any water pipe
work on the condition that the said owner personally performs all
labor in connection therewith, and that the piping installed shall
be the correct size and materials as set forth in the existing code.
A permit must be lifted and work must be inspected.
(3) Installation, alteration, repair or maintenance of automatic sprinklers
and their related appurtenances.
(4) Installation, alteration, repair or maintenance of heating or refrigeration
systems as in package chillers, cooling towers, and other like apparatus
(provided the drains are installed by a master plumber).
(5) Installation, alteration, repair or maintenance of water softening
or conditioning equipment (provided that the drains are installed
by a master plumber).
(6) Installation, alteration, repair, or maintenance of hot water tanks.
In case the master plumber who signs an application for a permit
does not desire to do the work covered by it, either in part or in
its entirety, he or she shall notify the Code Official, in writing,
requesting that he or she be released from responsibility for the
part of the work which he or she does not desire to do. He or she
will, however, be held responsible for the work which he or she has
completed. The Code Official's record will indicate the extent
of such completed work and such responsibility, and the permit will
be revised accordingly and held in abeyance.