ALC - Occupational Licensing Review Subcommittee
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- October 2, 2026
Good afternoon folks and thank you all for being here today I have no comments as a chair, none from my co-chair we'll move immediately to paragraph C and this will be a review of reports from the occupational authorization entities and we have him be here from what AdEQ
thank you all for being here today it's good to see you and afterwards if I could have five minutes of your time I appreciate it. and if you would introduce yourself
Speaker 8
2:50
yes sir good afternoon my name is Bailey Taylor, chief administrator ofnviron and DEQ director. I'm Lauren Ballard.
Speaker 9
2:54
I'm chief of staff for the department of Energy and Environment. thank you all for being here and
Speaker 8
3:01
you may continue so the division ofnvial Quality administers the asbestos abatement programme that includes licensing that is operated under the federal asbestos hazard emergency Response Act and the federal asbestos school hazard reauthorization actct in addition to that we have state statute and rule that mirror these federal actions and so under that we issue a variety of asbestos abatement licenses. Those include an air monitor
which collects the samples a contractor, a worker, an inspector, a planner, designer and consultant in a training provider. So depending on what their needs are or the type of business that they're operating you can receive training and apply for any or multiple of these s and we issue depending on what category there could be at any range of number of licenses we issue. are there any questions
thank you members do you have any questions and my co-chair go ahead
Representative Stephen Meeks
Unverified
4:19
sir There we am. OK. so just kind of out of curiosity I'm assuming that we're not installing any new asbestos in the state. so at this point we're just monitoring what's out there and trying to get it removed is that a correct assessment of where we're at there are still some materials made today that include asbestos.
Speaker 8
4:39
so but it's very few that number dwindles by the day so yes we could still be putting asbestos into our facilities but it's much at a much lower rate than what we historically were. OK so primarily what we're doing with this program
Representative Stephen Meeks
Unverified
4:52
is pulling the asbestos out of the is monitoring what's out
there and then getting rid of it where feasible is that correct we're we're licensing the entities that perform that work. OK right. thank you.
and representative bentley, Mary you're recognized chairman thank you all
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
5:15
for being here today so can you give us a little more update on the grant your grant
process that you have those notice that you get some grants out to folks to remove asbestos. can you tell us just a little bit more about that now
Speaker 8
5:28
our district should be able to apply for that. Yes, so that is still a piece of our rule. we have not administered a grant in a little over6 years just because of the the program funding the revenue and then our expenses have not just
Speaker 30
5:43
resulted in a surplus enough to where we were able to afford the grants
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
5:50
at this time. So can you tell me what you're expe I know I see what you're 276,000 a year you're getting from fees and
Speaker 28
5:59
fines so tell us about the expenses that you
Speaker 8
6:02
have so as a as a part of this exercise currently the fee or the expenses are 220,000 I believe it's it's in the question. Yes,220,000 a year but as a part of this exercise we did identify
that not every inspector was paid out of this fund and so in order to realign our resources and align the program better that we expect those expenses to increase. so I'm sorry explain a little bit more so
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
6:29
you're actually using some of the funds to pay for inspectors to go out and do
inspections of the asbestos as well how the funding that you receive correct we have two inspectors that
Speaker 8
6:42
when we receive complaints then we go out and inspect the
facility and the workers that would be licensed to do the work and so we just inspect them for compliance adherence to the rule. that's one more chairman if you don't mind. go ahead ma'am so that's
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
7:00
great information I appreciate you guys being here today so what do you expect you're expecting an increase because of why those inspectors salaries have not previously been attributed
Speaker 8
7:08
to this fund so this this rule is making it come out of this fund is that what you're telling me?
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
7:18
or when did that change I guess I'm asking you why yeah, I
Speaker 38
7:23
don't think anything's changed. I think we were going back and looking and seeing the individuals that we have assigned to this program for these duties and I think there were a couple of different funds that could pay for them and so we were looking at really attributing real cost to the actual expenses of the program. So at this point we don't think that the what's generated is less than the cost of programs we're realigning to make sure there's not additional work or additional people or less money
it's just that we're connecting those dots and making sure that they're being paid by you know, that revenue source that they're spending most of their time on and attributing it to that as a ju aligning it
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
7:59
better right yeah thank you all thank you so much thank you chairman. I appreciate your lenience on that
yes ma'am it Representative Richmond you are recognizedr Mr Chair, I'm over here on the far right you mentioned complaints
Chair
Unverified
8:09
who is it that generally complains and what do they complain about when when you have to go out and maybe take a look or something that
one of these individuals that you've certified I don't have a list of
Speaker 8
8:23
our complaints but I will say that it's typically citizens, neighbors that that see something going on and want to know if if everything's been done properly. Do you have any examples of what they might see that that
Chair
Unverified
8:35
they would look at and say I don't like that or I think that's hazardous I mean sometimes it is just that the work
Speaker 8
8:45
is being done without the proper contract or the proper notice.
Chair
Unverified
8:51
and once you give somebody a certification you know I I take it that you go in and you take a look at everything and and basically you do I I saw it here you do do certifications right on this thing yeah and you give somebody a certification that everything is correct if you get a complaint about them what do you have to do? I mean can you just look at hey we've certified these people there shouldn't be a problem here or do you have to go out there and do a reinspection
Speaker 54
9:21
we don't certify each facility. we certify the worker or the contract company so we they received training they
Speaker 8
9:29
take a test oncece they pass all of that then they are certified they receive that license from us we do expect them to know the rule after that training and be able to comply but if we receive a complaint about their operation we will go to that specific facility and make sure that they submitted their notice and make sure that they are disposing of
the asbestos containing material in the appropriate fashion. And so if either one of those two I'm speaking generally if they had failed to do
Speaker 56
10:00
either one of those two then that could be a violation. One more Mrir yes sir and and
Chair
Unverified
10:08
if you do have somebody that has a violation just how much authority do you have to deal with a contractor or somebody that that you have found in violation we can issue a civil
Speaker 8
10:20
penalty under a formal enforcement a consent administrative order or a notice
of violation. We can also do informal enforcement if that's what
Speaker 20
10:29
the case warrants. so we have all of the authority to assess a civil penalty. All
Chair
Unverified
10:35
right, thank you. thank you Mr Chair. thank you guys appreciate you
being here. yes sir. andpresentative Brown you're recognized
Representative Matt Brown
Unverified
10:43
ma'am thank you Mr Chair. I was just curious you said something about products are still being manufactured today that use asbestos
are they being are these products like
less likely to be I think the word is friable so that the asbestos is just flying around the air are they are they are they more encapsulated? I mean
I'm curious about that. Yeah I
Speaker 54
11:13
think the what's still being manufactured is glue and certain adhesives. So
Speaker 8
11:18
yes, less chance of the fro it's not the insulation like you would typically think of being so friable and airborne but it
can still impact human health. and one
Representative Matt Brown
Unverified
11:32
other question so the certifications I would assume they pertain to people who
are removing asbestos from residential dwellings as well as commercial buildings yes ma'am it could but one
Speaker 53
11:49
residential structure does not require all of the the licensing if they're doing
Speaker 30
11:58
multiple then they would have to have their training and requirements thank you thank you thank
Representative Jeremy Wooldridge
Unverified
12:11
you Mr Cha. thank you guys for being here I'm trying to better understand too kind of what impact does asbestos have on the general public if they're exposed to it and my questioning for that when I'm traveling around the district I serve that's very rural. the number one thing that
communities talked to me about is how difficult it is to get rid of dilapidated structures and especially those that maybe they have to have a test done and then there's asbestos and they can't really afford to go through the abatement process to then remove those structures so then they just sit there vacant or impartial decline. so what is the impact I guess potentially to the public and then how often are we seeing people that are negatively affected by asbestos that
becomes airborne or that kind of thing we don't regulate
Speaker 54
13:05
if they are impacted by this that that's as far as our authority would
Speaker 8
13:11
go that may be another department but what can happen if you're exposed to asbestos is scarring of the lungs it's called asbestoiosis and then also mesothelioma so those are known side effects of the exposure which is why this is regulated as far as citywide
kind of campaigns go we work with several s c ities to develop the best program and and plan of attack if if that's something that you're interested in we could definitely talk about that follow up Mr
Speaker 9
13:40
chairir and absolutely something I'd like to
Representative Jeremy Wooldridge
Unverified
13:43
know more about and that's my fault for not knowing that I need to be able to to help these rural communities learn what the opportunity is for some assistance because it really becomes a growing problem especially in rural parts of the state so it's something I'm dealing with a lot and I'd love to get with you or if you can
send me information on that I'd like to connect with those resources so thank you very much Members saying no other questions without objection this report stands as reviewed
and thank you all for being here today and next we have the Arkansas Commission on Law nforcement Standards and training
and if you would please identify yourselves Good morning
Speaker 73
14:59
sir. My name is Jason Lawrence, deputy director of training for the commission of law enforcement standards and
Speaker 74
15:06
training my name is Steve Taylor I'm an attorney for the for the commission on law enforcementands of
Speaker 75
15:11
training. my name is Kelvin Sargeant. I'm a deputy director
with the commission on law enforcement San Good thank you all and you're welcome to start with your report Absolutely just a general
Speaker 78
15:21
overview senator if you will. the commission of law enforcementandards and training has broken into a couple of different divisions. The standards division which handles a couple of different things, deputyrector sergeant can go into more detail in regards to it but setting the standards and enforcing the standards set forth by the commission the standards division also follows up on any type of what we call compliance checks and dd certification processes for law enforcement officers across the state of Arkansas in addition to that the training division is broken down in a couple of different ways. number one we have our basic
training which is going to be our police academies. we have three located across the state one incamden, Arkansas one in central Arkansas the Benton Bryant area and then lastly one in Springdale our northwest academy as well from that we also have an advanced division at that point which handles advanced law enforcement training for those who are already certified in regards to it you can break down a little bit more we have jill gel standards as well and then at that point where we assist in training detention officers across the state not only from the basicle but also jill administrators
across the state. Members are there any questions and my coachchair
Representative Stephen Meeks
Unverified
16:37
go ahead sir think we'll start so gentlemen thank you for your service to the state. my my question is can you give us an overview on where we're at on recruiting new people into law enforcement careers how we're doing as a state in that regard
Speaker 78
16:55
yes sir. thank you for your question sir. greatly appreciate it. the vast majority of what you will see is going to be up to the individual agencies I will tell you I've been involved in law enforcement's 2004 deputy director sergeant over ir0 years uhsteve has been in33 plus years. we're starting to see an uptick in the recruitment aspect. so our numbers at the basics academy we are somewhere close to700 per year. those numbers kind of fluctuate and they depend on hiring cycles
for the agencies but more importantly we're seeing a slight reduction and we are actually liking that agencies are not only able to hire but the retention is getting better across the state, sir. yeah
Representative Stephen Meeks
Unverified
17:36
that's that's very good news. How many can you handle in the course of here a year. You said you got700 is that is that generally what you I think you said it's a slight uptick sir what what is the the the
Speaker 78
17:48
the capacity that you capaccity is probably going to be close to the725750. ourcamden which is our largest campus. it is
residential meaning they stay there. We can house up to 125.125 students at one time is a lot to deal with. your central academy smaller footprint in regards to it max's capacity per class is going to be about45 and then northwest academy is55 and it's nonresidential as well. but we run3 classes per year currently at 13 weeks we are increasing to 14 weeks and our C cla s s which is going to be it's starting in August and from
then on increasing the number of hours so for example in 2023 the total number of hours in 13 weeks was528 to be a police officer. we will and are currently increasing those hours to 14 weeks at705, putting us third in the region and when I say region states that touch us in total number of training hours for law enforcement officers excellent that all sounds good. thank you thank you p re
Representative Stephen Meeks
Unverified
18:51
s ent ative Bentley you're recognized ma'am thank
you chairman thank you all for being
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
18:58
here today and for the important job that you do training our law enforcement officers can you tell the cost for counties for them to send one of the officers to you for training.0
dollars dollars at the state thanks to the governor thanks to each of you as members of the house that we are funded
Speaker 81
19:18
by you so it costs nothing for to send somebody
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
19:21
down there. OK and quick follow up chairman if you don't mind.
so you said we're increasing52028 hours is705 so was that who decides how many
hours it's gonna be we do ma'am
Speaker 78
19:32
if I maypresentative, can I do a follow up do you mind that was input actually from our chiefs and sheriffs. I know deputy director sergeant and myself have met with 400500 chiefs and sheriffs probably across the state and from their input they have asked for an increase in training hours but more practical. so something we're extremely proud of is we have increased adult learning mo models or more practical than actually classroom. So from this705 we'll
be close to70% actual practicals compared to close to30% of actual classroom ma'am. Follow up chairman if that's ok ma' So these practicals
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
20:11
are they actually are they going with the law
enforcement officer there's already trained and and actually working with people just give us a little bit more
Speaker 78
20:18
on what that practical is the practical could be anything for example may I use an examplepresentative traffic stops so our all of our staff members all of our agents are certified law enforcement officers with prior experience in addition to that we bring in adjunct instructors so
individuals that currently are serving with law enforcement agencies chiefs of police excuse me police department, sheriff's department, even state police comes in and they will assist us on the demonstration aspect and then the actual practical of how to do a traffic stop correctly ma'am. that's great.nother follow up chairman if you don't mind so do we do a separate
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
20:49
type of training for those officers that are going to work in a a local
jail or in our state prisons or any of those? Is there a separate training for those folks? yes ma'am. so detention officers in and I'm
Speaker 78
21:03
going to use that is from the majority of those are gonna be counties so sheriff's department's running the jail specific ally so there is a training cycle that is completely different than what we put them through. currently at that right now Kevin, if I am correct, it's around a little over 86u I'm sorry jail training44 hours that they will receive on the front end from us that we approve agencies can teach it but we also go in and work with those agencies that can't honestly don't have the
assets or resources to do it we as an agency can go in and provide that training for them
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
21:39
very helpful. thank you so much thank you chairman
Speaker 43
21:44
for the time and representative Richmond you recognize
Chair
Unverified
21:47
her thank you Mr Chair way over here on the right just out of curiosity the department of agriculture has a law enforcement division. do you guys have any interaction as far as training and training standards or could do anything with them specifically yes what what we do with the with them
Speaker 75
22:04
they are held to the same standard as any other law enforcement also with the training the annual training that they have to do we also will visit them and do an audit to make sure that the their files and everything are in compliance with with our standards as well. right thank you thank you Mr. Cha. and my co-chair
Speaker 90
22:26
is recognized kind of thinking along those lines. one of
Representative Stephen Meeks
Unverified
22:30
the emphasis we've placed as a state here
recently is security within our schools and school resource officers do y'all handle that and if so can you kind of talk to us about how the training for a school resource officer is different than a standard law enforcement training we have a s a standalone training
Speaker 75
22:52
for student resource officers so you like you you would have a the officer that would go through the basic training and once they become certified officers then they can also go through the
if they're gonna be an SO there's a standalone training to teach that officer the the principals and the standards for being an S just follow up if I
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
23:14
maypresentative so that is predominantly the criminal justice institute provides
Speaker 78
23:20
specific training so they have different levels if I may SRO level one which is about a week long I I'm correct andir I apologize if we get these numbers wrong but it's approximately40 hours so that is the level one that they must complete within I believe their
first year of hiring. after that then by year5 if I am correct, they're required to take SO level 2 and be certified. all of that curriculum though does come through the standards office for approval to make sure it meets our criteria Thank you sir in almost Mr
Chet represented a prayer your your recogr yes sir thank you chair. So is is is
Representative Mark Perry
Unverified
24:07
being hired by a local agency a prerequisite for joining the academy so for example someone gets elected constable wants to take that job serious could they enter that academy and what would that cost on their own so when it
Speaker 75
24:24
comes down to to to attending the academies you have to be hard on by an agency whether it's a county or state or I mean county or municipal you have to be hard oned by them to meet all the prework withites that
information is submitted to our office once we received all that information to make sure that individual meet the minimum minimum qualifications then we go ahead and notify the agencies that that individual's good to hire and so we so that that's how we go with that my apologize senator I
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
25:00
start talking about law enforcement I get excited. Representative there is a program out there called Veterans to Law nforcement so
Speaker 78
25:07
that program allows an individual who is a
veteran that meets certain criteria to instead of going through the process of being hired by an agency can put themselves through the academy it is honestly a program that we've had increase in numbers and the we probably haven't had anybody through that program in the last three years if I am correct but what they can do is they can come in, become a certified officer and then go at that point and apply for a job showing as it a certified officer that you can use the GI bill to pay for that and I
apologize I don't know that number off the top of my head what we usually charge but that there is a program out there for them to do that sir that's a good program thank you
emb ers are there any other questions seeing none without objections this report stand reviewed gentlemen, thank you all for being here today. Members moving on
do the members have any other business any new business Sa none we are adjourned
Agenda
A. Call to Order
B. Comments by the Co-Chairs
C. Review of Reports from Occupational Authorization Entities:
D. Other Business
E. Adjournment
Documents
No documents posted.
Speakers
Senator Dave Wallace Chair
Unverified
Speaker 8
Speaker 9
Representative Stephen Meeks
Unverified
Representative Mary Bentley
Unverified
Speaker 30
Speaker 28
Speaker 38
Chair
Unverified
Speaker 54
Speaker 56
Speaker 20
Representative Matt Brown
Unverified
Speaker 53
Representative Jeremy Wooldridge
Unverified
Speaker 73
Speaker 74
Speaker 75
Speaker 78
Speaker 81
Speaker 43
Speaker 90
Representative Mark Perry
Unverified