Radiation Protection Rules

The adoption of Rule 10A NCAC 15 .1801, Requirements for Registration of Radon Proficiency Programs, is in response to a recent act of the General Assembly, Session Law 2023-91, “An act to amend the North Carolina Building Code Exclusion for temporary motion picture, television, and theater stage sets and scenery to exempt them from use and occupancy classification under the code; to direct the Department of Health and Human Services to establish an approval process for Radon Proficiency Programs; and to provide that evidence of a licensee having maintained a license in good standing under Article 2 of Chapter 87 of the General Statutes for at least 15 years shall be accepted as experience for plumbing and heating qualifications by the Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors” that became effective July 10, 2023. Section 2.(b) of this Act, requires the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services to adopt temporary radon proficiency program approval rules. The temporary rule became effective on February 14, 2024 and the Department is now seeking to adopt a permanent rule. The purpose for the permanent rule adoption is to establish minimum criteria for programs which will certify radon professionals in North Carolina. It additionally gives radon proficiency programs the ability to gain approval in the State of North Carolina since there is currently no other avenue on the state or national level for organizations to be approved to certify radon professionals.

Radon is a naturally-occurring radioactive gas that enters people’s homes and can lead to lung cancer. The NC Radon Program of DHHS recommends that homeowner’s hire certified professionals to test and mitigate high levels of radon in their homes. At this time, there are only 2 companies in the US that have approval from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to certify radon professionals. There is no mechanism for new companies to gain approval to offer certifications because EPA is currently developing a new set of approval criteria for certifying companies. This law allows companies to become approved as professional radon certifiers in NC. Three companies have been listed on the NC Radon Program website for many years and they wish to continue to be listed up until and after the EPA develops criteria for national approval. The rule will allow DHHS to expedite the approval process for these companies.

The one rule is proposed for adoption.