This docum ent does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill sponsor or House of Representatives.
STORAGE NAME: h0831.RRS
DATE: 1/18/2022
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STAFF ANALYSIS
BILL #: HB 831 Licensure Requirements for Land Surveyors and Mappers
SPONSOR(S): Mariano
TIED BILLS: IDEN./SIM. BILLS: SB 1286
REFERENCE ACTION ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR or
BUDGET/POLICY CHIEF
1) Regulatory Reform Subcommittee Thompson Anstead
2) Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations
Subcommittee
3) Commerce Committee
SUMMARY ANALYSIS
Chapter 472, F.S., governs the practice of land surveying and mapping in Florida. Through the Florida Board of
Professional Surveyors and Mappers (Board), the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS)
licenses and regulates professional surveyors and mappers in the state. Current law provides education and
experience prerequisites that must be met in order to be eligible to take the licensure examination to practice
as a surveyor and mapper.
Currently, applicants must have a bachelor’s degree in surveying and mapping and four or more years of
responsible work experience under a professional surveyor in order to take the licensure examination.
Applicants with a bachelor’s degree in a course of study other than surveying and mapping must have six or
more years of work experience under a professional surveyor, five of which must have been in responsible
charge of the work performed. These applicants must also complete a minimum of 25 semester hours from a
college or university approved by the board in surveying and mapping related subjects in order to take the
licensure examination.
In addition, exiled foreign-trained professionals must have graduated with an appropriate college degree from a
college or university and lawfully practiced the profession for at least three years in order to take the licensure
examination.
The bill:
Allows applicants with an associate degree and six or more years of responsible work experience under
a professional surveyor and mapper to be eligible to take the licensure examination.
Allows applicants with a high school diploma or equivalent and six or more years of responsible work
experience under a professional surveyor and mapper to be eligible to take the licensure examination.
Allows applicants who hold a license to practice in another state with two years of experience in the
active practice of mapping to be eligible to take the licensure examination.
Allows applicants with a registered apprenticeship certificate in surveying and mapping and an
experience record of two or more years in the active practice of mapping to be eligible to take the
licensure examination.
The bill does not appear to have a fiscal impact on state or local government.
The effective date of the bill is July 1, 2022. STORAGE NAME: h0831.RRS PAGE: 2
DATE: 1/18/2022
FULL ANALYSIS
I. SUBSTANTIVE ANALYSIS
A. EFFECT OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
Background
Land Surveying and Mapping
Chapter 472, F.S., governs the practice of land surveying and mapping in Florida. Through the Florida
Board of Professional Surveyors and Mappers (Board), the Department of Agriculture and Consumer
Services (DACS) licenses and regulates professional surveyors and mappers in the state.
1
These regulations include, but are not limited to:
2
Examination;
Licensure, including certificates of authorization;
Continuing education;
Seals;
Standards of practice;
Prohibitions and penalties;
Disciplinary guidelines;
Investigative procedures;
Power to administer oaths, take depositions, and issue subpoenas;
Unlicensed activities; and
Elevation certificates.
According to DACS, licensed surveyors and mappers make exact measurements and determine
property boundaries. They provide data relevant to the shape, contour, gravitation, location, elevation
or dimension of land or land features on or near the earth's surface for engineering, mapmaking,
mining, land evaluation, construction and other purposes.
3
The Board has authority to adopt rules to implement ch. 472, F.S., subject to approval by DACS.
4
Effective October 1, 2009, the regulation of professional surveyors and mappers by the Board was
transferred from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) to DACS.
5
According to DACS, there are 2,579 surveyors and mappers currently licensed in Florida.
6
Licensing Examinations
Current law provides education and experience prerequisites that must be met in order to be eligible to
take the licensure examination to practice as a surveyor and mapper or as a surveyor and mapper
intern.
7
All applicants must be approved by the Board prior to taking any examination.
All pathways to licensure as a professional surveyor and mapper in Florida require at least a four-year
college degree. The prerequisites to take the licensure examination to practice as a surveyor and
mapper are as follows:
1
S. 472.007, F.S.
2
See ch. 472, F.S.
3
Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Consumer Services, Surveyors and Mappers,
https://www.fdacs.gov/Business-Services/Surveyors-and-Mappers (last visited Jan. 5, 2022).
4
S. 472.008, F.S.
5
Ch. 2009-66, Laws of Fla.
6
Email from Carlos Nathan, Legislative Affairs Director, Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Re: Surveyors Data,
(Jan. 6, 2022).
7
S. 472.013, F.S. STORAGE NAME: h0831.RRS PAGE: 3
DATE: 1/18/2022
A bachelor’s degree in surveying and mapping or in a similarly titled program:
o Four or more years of work experience under a professional surveyor;
o All four years of work experience must have been in responsible charge of the accuracy
and correctness of the surveying work performed; or
A bachelor’s degree in a course of study other than surveying and mapping:
o Six or more years of work experience under a professional surveyor;
o Five of the six years of experience must have been in responsible charge of the
accuracy and correctness of the surveying work performed.
o These applicants must also complete a minimum of 25 semester hours from a college or
university approved by the board in surveying and mapping subjects or in any
combination of courses in civil engineering, surveying, mapping, mathematics,
photogrammetry, forestry, or land law and the physical sciences.
The following is a chart outlining these education and work experience prerequisites:
Type of Applicant
Type of Degree Work Experience
Surveyor and Mapper
(Option 1)
Surveying and Mapping
Bachelor’s Degree
4 or more years
subordinate to surveyor
and mapper and in
“responsible charge” of
work performed
Surveyor and Mapper
(Option 2)
Non-Surveying and
Mapping Bachelor’s
Degree; and
25 semester hours
surveying and mapping
subjects
6 or more years
subordinate to surveyor
and mapper of which
5 years must be in
“responsible charge” of
work performed
The board, by rule,
8
is authorized to establish fees for examination. The initial application and
examination fee must not exceed $125 plus the actual per applicant cost to DACS to purchase the
examination from the National Council of Engineering Examiners or a similar national organization. The
examination fee must be sufficient to cover the cost of obtaining and administering the examination and
is refundable if the applicant is found ineligible to sit for the examination. The application fee is
nonrefundable.
9
Exiled Foreign-Trained Professionals
Exiled foreign-trained professionals that wish to become surveyors and mappers must have graduated
with an appropriate college degree from a college or university and must have lawfully practiced the
profession for at least three years. Specifically, an exiled professional is eligible for examination if the
exiled professional satisfies all of the following seven requirements:
Immigrated to the United States after leaving the person’s home country because of political
reasons, provided the country is located in the Western Hemisphere and does not have
diplomatic relations with the United States;
Applied to DACS and submits a fee;
Was a resident of this state immediately preceding the person’s application;
Demonstrated to DACS, through submission of documentation verified by the applicant’s
respective professional association in exile, that the applicant graduated with an appropriate
professional or occupational degree from a college or university.
8
R. 5J-17.070, F.S.
9
S. 472.011, F.S. STORAGE NAME: h0831.RRS PAGE: 4
DATE: 1/18/2022
o However, DACS may not require receipt of any documentation from the Republic of
Cuba as a condition of eligibility under this section;
Lawfully practiced the profession for at least 3 years;
Prior to 1980, successfully completed an approved course of study pursuant to chapters 74-105
and 75-177, Laws of Florida; and
Presented a certificate demonstrating the successful completion of a continuing education
program, which offers a course of study that will prepare the applicant for the examination.
o The department shall develop rules for the approval of such programs for the board.
10
Upon request of a person who meets the requirements for foreign-trained professionals and submits an
examination fee, DACS, for the Board, is required to conduct a written practical examination that tests
the person’s current ability to practice the profession competently in accordance with the actual practice
of the profession. The fees charged for the examinations are established by DACS, for the board, by
rule,
11
and must be sufficient to develop or to contract for the development of the examination and its
administration, grading, and grade reviews.
12
Licensure by Endorsement
The board is required to certify as qualified for a license by endorsement an applicant who, at the time
of application, holds a valid license to practice surveying and mapping issued by another state or
territory of the United States, if:
The license was issued before July 1, 1999; the applicant has passed a national, regional, state,
or territorial licensing examination that is substantially equivalent to the examination required by
s. 472.013, F.S.; and the applicant has a specific experience record of at least eight years as a
subordinate to a registered surveyor and mapper in the active practice of surveying and
mapping, six years of which must be of a nature indicating that the applicant was in responsible
charge of the accuracy and correctness of the surveying and mapping work performed; or
The criteria for issuance of the license by another state are substantially the same as the
licensure criteria that existed in Florida at the time the license was issued.
13
All applicants for licensure by endorsement must also pass the Florida law and rules portion of the
examination prior to licensure.
14
Florida law does not provide practicing surveyors and mappers from other states with less than a four-
year degree a pathway to licensure unless they were licensed in the other state prior to July 1, 1999, or
prior to Florida having a four-year degree requirement.
Recent Trends
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2020 there were 45,000 working surveyors in the U.S.
and 15,000 were 34 years of age or younger.
15
Many in the profession are baby boomers who will be
retiring and need to be replaced.
16
Some in the industry have indicated that a shortage may exist in the profession because of extensive
education expectations and cost. Many state boards require a four-year degree before beginning work
in the surveying field. These requirements might hinder those from pursuing a surveying path.
10
S. 472.001(1), F.S.
11
R. 5J-17.210, F.A.C.
12
S. 472.0101, F.S.
13
S. 472.015, F.S.
14
Id.
15
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey, https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat11b.pdf
(last visited Jan. 5, 2022).
16
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/architecture-and-
engineering/surveyors.htm#tab-6 (last visited Jan. 5, 2022). STORAGE NAME: h0831.RRS PAGE: 5
DATE: 1/18/2022
Nationally there appears to be a decline in the number of students graduating from surveying
programs.
17
In Florida, the number of licensed surveyors has decreased by 305 licensees, from 2,884 licensees in
2013 to 2,579 licensees in 2021.
18
Other States
Each state and territory in the U.S. require those who perform the tasks defined as the practice of
surveying to hold a professional surveying license. Most states require professional surveyors to meet
a combination of requirements in education and exams.
19
Generally, while each state board for surveyors has its own requirements for licensure, potential
licensees will follow a similar path of prerequisites to obtain a license in any state. Prerequisites
typically include:
An education requirement - Sometimes a high school diploma but some states also require a
four-year degree from an accredited surveying program.
Successful completion of a Fundamentals of Surveying (FS) written examination - testing an
applicant’s breadth of understanding of basic surveying principles.
Successful completion of a written Principles and Practice of Surveying (PS) examination -
testing an applicant's knowledge and competency of surveying skills.
A requisite amount of surveying experience - which for most states is four years and is usually
under the supervision of a professional surveyor.
20
According to research, in 2020, the education and experience requirements in all 50 states appear to
indicate the following patterns:
Most states require at least a four-year degree and four years of professional experience.
Typically, the extent of the degree is relative to the amount of professional experience required.
Fourteen states provide an option that requires only a high school diploma (or do not have any
educational requirements) along with a certain amount of professional experience.
Six states provide an option that does not require the completion of a degree, but requires the
completion of a certain amount of survey and mapping coursework and professional
experience.
The degrees that are required are typically in a surveying and mapping curriculum, a curriculum
related to surveying and mapping, or an unrelated curriculum but with a certain amount of
coursework in a surveying related curriculum.
States that allow postgraduate coursework in a surveying curriculum allow the coursework to be
substituted for professional experience.
Twenty-eight states do not provide an education-less alternative method of licensure.
21
Effect of the Bill
The bill creates new pathways for people to become licensed as a surveyor and mapper that maintain
the prerequisite to take the licensure examination without requiring a bachelor’s degree.
Specifically, the bill makes the following changes:
17
Nearterm Blog, Is There a Shortage of Land Surveyors? (Nov. 2, 2020), https://nearterm.com/is-there-a-shortage-of-land-surveyors/
(last visited Jan. 5, 2022).
18
Email from Carlos Nathan, Legislative Affairs Director, Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Re: Surveyors Data,
(Jan. 6, 2022).
19
The National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES), Surveying Licensure,
https://ncees.org/surveying/surveying-licensure/ (last visited Jan. 5, 2022).
20
The National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES), NCEES Member Licensing Boards,
https://ncees.org/member-licensing-boards/ (last visited Jan. 5, 2022).
21
NCEES, supra note 19. STORAGE NAME: h0831.RRS PAGE: 6
DATE: 1/18/2022
The bill changes the requirement related to obtaining a bachelor’s degree from a school that is
“recognized by the board” to instead require the degree be “from an accredited college or university.”
The bill creates additional pathways to be eligible to take the licensure examination for applicants who
have:
Received an associate degree with a minimum of 25 semester hours from an accredited
college or university in surveying and mapping subjects or in any combination of courses in civil
engineering, surveying, mapping, mathematics, photogrammetry, forestry, or land law and the
physical science.
o Such applicants must have six or more years experience as a subordinate to a
professional surveyor and mapper in the active practice of surveying and mapping,
which experience is of a nature indicating that the applicant was in responsible charge.
Received a high school diploma, or its equivalent and obtained a minimum of 25 semester
hours from an accredited college or university in surveying and mapping subjects or in any
combination of courses in civil engineering, surveying, mapping, mathematics, photogrammetry,
forestry, or land law and the physical sciences.
o Such applicants must have a specific experience record of six or more years as a
subordinate to a professional surveyor and mapper in the active practice of surveying
and mapping, which experience is of a nature indicating that the applicant was in
responsible charge.
The bill amends the licensure by endorsement requirements to be eligible to take the licensure
examination for applicants who:
Hold a valid license to practice surveying and mapping in another state, jurisdiction, or
territory; and
Have two years of experience in the active practice of surveying and mapping, which
experience is of a nature indicating that the applicant was in responsible charge of the accuracy
and correctness of the surveying and mapping work performed.
The bill creates a pathway to be eligible to take the licensure examination for applicants who have:
Received a registered apprenticeship certificate in surveying and mapping after completing a
registered apprenticeship program approved by the Department of Education; and
A specified experience record of two or more years as a subordinate to a professional
surveyor and mapper in the active practice of surveying and mapping, which experience is of a
nature indicating that the applicant was in responsible charge of the accuracy and correctness
of the surveying and mapping work performed.
Work experience acquired as a part of the education requirement may not be construed as experience
in responsible charge.
The bill defines the term "accredited college or university" as a college or university that has been
accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, another regional accrediting agency,
the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools, or an accrediting agency or association
that is recognized by the database created and maintained by the United States Department of
Education.
The bill allows exiled foreign-trained professionals who have practiced the profession for three years to
substitute this experience for the current education requirement.
B. SECTION DIRECTORY:
Section 1: amends s. 472.005, F.S., defining the term "accredited college or university."
Section 2: amends s. 472.0101, F.S., relating to foreign-trained professionals, special examination
and license provisions.
Section 3: amends s. 472.013, F.S., relating to examinations, prerequisites. STORAGE NAME: h0831.RRS PAGE: 7
DATE: 1/18/2022
Section 4: amends s. 472.003, F.S., conforming a cross-reference to changes made by the act.
Section 5: provides an effective date of July 1, 2022.
II. FISCAL ANALYSIS & ECONOMIC IMPACT STATEMENT
A. FISCAL IMPACT ON STATE GOVERNMENT:
1. Revenues:
Indeterminate. The bill may have a positive impact on examination and licensing revenue, to the
extent that additional individuals will take the licensure examination and become licensed. All funds
collected are deposited into the DACS General Inspection Trust Fund. According to DACS, the bill
will not have a fiscal impact on the Department.
22
2. Expenditures:
Indeterminate. The bill may result in DACS processing additional applications for examination and
licensure.
However, DACS can likely absorb the related cost within existing resources. According to
DACS, the bill will not have a fiscal impact on the Department.
23
B. FISCAL IMPACT ON LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
1. Revenues:
None.
2. Expenditures:
None.
C. DIRECT ECONOMIC IMPACT ON PRIVATE SECTOR:
The bill relaxes experience and education prerequisites in order to be eligible to take the licensure
examination to practice as a surveyor and mapper, which will lower the cost to become licensed, and
allow more people to practice their chosen profession.
D. FISCAL COMMENTS:
None.
III. COMMENTS
A. CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES:
1. Applicability of Municipality/County Mandates Provision:
Not applicable. The bill does not appear to effect county or municipal governments.
2. Other:
None.
B. RULE-MAKING AUTHORITY:
22
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Agency Analysis of 2022 HB 831, p. 3 (Jan. 3, 2022).
23
Id. STORAGE NAME: h0831.RRS PAGE: 8
DATE: 1/18/2022
Agency rules may have to be amended to change current education and work experience
requirements. Current law appears to provide sufficient rulemaking authority for DACS to implement the
bill.
C. DRAFTING ISSUES OR OTHER COMMENTS:
Other Comments
Current law provides seven prerequisites to the surveying and mapping licensure examination for
foreign-trained professionals. One of these includes the following provision:
Prior to 1980, successfully completed an approved course of study pursuant to chapters 74-105
and 75-177, Laws of Florida.
According to DACS, “this provision refers to a course of study that may never have existed. The
chapter laws referenced in the provision provided for the licensing of an applicant who had been
licensed under the laws of a foreign country under certain conditions.” DACS further provides:
“Back in 1974, the professional regulation statute was amended to give foreign born
professionals more access to Florida licenses. Chapter 74-105 provided for the licensing of an
applicant who had been licensed under the laws of a foreign country under certain conditions. If
5 or more applicants showed proof (a certificate of licensure or the certification by affidavit from
the respective foreign professional association) they lawfully practiced a profession in a foreign
country prior to July 1, 1974, they would be approved to take a one year course (continuing
education). Once they graduated, they could take a written exam the same as or similar to the
exam taken by other applicants. They had the option taking the test in their native language if
there were at least 5 applicants who wanted that. If the board already had a program for
granting licenses to foreign professionals, the applicants had the option of choosing which
alternative they wanted.
The next year Chapter 75-177 made some changes. The minimum number of applicants
needed to trigger the creation of the one year course was raised to 15; if the board already had
a program for granting licenses to foreign professionals, and the Department of Education
deemed it equivalent to the one year program, it would be in lieu of the one year program and
applicants wouldn’t have that option.
However, it is not known if PSM ever developed and offered that one year course.”
24
It is not likely this provision would apply to many applicants. Removing this outdated provision and
revising other requirements may make this provision more inclusive to foreign-trained applicants.
IV. AMENDMENTS/ COMMITTEE SUBSTITU TE CHANGES
24
Richard Kimsey, Director, Division of Consumer Services, Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, FW: [External] HB
821 Foreign-trained professionals, (Mar. 2, 2021).