Section 270. Fees

A. DCLS shall charge a fee to certify drinking water laboratories. This fee shall be limited to the cost of administering the certification program.

B. Required fees.

1. Drinking water laboratories shall submit payment of the fee with the initial applications for certification.

2. Drinking water laboratories located out-of-state and applying for reciprocal certification shall submit payment of the fee with the initial applications.

3. Once certified under this chapter, drinking water laboratories shall pay the fee annually. DCLS shall send an invoice to the certified drinking water laboratory.

4. Additional fees may apply under subsection K of this section when changes to the laboratory's certification require DCLS staff time to administer the change.

C. DCLS shall not consider an application to be complete until the applicant laboratory submits payment of the certification fee.

D. All incomplete payments shall be deemed as nonpayment. Nonpayment of fees shall result in denial or revocation of certification.

E. Payment of fees shall be nonrefundable.

F. DCLS, under 1VAC30-41-230, may revoke the certification of any certified laboratory that does not pay its annual fee.

G. Fee computation.

1. Fees for certification of drinking water laboratories shall be applied on an annual basis.

2. Drinking water laboratories shall pay the total of the base year fees as required by subsections H and J of this section for the first 12 months following May 1, 2014.

3. Beginning May 1, 2015, drinking water laboratories shall pay the total of the base year fees required by subsection H and Table 1 of subsection J of this section as adjusted by the method set out in subsection I of this section.

H. Calculation of fees - base year fees May 1, 2014 - April 30, 2015.

1. DCLS charges a fee for the review and certification of the drinking water laboratory's quality system. This includes a review of the test methods for which the drinking water laboratory requests or holds certification. The fees are based on the number of test methods for which the laboratory would be certified within each of the six testing categories set out in Table 1 of subsection J of this section.

2. DCLS shall calculate a laboratory's fees by adding the fees for the number of test methods in each category as set out in Table 1 of subsection J of this section for which the laboratory applies or is certified.

3. For example, a laboratory may be certified for three microbiological methods ($700); five inorganic chemistry, nonmetals methods ($850); two inorganic chemistry, metals methods ($1000); and two organic chemistry methods ($1050). The total annual fee would be $3600.

I. Calculation of fees - fees beginning May 1, 2015.

1. DCLS shall revise the base year fees after the first 12 months following May 1, 2014, and every 12-month period thereafter.

2. DCLS shall increase or decrease the fees set out in Table 1 of subsection J of this section using the Consumer Price Index-Urban (CPI-U) percentage change, average-average for the previous calendar year. (The CPI-U for all urban consumers is published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.)

3. DCLS shall revise each previous year's Table 1 of subsection J of this section so that the revisions will be cumulative, reflecting the changes in the CPI-U over time.

4. DCLS shall round the revised fees to the nearest whole dollar.

5. DCLS shall publish the revised fee table annually on its website for drinking water laboratory certification. This website can be found by going to the DCLS page of the Department of General Services' website at http://dgs.virginia.gov.

J. Fee tables.

1. Fees are calculated using the base year fees in Table 1.

	Table 1 - Base Year Fees
	Testing Category		Fee ($)
	Microbiological testing
		1 - 2 methods	600
		3 - 5 methods	700
		6+ methods	800
	Inorganic chemistry, nonmetals testing
		1 - 2 methods	650
		3 - 5 methods	850
		6 - 8 methods	1050
		9+ methods	1250
	Inorganic chemistry, metals testing
		1 - 2 methods	1000
		3 - 5 methods	1200
		6+ methods	1400
	Organic chemistry
		1 - 2 methods	1050
		3 - 5 methods	1250
		6 - 8 methods	1450
		9+ methods	1650
	Radiochemistry
		1 - 2 methods	1100
		3 - 5 methods	1300
		6+ methods	1500
	Asbestos
		1 - 2 methods	900
		3 - 5 methods	1100
		6+ methods	1300

2. Table 2 shows the relationship between the testing categories for fees and the drinking water laboratory certification categories.

	Table 2 - Drinking Water Laboratory Certification Categories
	Fee Testing Category	Laboratory Certification Category
	Microbiological testing	Microbiology (includes coliform, E. coli, heterotrophic bacteria)
	Inorganic chemistry, nonmetals testing	Physical/inorganic: aggregate properties (includes turbidity, alkalinity, total dissolved solids, conductivity, pH) Wet chemistry (includes fluoride, nitrate/nitrite, cyanide, sulfate, orthophosphate, pH) Organic aggregate properties (includes DOC, TOC, UV254, Surfactants/SUVA)
	Inorganic chemistry, metals testing	Trace metals (includes lead, copper, chromium, beryllium, mercury, barium, cadmium)
	Organic chemistry, trace	Organic chemistry (includes pesticides, herbicides, SOC, PCB, THM, VOC, HAA5, carbamates, fumigants)
	Radiochemistry	Radiochemistry (includes alpha, beta, radium, gamma, uranium, strontium-89)
	Asbestos	Asbestos

K. Additional fees.

1. An additional fee shall be charged to a laboratory:

a. Applying for modification of certification under 1VAC30-41-110.

b. Moving its location when the move requires DCLS to perform an onsite assessment.

c. Requesting reinstatement of certification when DCLS requires an onsite assessment.

2. The fee charged shall be the sum of the total hourly charges for all reviewers plus any onsite assessment cost incurred.

a. An hourly charge per reviewer shall be $61 as of May 1, 2014. DCLS shall revise the hourly charge after the first 12 months following May 1, 2014, and every 12-month period thereafter. The hourly charge shall increase or decrease using the Consumer Price Index-Urban (CPI-U) percentage change, average-average for the previous calendar year.

b. The charge per reviewer shall be determined by multiplying the number of hours expended in the review by the reviewer's hourly charge.

c. If an onsite review is required, travel time and onsite review time shall be charged at the same hourly charge per reviewer, and any travel expenses shall be added.

L. Method of payment. Fees shall be paid by check, draft, or postal money order payable to the Treasurer, Commonwealth of Virginia, or submitted electronically, if available, and must be in U.S. currency, except that agencies and institutions of the Commonwealth of Virginia may submit interagency transfers for the amount of the fee. All fees shall be sent to the following address, or submitted electronically, if available: DCLS, Attn: Lab Certification, 600 North 5th Street, Richmond, VA 23219. Laboratories may also pay fees using credit cards. Laboratories shall fill out the DCLS Fee Payment Form for Virginia Laboratory Certification Programs and send the completed form with the fee.

Historical Notes

Derived from Volume 30, Issue 14, eff. May 1, 2014.

Statutory Authority

§§ 2.2-1102 and 2.2-1105 of the Code of Virginia; 42 USC § 300f et seq.