State-by-State Renewal & CEU Requirements

How many continuing education hours each state requires to renew a wastewater operator license, and on what cycle.

CEU Requirements by State

State	Continuing Ed	Renewal Cycle	Notes
Alabama	12 contact hours	3 years	Alabama Department of Environmental Management.
Alaska	8 contact hours	2 years	Alaska DOF operator training program. Verify with state.
Arizona	15 contact hours	3 years	ADEQ; hours tiered by grade. Verify with state.
Arkansas	8 contact hours	2 years	Arkansas Department of Energy & Environment.
California	12–36 hours (by grade)	2–3 years	State Water Resources Control Board; varies by grade. Verify.
Colorado	20 contact hours	3 years	Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment.
Connecticut	12 contact hours	2 years	Connecticut DPUC. Verify with state.
Delaware	20 contact hours (10 directly related)	2 years	DNREC Division of Water.
District of Columbia	Verify with DC DOEE	2 years	DC Department of Energy & Environment; confirm current rule.
Florida	12 contact hours	2 years	Florida DEP operator certification program.
Georgia	8–24 hours (by grade)	2 years	GA EPD; certificates renew June 30 of odd years.
Hawaii	12 contact hours	2 years	Hawaii DOH. Verify with state.
Idaho	8 contact hours	2 years	Idaho DEQ operator program. Verify with state.
Illinois	20 contact hours	2 years	Illinois EPA; classes vary. Verify with state.
Indiana	Varies (contact hours by grade)	3 years	IDEM; new licenses may have a shorter first cycle.
Iowa	12 contact hours	2 years	Iowa DNR operator certification. Verify with state.
Kansas	10 contact hours	2 years	Kansas Department of Health & Environment. Verify.
Kentucky	12 contact hours	2 years	Kentucky DOW operator certification. Verify with state.
Louisiana	6 contact hours	1 year (annual)	Louisiana DHH water & wastewater program.
Maine	20 contact hours	2 years	Maine DWP. Verify with state.
Maryland	12–24 hours (by grade)	2 years	MDE operator certification. Verify with state.
Massachusetts	20 training contact hours (TCHs)	2 years	NEIWPCC administers for MA; cycle Jan 1 even years through Dec 31 odd years.
Michigan	Verify with state	3 years	Michigan EGLE; confirm current contact-hour rule.
Minnesota	12 contact hours	3 years	Minnesota PCA operator certification. Verify with state.
Mississippi	12 contact hours	3 years	Mississippi DEQ. Verify with state.
Missouri	24 contact hours	3 years	Missouri DNR operator certification.
Montana	10 contact hours	2 years	Montana DEQ. Verify with state.
Nebraska	12 contact hours	3 years	Nebraska DEE. Verify with state.
Nevada	12 contact hours	2 years	Nevada Division of Environmental Protection.
New Hampshire	12 contact hours	2 years	NH DES operator certification. Verify with state.
New Jersey	15–30 hours (by grade)	2 years	NJ DEP; hours vary by license class. Verify.
New Mexico	6 contact hours	2 years	New Mexico Environment Department. Verify with state.
New York	20–60 hours (by grade)	3 years	NYWEA/DEC; Grade 1 = 20, Grade 2 = 40, Grade 3 = 60 hours.
North Carolina	12 contact hours	2 years	NC WPCSOCC operator certification. Verify with state.
North Dakota	12 contact hours	2 years	North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality.
Ohio	12 contact hours	2 years	Ohio EPA operator certification. Verify with state.
Oklahoma	12 contact hours	3 years	Oklahoma DEQ operator certification. Verify with state.
Oregon	30 contact hours	2 years	Oregon DEQ operator certification program.
Pennsylvania	15 contact hours	3 years	PA DEP operator certification continuing education.
Rhode Island	12 contact hours	2 years	RIDEM/NEIWPCC. Verify with state.
South Carolina	12 contact hours	2 years	South Carolina DHEC. Verify with state.
South Dakota	10 contact hours	3 years	South Dakota DENR. Verify with state.
Tennessee	12 contact hours	3 years	Tennessee DOE operator certification. Verify with state.
Texas	8 contact hours	1 year (annual)	TCEQ licensed wastewater operator program.
Utah	6 contact hours	2 years	Utah Division of Water Quality. Verify with state.
Vermont	12 contact hours	2 years	VT DEC / NEIWPCC. Verify with state.
Virginia	16 contact hours	2 years	Virginia DPH onsite & waterworks. Verify with state.
Washington	24 contact hours	3 years	Washington Department of Ecology operator program.
West Virginia	15 contact hours	2 years	West Virginia DEP. Verify with state.
Wisconsin	30 contact hours	3 years	Wisconsin DNR operator certification. Verify with state.
Wyoming	6 contact hours	2 years	Wyoming DEQ. Verify with state.

Requirements change and several states tier hours by certificate grade. Treat this as a quick reference and confirm current rules with your state's operator certification program before planning renewal.

Most states require operators to earn continuing education contact hours during each renewal cycle to keep an active license; the cycle is usually 2 or 3 years depending on the state.

Several states tier the required hours by certificate grade, so higher-grade operators often owe more hours per cycle than entry-level operators.

Use the table below as a quick reference, then confirm current details with your state's operator certification program before relying on the figures.

Stay Current

The industry's most useful newsletter, straight from the plant floor.

One email. No fluff. New lessons, equipment breakdowns, and process control notes, delivered when there's something worth reading.