SECTION 78.10. Definitions

The following words and terms when used in this chapter shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

(1) Accredited training program--A training program that has been accredited by the department to provide training for persons seeking licensure or registration under this chapter.

(2) Act--The Texas Occupations Code, Chapter 1958, concerning mold assessment and remediation.

(3) Allied field--Mold assessment, mold remediation, and any field whose principles and practices are applicable to mold assessment or mold remediation, including asbestos abatement, lead abatement, industrial hygiene, building sciences, public health, and environmental remediation.

(4) Assessor--A person who conducts mold assessment as defined in this section and who is licensed under this chapter as a mold assessment technician, mold assessment consultant, or mold assessment company.

(5) Building sciences--The field of study covering the design, construction, management, and performance of building systems, including structures, enclosures, electrical and mechanical systems, environmental systems (such as temperature and moisture control), safety systems (such as fire suppression and alarms), lighting, acoustics, and diagnosis and correction of problems with building systems.

(6) Certificate of Mold Damage Remediation--A certificate adopted by the Texas Department of Insurance, commonly referred to as Certificate of Mold Damage Remediation and Form MDR-1.

(7) Commission--The Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation.

(8) Consumer Mold Information Sheet--A document prepared and made available by the department that describes the persons who are required to be licensed under this chapter and provides information on mold assessment and mold remediation, including how to contact the department for more information or to file a complaint.

(9) Containment--A component or enclosure designed or intended to control the release of mold or mold-containing dust or materials into surrounding areas in the building. The broad category of containment includes such sub-categories as walk-in containment, surface containment (such as plastic sheeting), and containment devices (such as wall-mounted glove boxes).

(10) Containment area--An area that has been enclosed to control the release of mold or mold-containing dust or materials into surrounding areas.

(11) Contiguous--In close proximity; neighboring.

(12) Contiguous square feet--See "Total surface area of contiguous square feet."

(13) Credential--A license, registration, or accreditation issued under this chapter.

(14) Department--The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

(15) Employee--An individual who is paid a salary, wage, or remuneration by another person or entity for services performed and over whom the person or entity exerts supervision or control as to the place, time, and manner of the individual's work. A contractor or subcontractor who is performing work under a contractual agreement with a person is not an employee of the person unless the agreement specifies otherwise.

(16) Executive director--The executive director of the department.

(17) Facility--Any institutional, commercial, public, governmental, industrial or residential building.

(18) Indoor air--Air within the envelope of a building, including air in spaces normally occupied by persons in the building but excluding air in attics and crawl spaces that are vented to the outside of the building.

(19) Indoor mold--Mold contamination that was not purposely grown or brought into a building and that has the potential to affect the indoor air quality of the building.

(20) License--Any license issued under this chapter. The term "license" does not include a registration, accreditation, or approval issued under this chapter.

(21) Mold--Any living or dead fungi or related products or parts, including spores, hyphae, and mycotoxins.

(22) Managing agent--A company or individual that manages a residential or commercial building for an owner.

(23) Mold analysis--The examination of a sample collected during a mold assessment for the purpose of:

(A) determining the amount or presence of, or identifying the genus or species of, any living or dead mold or related parts (including spores and hyphae) present in the sample; or

(B) growing or attempting to grow fungi for the purposes of subparagraph (A); or

(C) identifying or determining the amount or presence of any fungal products, including but not limited to mycotoxins and fungal volatile organic compounds, present in the sample.

(24) Mold analysis laboratory--A person, other than an individual, that performs mold or mold-related analysis on a sample collected to determine the presence, identity, or amount of indoor mold in the sample.

(25) Mold assessment--Activity that involves:

(A) an inspection, investigation, or survey of a dwelling or other structure to provide the owner or occupant with information regarding the presence, identification, or evaluation of mold; or

(B) the development of a mold management plan or mold remediation protocol; or

(C) the collection or analysis of a mold sample.

(26) Mold assessment report--A document prepared by a licensed mold assessment consultant or licensed mold assessment technician for a client that describes any observations made, measurements taken, and locations and analytical results of samples taken by an assessment consultant or by an assessment technician during a mold assessment. An assessment report can be either a stand-alone document or a part of a mold management plan or mold remediation protocol prepared by a mold assessment consultant.

(27) Mold management plan--A document prepared by a licensed mold assessment consultant for a client that provides guidance on how to prevent and control indoor mold growth at a location.

(28) Mold-related activities--The performance of mold assessment, mold remediation or any other related activities.

(29) Mold remediation--The removal, cleaning, sanitizing, demolition, or other treatment, including preventive activities, of mold or mold-contaminated matter that was not purposely grown at a location. Preventive activities include those intended to prevent future mold contamination of a remediated area, including applying biocides or anti-microbial compounds.

(30) Mold remediation protocol (mold remediation work analysis) --A document, prepared by a licensed mold assessment consultant for a client, that specifies the estimated quantities and locations of materials to be remediated and the proposed remediation methods and clearance criteria for each type of remediation in each type of area for a mold remediation project.

(31) Mold remediation work plan--A document, prepared by a licensed mold remediation contractor that provides specific instructions and/or standard operating procedures for how a mold remediation project will be performed.

(32) Office--A stationary physical location assigned a street address by the United States Postal Service, where a licensee or an employee of a licensee may be contacted to conduct business related to mold assessment and/or mold remediation.

(33) Person--An individual, corporation, company, contractor, subcontractor, association, firm, partnership, joint stock company, foundation, institution, trust, society, union, governmental entity, or any other association of individuals.

(34) Project--All activities that involve mold-related activities in a building or designated area of a building for which a specific start-date and a specific stop-date is provided that covers the mold remediation.

(35) Remediator--A person who performs mold remediation as defined in this section and who is credentialed under this chapter as a mold remediation worker, mold remediation contractor, or mold remediation company.

(36) Residential dwelling unit--A detached single-family dwelling; an attached single-family dwelling in a building that contains two or more separate single-family dwellings; or a bedroom in group housing. Examples of residential dwelling units include single homes, mobile homes (house trailers), duplexes, apartments, and condominiums. In group housing, such as dormitories, fraternity or sorority houses, and boarding houses, each bedroom is a residential dwelling unit.

(37) Residential property--A property containing one or more residential dwelling units intended to provide living quarters for more than a transitory period, including a residential property that is vacant or under construction. A residential property includes dormitories and employee housing in a non-residential setting (e.g., staff housing at an institutional or commercial facility). Residential properties do not include:

(A) lodgings (such as hotels and motels) that rent units on a transient basis;

(B) institutional facilities that provide care or oversight for residents or inmates (such as hospitals, nursing homes, homes for children with physical or mental disabilities, mental institutions, jails, prisons and detention centers); and

(C) former residential properties that do not currently provide living quarters (such as houses converted into shops or restaurants).

(38) Responsible person--An employee or principal designated by a licensed mold assessment company, mold remediation company, or mold analysis laboratory or by an accredited mold training provider as responsible for its operations and compliance with rules concerning mold-related activities or mold-related training.

(39) Routine cleaning--Cleaning that is done on a regular basis and in a regular course of procedures.

(40) Start-date--The date on which a mold remediation begins. Preparation work is not considered mold remediation.

(41) Stop-date--The date following the day on which final clearance for a mold remediation project is achieved.

(42) Supervise--To direct and exercise control over the activities of a person.

(43) Survey--An activity undertaken in a building to determine the presence, location, or quantity of indoor mold or to determine the underlying condition(s) contributing to indoor mold contamination, whether by visual or physical examination or by collecting samples of potential mold for analysis.

(44) Total surface area of contiguous square feet--The contiguous area of surface material that needs to be cleaned or removed to remediate visible mold contamination.

(45) Training hours--Hours spent in classroom instruction, hands-on activities, and field trips, including time used for course tests and brief breaks but not including scheduled lunch periods.

(46) Visible--Exposed to view; capable of being seen.

(47) Work analysis--A mold remediation protocol.

(48) Work plan--A mold remediation work plan.

(49) Working days--Monday through Friday, including holidays that fall on those days.

Source Note: The provisions of this §78.10 adopted to be effective November 1, 2017, 42 TexReg 4619