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Requirements to Renew a Utah Water Operator Certification

If you’re a certified water operator in the state of Utah, you’re probably aware that every three years, you have some to-dos to knock out for the Utah Department of Environmental Quality. Specifically, you need to go through the specified renewal process in order to keep your certification active. 

Luckily, exactly what’s required isn’t too complicated. Let’s walk through how to renew your water operator certification with the Utah Division of Drinking Water (DDW) in three easy steps. 

Step 1: Get your CEUs

First up, to even be eligible for renewal, you need to comply with the DDW’s requirements for continuing education units, or CEUs. They define each CEU as ten contact hours, so it can get a little confusing. To make it clear, let’s look at the exact number of hours you need to be eligible for renewal (and click the relevant course link below to learn more):

The CEU requirement, along with your actual renewal, is on a three-year cycle. It starts the first January 1 after you get your license and ends three years after that on December 31, and so on. 

If you’re not sure how many CEUs you’ve completed during this renewal cycle, you can check your status here. 

For hours to count toward your certification renewal, they need to focus on drinking water. Beyond that, you have a couple of options for getting hours that you can apply toward renewal. 

  • You can pick hours that you think will work, then fill out and submit this Individual CEU Application to DDWCEUs@utah.gov. 
  • If you want to skip some paperwork and hassle, you can choose hours that already have Division approval. That way, your CEU provider can submit your information to the state once you complete the course. 

To make things ultra-easy, some DDW-approved providers offer Utah water operator CEUs online and on-demand. This lets you take the hours from any internet-connected device whenever you find the time.  

Step 2: Pay the renewal fee

Every three years, you need to pay the state $150 to renew your certification. It might be a little pricey, but knocking out this to-do is pretty easy. You can do it online here. You can also access the option through the DDW’s payment portal. 

When you’re done, write down your Order Number because you’ll need it for the next step. 

Step 3: Submit the renewal application

Last up, it’s time to get in your actual renewal application. You can:

Either way, it’s pretty straightforward. You’ll just need to input the Order Number from your renewal fee payment, along with your personal contact info, your employer info, and details on any water systems for which you’re the operator. 

While your certification technically expires December 31, as long as you get it in before the end of June, you won’t need to pay the $300 reinstatement fee. 

To recap: Get your 20 or 30 hours of CEUs. Pay the $150 fee. And submit your renewal application before June ends. Do these things every three years and you’ll keep your Utah water operator certification active.