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The Texas Railroad Commission has implemented a new rule, effective

September 1, 2005, which affects plumbers and plumbing companies who

perform liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) installations and repairs. The

highlights of the rule include:

Journeyman and Master Plumbers who engage in LPG installations and

repairs must register with the Texas Railroad Commission

Enforced, $2,000 administrative penalty from the Texas Railroad

Commission to anyone who performs LPG work without being registered with

the Texas Railroad Commission

Journeyman and Master Plumbers with a current license issued by the

Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners continue to be exempted from the

Texas Railroad Commission LPG examination

Texas Railroad Commission’s previous requirement for additional

insurance has been eliminated. (The Plumbing License Law liability

insurance requirements for Responsible Master Plumbers is still

effective.)

New Texas Railroad Commission LPG Rule

How to Register with Texas Railroad Commission

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Roto Rooter Provides Financial Impetus To Create New Plumbing Manual

Utilizing a cadre of people providing advice and counsel the Plumbing, Air Conditioning and Mechanical Contractors Association will complete a new plumbing manual in Texas for the plumbing industry. With unbridled confidence the Board of Directors embarked on the finalization of this book though the concluding efforts of financial support from nationally known Roto Rooter.

Under the presidency of Jerry Farmer several plumbing experts added to the unequivocal authenticity of this book: Randy Czaplewski-Frank’s Plumbing, Jay Wark-Plumber Trainer provided the proof reading and editing for grammar and correct plumbing information for the book. Others who participated include: Gordon Wyrick-Aqua Plumbing, Will Gonzales-Will-Co Plumbing, Greg Mendez and Brandon Yeager-Church Services. Trisha Keel of Tomorrow’s Key was the layout and design editor, and Jerome Borski of The Premier Printing provided additional expertise and assistance with the final publication of the book.

The major financial support came from Roto Rooter. Spear heading the belief in this book and its positive impact for the plumbing tradesmen. Local General Manager DennisYantis and head of plumbing service for the company, Master Plumber Robert Willburn, provided the leadership to make this dream a reality.

Roto Rooter grew out of a serendipitous event in 1927 due to a clogged drain in Samuel Blanc’s son’ s apartment in Des Moines, Iowa. Taking hours to clear the line Samuel Blanc set out to find a faster, easier solution.

Six years later, in 1933, Blanc created a funny looking sewer cleaning machine from a 1/6 HP Maytag washing machine motor, roller skate wheels and 3/8” cable to turn the blades. The device used a combination of special blades or “knives” to cut tree roots out of sewer lines. No digging was required. A year later, Sam’s wife Lettie christened the prototype the “Roto Rooter.”

In the Depression-scared mid-1930s, those desperate for jobs jumped at the chance to buy their own “Roto Rooter” machine from Blanc for only $250.00. They took the invention back to their hometowns and started Roto-Rooter businesses. Soon the invention made its way to the upper Midwest, the Great Plains and the Northeast. For the first time, drains could be cleared without having to dig up the ground.

Roto Rooter operates businesses in more than 100 company-owned territories and more than 500 franchise territories, serving approximately 90% of the U.S. population and 55% of the Canadian population. There are operations in Japan, Philippines, Australia, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and Indonesia. Roto Rooter is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chemed.

The following additional companies through their generosity have made this book possible:

Gulf States Plumbing and Mechanical, Roto-Rooter, Frank’s Plumbing, Commercial Boiler, The Lindsay Company, Dynamic Plumbing, E & M Plumbing, Church Services, Eastside Plumbing, Eagle Plumbing, Schneider Plumbing, Freddie Bailey Plumbing, Lakeside Plumbing, Z & C Plumbing, MAC Mechanical, Herandez-Monreal Plumbing, Royal Plumbing Supply, AAA Plumbing, Ohlco Plumbing, C.B. Plumbing Services, Tools’ Plumbing, R.P. 2000 Plumbing, McNabb Plumbing, American Residential Services, Institute of Continuing Education and Loria Company.

Plumbing Industry Wrestling With Language Issue

Spanish Classes Required

At the Sunset Commission Meeting in Austin, Texas in September 2002 the issue of Spanish language training and education for Spanish-speaking only plumbing personnel was brought up by members of the Sunset Commission. No one challenged this because everyone was fearful that the commission would vote to move the plumbing board to the T.D.L & R.

In their final report they recommended that Spanish instruction be required for the plumbing industry in Texas. This was included in the final changes in the Plumbing Licensing Bill, S.B. 282: “the board shall develop a review course in English and Spanish to assist license applicants in preparation for each license offered by the board.”

The objective of any professional training or certification should be for the learning aspects of the course, never should it be “taught to the test” or merely taught so someone can pass the test.

Our Experience With Spanish Classes

1. In 2001 we conducted a GED in Spanish. Seventeen students began the class and only three went on to get take GED test. We used the GED In Spanish book from Dalton Books used for area students. Our experience was the group did well with the math portion but because they could not adequately read the book in Spanish and could not read or write English they had difficulty with social studies, language and history.

2. In 2001 we conducted two Pre-Exam Classes entirely in Spanish for over 100 students. We provided the only known plumbing book in America written in Spanish, the Uniform Plumbing Code book. This book and the GED book are both written in Castilian Spanish, “the official and literary language of Spain based on this dialect” (the dialect of Castile). Castilian Spanish is the language used in high schools, colleges and throughout the world. Unfortunately, those individuals in our classes come from countries south of the Rio Grande River where they are not taught to read and write in Spanish or English. It is unlikely that most of them went on to take the Texas plumbing exam after these classes.

The Spanish Issue For Texas

Should our industry promote, train and support Spanish only training and testing for plumbing? Here are the real problems associated with doing this:

There is only one plumbing codebook written in Spanish in the America, which evidently the preponderance of people from countries south of the Rio Grande River cannot read, the Uniform Plumbing Code.
Many cities in Texas now use the International Code – an English only book.
Our experience is that the majority of illegal immigrants that are only Spanish speaking cannot read or write Spanish.
Those that acquire a state plumbing license, whether Tradesman, Journeyman or Masters are expected to be able to communicate with American citizens.
City plumbing and building codes are written in English.
City plumbing and building code amendments are written in English.
The Federal Energy Code and Fire Codes are written in English.
Plumbing instructions, warranties and guarantees are written in English and if they include Spanish it will be in Castilian Spanish.
Plumbing Inspectors are not required to be bi-lingual nor are they bi-lingual.
Licenses like medical gas, backflow, septic tank and other water related licenses and certifications are in English.
Plumbing Code, Safety, OSHA, First Aid, CPR, Soldering and Brazing, Repairs, Tool Use, Math classes, instructions and written material are in English.
Explanations of plumbing products are written in English.

The majority of Americans do not speak, read or write Spanish. The main objective of the plumbing licensing laws are designed to protect the health and safety of our citizens. How is a licensed plumber in Texas who can only speak Spanish and cannot read either Spanish or English going to communicate with our citizens? Have we succumbed to state legislative pressure for Spanish interests, that at the same time endangers the well being of the majority of citizens? Will we eventually be required to provide Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Middle Eastern, Bulgarian, Tibetan, Indian or Polish plumbers and courses for those who cannot speak, read or write English. The state of Texas should be required to produce the proof that American homeowners want a licensed plumber working in their home who cannot read or write English and the related codes, laws, rules and regulations designed to protect their home and their family. Unfortunately, it is evidently a special interest group that has pushed for this new change in the law because of their own personal interests, not for the betterment of Texas citizenry? And the debate continues as illegal immigration continues to rise day-by-day in the Southwestern U.S. and more and more non-citizens enter the trades unrestricted, unmonitored and unlicensed.