proposed rulemaking - pabulletin.com · 141, appendix g (relating to hunting ... at 58 pa. code...

PROPOSED RULEMAKINGGAME COMMISSION

[58 PA. CODE CH. 141]Hunting and Trapping; Table of Hunting Hours

To effectively manage the wildlife resources of thisCommonwealth, the Game Commission (Commission), atits April 18, 2006, meeting, proposed to amend Chapter141, Appendix G (relating to hunting hours) to reflect theannual change in days and subsequent hunting times forthe 2006-2007 hunting license year.

The proposed rulemaking will have no adverse impacton the wildlife resources of this Commonwealth.

The authority for the proposed rulemaking is 34Pa.C.S. (relating to Game and Wildlife Code) (code).

The proposed rulemaking was made public at the April18, 2006, meeting of the Commission. Comments can besent, until June 2, 2006, to the Director, Information andEducation, Game Commission, 2001 Elmerton Avenue,Harrisburg, PA 17110-9797.1. Purpose and Authority

Each year there is a shift in calendar days for eachmonth. As a result of this occurrence, the table of huntinghours in Appendix G must be amended and updated onan annual basis to accurately reflect the upcoming year’sdates and hours for legal hunting. Towards this end, theCommission is proposing to amend Appendix G by updat-ing the table of hunting hours to accurately reflect thedates and hours of legal hunting for the 2006-2007hunting year. It is important to note that beginning in2007, the Daylight Saving Time changeovers will begin onthe second Sunday of March and end the first Sunday ofNovember rather than the traditional second Sunday ofApril and last Sunday of October. These new DaylightSaving Time changeovers are the result of the EnergyPolicy Act of 2005, the act of August 8, 2005 (Pub. L. No.109-58, 119 Stat. 594) signed into law by PresidentGeorge W. Bush on August 8, 2005.

Section 322(c)(1) of the code (relating to powers andduties of commission) specifically empowers the Commis-sion to ‘‘fix seasons, daily shooting or taking hours, andany modification thereof, and daily, season and possessionlimits for any species of game or wildlife.’’ Section 2102(a)of the code (relating to regulations) provides that ‘‘TheCommission shall promulgate such regulations as itdeems necessary and appropriate concerning game orwildlife and hunting or furtaking in this Common-wealth . . . .’’ The amendment to Appendix G was proposedunder this authority.2. Regulatory Requirements

The proposed rulemaking will amend Appendix G toupdate the table of hunting hours to accurately reflect thedates and hours of legal hunting for the 2006-2007hunting year.3. Persons Affected

Persons wishing to hunt or trap within this Common-wealth will be affected by the proposed rulemaking.4. Cost and Paperwork Requirements

The proposed rulemaking should not result in addi-tional cost or paperwork.

5. Effective Date

The proposed rulemaking will be effective upon final-form publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin and willremain in effect until changed by the Commission.

6. Contact Person

For further information regarding the proposed rule-making, contact Michael A. Dubaich, Director, Bureau ofLaw Enforcement, 2001 Elmerton Avenue, Harrisburg, PA17110-9797, (717) 783-6526.

CARL G. ROE,Executive Director

Fiscal Note: 48-231. No fiscal impact; (8) recommendsadoption.

Annex A

TITLE 58. RECREATION

PART III. GAME COMMISSION

CHAPTER 141. HUNTING AND TRAPPING

Appendix G

(Editor’s Note: As part of this proposal, the Commissionis proposing to delete the text of the table which appearsat 58 Pa. Code pages 141-25 and 141-26, serial pages(313265) and (313266), and replace it with the followingtext, which appears in regular type to enhance readabil-ity.)

* * * * *

TABLE OF HUNTING HOURSFOR JUNE 25, 2006 THROUGH JUNE 30, 2007

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June 25—July 1 5:05 8:33July 2—July 8 5:10 8:32July 9—July 15 5:15 8:28July 16—July 22 5:20 8:24July 23—July 29 5:26 8:17July 30—Aug. 5 5:33 8:10Aug. 6—Aug. 12 5:40 8:00Aug. 13—Aug. 19 5:46 7:52Aug. 20—Aug. 26 5:53 7:40Aug. 27—Sept. 2 6:00 7:30Sept. 3—Sept. 9 6:06 7:19Sept. 10—Sept. 16 6:13 7:08Sept. 17—Sept. 23 6:20 6:55Sept. 24—Sept. 30 6:26 6:45Oct. 1—Oct. 7 6:34 6:33Oct. 8—Oct. 14 6:41 6:23Oct. 15—Oct. 21 6:50 6:12Oct. 22—Oct. 28 6:56 6:03Oct. 29—Nov. 4 6:03 4:55Nov. 5—Nov. 11 6:12 4:48Nov. 12—Nov. 18 6:20 4:42Nov. 19—Nov. 25 6:28 4:38Nov. 26—Dec. 2 6:35 4:36

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PENNSYLVANIA BULLETIN, VOL. 36, NO. 21, MAY 27, 2006

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Dec. 3—Dec. 9 6:42 4:35Dec. 10—Dec. 16 6:47 4:36Dec. 17—Dec. 23 6:50 4:38Dec. 24—Dec. 30 6:52 4:42Dec. 31—Jan. 6 6:53 4:47Jan. 7—Jan. 13 6:51 4:54Jan. 14—Jan. 20 6:50 5:00Jan. 21—Jan. 27 6:46 5:10Jan. 28—Feb. 3 6:40 5:18Feb. 4—Feb. 10 6:35 5:25Feb. 11—Feb.17 6:27 5:35Feb. 18—Feb. 24 6:20 5:43Feb. 25—Mar. 3 6:10 5:50Mar. 4—Mar. 10 5:59 5:58Mar. 11—Mar. 17 6:48 7:04Mar. 18—Mar. 24 6:37 7:14Mar. 25—Mar. 31 6:26 7:20Apr. 1—Apr. 7 6:13 7:28Apr. 8—Apr. 14 6:00 7:35Apr. 15—Apr. 21 5:53 7:40Apr. 22—Apr. 28 5:43 7:49Apr. 29—May 5 5:33 7:55May 6—May 12 5:25 8:00May 13—May 19 5:17 8:08May 20—May 26 5:11 8:15May 27—June 2 5:06 8:20June 3—June 9 5:03 8:25June 10—June 16 5:01 8:30June 17—June 23 5:01 8:32June 24—June 30 5:03 8:34

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 06-931. Filed for public inspection May 26, 2006, 9:00 a.m.]

STATE BOARD OFCERTIFIED REAL ESTATE

APPRAISERS[49 PA. CODE CH. 36]

Federally Mandated Education Criteria

The State Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers(Board) proposes to amend Chapter 36 to read as setforth in Annex A.Purpose

The proposed rulemaking is intended to be a generalupdating and revision of the Board’s regulations. Specifi-cally, the proposed rulemaking would implement newFederally-mandated education criteria for the initial certi-fication of residential real estate appraisers and general

real estate appraisers that will take effect in January2008; revise current Board requirements to conform toexisting Federal criteria regarding distance education andappraisal teaching experience; clarify the manner inwhich applicants for certification as residential and gen-eral appraisers may obtain qualifying experience in thepreparation of appraisal reports; clarify the duties ofresidential and general appraisers when supervising theactivities of appraisal assistants; upgrade the continuingeducation requirement for certified Pennsylvania evalua-tors (CPE); and make editorial and organizational amend-ments to the regulations to improve clarity and compre-hension.

Background and Statutory Authority

The Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and En-forcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA) (Pub. L. No. 101-173, 103Stat. 183) directed states to establish appraiser regula-tory bodies for the purpose of credentialing appraisers toperform real estate appraisals in Federally-related trans-actions. The Appraisal Foundation’s Appraiser Qualifica-tions Board (AQB) is the independent body charged underthe FIRREA with establishing the minimum initial educa-tion, continuing education, experience and examinationrequirements for state-credentialed appraisers. The Ap-praisal Foundation’s Appraisal Standards Board (ASB) isthe independent body charged under the FIRREA withestablishing the practice standards, known as the Uni-form Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice(USPAP), for use by state-credentialed appraisers. TheAppraisal Subcommittee (ASC), a Federal agency, ischarged under the FIRREA with overseeing the activitiesof states and the Appraisal Foundation in carrying outthe requirements of the FIRREA.

The Real Estate Appraisers Certification Act (REACA)(63 P. S. §§ 457.1—457.19) was enacted in July 1990 toimplement the FIRREA in this Commonwealth. TheREACA established the certification classes of residentialappraiser and general appraiser to perform real estateappraisals in Federally related transactions under theFIRREA. The REACA requires applicants for certificationas residential appraisers and general appraisers, as aprerequisite to taking the certification examination, tomeet the education and experience qualifications requiredunder the FIRREA. The REACA also requires residentialappraisers and general appraisers, as a condition ofbiennial renewal of certification, to complete continuingeducation as required under the FIRREA. Sections 6(f)and 10(b) of the REACA (63 P. S. §§ 457.6(f) and457.10(b)) direct the Board to prescribe initial education,continuing education and experience requirements thatare consistent with the FIRREA. Section 5(2) of theREACA (63 P. S. § 457.5(2)) authorizes the Board topromulgate regulations necessary to carry out the pur-poses of the REACA, including regulations that requireappraisals to be performed in accordance with generallyaccepted appraisal standards as required under the FIR-REA.

The enactment of the REACA in 1990 did not affect theright of persons licensed as real estate brokers under theReal Estate Licensing and Registration Act (RELRA) (63P. S. §§ 455.101—455.902) to continue to perform realestate appraisals in non-Federally-related transactions.The act of July 2, 1996 (P. L. 460, No. 71) (Act 71)amended the REACA to give residential appraisers andgeneral appraisers the authority to perform real estateappraisals in non-Federally-related transactions, equiva-lent to their certification classes, effective September 3,1996, and amended the RELRA to remove the authority

2530 PROPOSED RULEMAKING


of licensed real estate brokers to perform real estateappraisals in non-Federally-related transactions effectiveSeptember 3, 1998. Act 71 further amended the REACAto create a ‘‘grandfather’’ certification class of broker/appraiser, which was open to any real estate brokerlicensed in good standing as of September 3, 1996, whomade an application to the Board by September 3, 1998.Broker/appraisers are authorized to perform real estateappraisals in non-Federally-related transactions. A 2000amendment to the REACA requires broker/appraisers, asa condition of biennial renewal of certification, to com-plete the same continuing education as that required ofresidential appraisers and general appraisers.

In addition to regulating real estate appraisers in thisCommonwealth, the Board regulates persons who valuereal property in this Commonwealth for ad valorem taxpurposes. The Assessors Certification Act (ACA) (63 P. S.§§ 458.1—458.16), enacted in April 1992, establishes thecredential of a CPE for county assessors and employees ofrevaluation, or mass appraisal companies. The ACA re-quires applicants for CPE certification, as a prerequisiteto taking the certification examination, to meet educationrequirements specified by the Board. The ACA alsorequires CPEs, as a condition of biennial renewal ofcertification, to complete continuing education as pre-scribed by the Board. Sections 4(d) and 12 of the ACA (63P. S. §§ 458.4(d) and 458.12) authorize the Board topromulgate regulations regarding requirements for initialcertification and biennial renewal of certification. Section3 of the ACA (63 P. S. § 458.3) authorizes the Board topromulgate regulations necessary to carry out the pur-poses of the ACA.

Description of the Proposed Rulemaking

Chapter 36 contains Subchapters A and C (relating togeneral provisions; and certified Pennsylvania evalua-tors). Subchapter B is reserved. The proposed rulemakingwould retitle Subchapter A as ‘‘Certified Real EstateAppraisers’’ because this subchapter contains regulationsaffecting certified residential appraisers, general apprais-ers and broker/appraisers.

§ 36.1 (relating to definitions)

The proposed rulemaking would add definitions for‘‘AQB,’’ ‘‘certified broker/appraiser,’’ ‘‘certified real estateappraiser,’’ ‘‘distance education’’ and ‘‘USPAP.’’ The defini-tions of ‘‘State certified general real estate appraiser’’ and‘‘State certified residential real estate appraiser’’ areproposed to be deleted and redefined as ‘‘certified generalreal estate appraiser’’ and ‘‘certified residential real estateappraiser,’’ respectively.

The term ‘‘distance education,’’ which is being added toseveral sections regarding educational offerings, would bedefined, consistent with the AQB’s definition, as ‘‘[a]neducational process based on the geographical separationof the learner and instructor, which provides interactionbetween the learner and instructor and includes testing.Examples include CD or DVD ROM, on-line learning,correspondence courses, video conferencing, and video andremote television courses.’’

The term ‘‘certified real estate appraiser’’ would refer toan individual who holds a certification in one of the threeappraiser classes authorized under the REACA. Thedefinition of each class of certified real estate appraiser,in turn, would set forth the statutory and regulatorybasis of the certification and the permitted scope ofpractice under the certification. The current definitionsfor residential and general appraisers do not reference

their authority to perform appraisals in non-Federallyrelated transactions equivalent to their certificationclasses.

§ 36.2 (relating to application process)

Section 36.2 establishes the procedure for applying forcertification as a residential or general appraiser. Section36.2(a) requires an applicant to submit an application ona Board-approved form and provides information abouthow an application form can be obtained from the Board.Section 36.2(b) requires an applicant to pay a nonrefund-able application fee. Section 36.2(c) provides that ap-proval of an application is valid for 1 year and that if theapplicant does not pass the examination within the 1-yearperiod, the applicant must submit a new application thatwill be reviewed under the requirements in effect at thetime the new application is received. Section 36.2(d)provides that an applicant whose application has beendisapproved has 1 year to correct the deficiencies andthat if the applicant fails to correct the deficiencies within1 year, the applicant must submit a new application thatwill be reviewed under the requirements in effect at thetime the new application is received. Section 36.2(e)provides that if the AQB’s education or experience criteriaare changed during the 1-year compliance period follow-ing the approval or disapproval of an application, theapplicant must satisfy the new AQB criteria during the1-year compliance period.

The proposed rulemaking would modify the language in§ 36.2(c)—(e) regarding an applicant’s obligation to com-ply with new requirements that take effect during theapplication process. The revised prescription in § 36.2(e)would provide that, except as otherwise provided in theregulations regarding qualifications for certification, anapplicant must comply with new requirements that takeeffect between the applicant’s initial filing of an applica-tion and the applicant’s passing the certification examina-tion. The general rule in proposed § 36.2(e) would moreaccurately reflect the ASC’s instructions to the Board,during the last rulemaking amending § 36.2 (24 Pa.B.6298 (December 17, 1994)), that an applicant must meetthe AQB’s education and experience requirements thatare in effect as of the date of certification. An ASC-approved exception to this rule for the AQB’s new educa-tion requirements that take effect January 1, 2008, ismore fully discussed in the section regarding §§ 36.11and 36.12 (relating to residential real estate appraiser;and general real estate appraiser), which set forth theeducation and experience requirements for certification asa general appraiser and residential appraiser, respec-tively.

The proposed rulemaking also would make editorialchanges to § 36.2(a) and (b) and would add a website ande-mail address to the postal address and telephone num-ber currently set forth in § 36.2(a).

§ 36.3 (relating to examinations)

Section 36.3(a) provides that the examinations forresidential appraiser and general appraiser certificationmust be issued or endorsed by the AQB; that theexaminations are administered by a professional testingorganization under contract with the Board; and that theBoard establishes examination dates and locations. Sec-tion 36.3(b) provides that the professional testing organi-zation will furnish information about the examinations topersons who have been approved by the Board to sit forthe examinations.

The proposed rulemaking would amend § 36.3(a) toprovide updated names for the certification examinations

PROPOSED RULEMAKING 2531


and to clarify that the professional testing organizationthat administers the examinations prescribes examina-tion dates and location, not the Board. The proposedrulemaking would amend § 36.3(b) to provide that infor-mation about the examinations may be obtained from theprofessional testing organization and directs interestedparties to the Board’s website for contact informationregarding the professional testing organization.

§§ 36.11 and 36.12 (relating to residential real estateappraiser; and general real estate appraiser)

Sections 36.11 and 36.12 are identically structured andincorporate the AQB’s qualifications criteria and interpre-tations for residential appraisers and general appraisers,respectively. The proposed rulemaking would reorganize§§ 36.11 and 36.12 and retitle them as ‘‘Qualifications forcertification as residential real estate appraiser’’ and‘‘Qualifications for certification as general real estateappraiser,’’ respectively. The proposed rulemaking wouldalso add in substantive criteria authorized by the AQB.

The existing unnumbered introductory paragraphs of§§ 36.11 and 36.12 provide that an applicant for certifica-tion as a residential appraiser or general appraiser,respectively, must be a person of good moral character,satisfy the appropriate appraisal education and experi-ence qualifications and pass the appropriate appraisercertification examination. Licensure as a real estatebroker or salesperson under the RELRA is not a prerequi-site for certification as a residential or general appraiser.The proposed rulemaking would clarify, consistent withsection 6(d) and (e) of the REACA, that an applicant mustsatisfy the education and experience requirements beforebeing admitted to the certification examination. Theproposed rulemaking also would redesignate the introduc-tory paragraphs as subsection (a).

Sections 36.11(1) and 36.12(1) set forth the initialeducation criteria for certification as prescribed by theAQB. An applicant for certification as a residential ap-praiser currently must complete 120 classroom hours insubjects relating to real estate appraisal, including the15-hour National USPAP Course, while an applicant forcertification as a general appraiser currently must com-plete 180 classroom hours in subjects relating to realestate appraisal, including the 15-hour National USPAPCourse. The classroom hours must include coverage of thetopics listed in §§ 36.11(2) and 36.12(2).

On February 20, 2004, the AQB voted to adopt changesto the initial education criteria that will take effectJanuary 1, 2008. Under the new criteria, the classroomhour requirement for residential appraiser certificationand general appraiser certification is increased to 200hours and 300 hours, respectively, and a core curriculumis provided for each certification class. States have theoption of implementing the new education requirementsthrough either a firm date approach or a segmentedapproach. Under the firm date approach, no certificatewould be issued to an applicant on or after January 1,2008, unless the applicant has satisfied the new educa-tion requirements. Under the segmented approach, anapplicant who has satisfied the current education require-ments before January 1, 2008, would not be required tomeet the additional requirements as a condition of beingissued a certificate on or after January 1, 2008. Tominimize potential disruptions to the career plans ofthose persons who are currently taking steps to satisfythe educational and experience qualifications for certifica-tion, the Board is proposing to adopt the segmentedapproach to implementation of the new education require-ments.

The proposed rulemaking would amend §§ 36.11(1) and36.12(1) to set forth new classroom hour requirementsand their segmented effective dates and to make appro-priate cross-references to the redesignated provisions thatlist the current appraisal topics as well as the new corecurricula. The proposed rulemaking also would redesig-nate §§ 36.11(1) and 36.12(1) as §§ 36.11(b) and 36.12(b),respectively.

Sections 36.11(1)(ii) and 36.12(1)(ii) provide that credittoward the classroom hour requirement may be awardedto a teacher of an appraisal course for actual classroomtime, but that credit will not be given to a teacher forcourse repetition. They further provide that a teachermay request credit for either the classroom hour require-ment or the appraisal experience requirement but notboth.

The ASC has advised the Board that while the AQB’scriteria permit teachers of appraisal courses to applytheir teaching experience toward the classroom hourrequirement, the teaching experience may not be appliedtoward the appraisal experience requirement. The pro-posed rulemaking would amend §§ 36.11(1)(ii) and36.12(1)(ii) to remove the reference to a applicant’s apply-ing teaching experience toward the appraisal experiencerequirement and to redesignate them as §§ 36.11(b)(2)and 36.12(b)(2), respectively.

Sections 36.11(1)(iv) and (v) and 36.12(1)(iv) and (v)provide that a correspondence course or a video/remotetelevision course, respectively, is acceptable to meet theclassroom hour requirement if the course: (1) is approvedby the Board; (2) is presented by an accredited college oruniversity that offers correspondence or video/remotetelevision courses in other disciplines; (3) requires thecompletion of a written examination at a location ap-proved by the college or university; and (4) meets thecourse content and course length requirements prescribedby the Board.

The ASC has advised the Board to replace the require-ments regarding correspondence and video/remote televi-sion courses with the AQB’s criteria relating to distanceeducation, which allow for a greater range of off-siteeducational opportunities, including Internet courses,than those permitted by the Board’s current regulations.Under the AQB criteria, a distance education course isacceptable to meet the classroom hour requirement forinitial education if the course: (1) is approved by theBoard; (2) is presented either by an accredited college oruniversity that offers distance education courses in otherdisciplines or by a course provider that has receivedapproval of course content from the Board or the AQBthrough its Course Approval Program and approval ofcourse design and delivery mechanism from the Interna-tional Distance Education Certification Center; (3) re-quires completion of a written examination proctored byan official approved by the college, university or othercourse provider; and (4) meets the course content andcourse length requirements prescribed by the Board.

The proposed rulemaking would amend §§ 36.11(1)(iv)and 36.12(1)(iv) to reflect the AQB’s distance educationcriteria and would delete §§ 36.11(1)(v) and 36.12(1)(v) asunnecessary. The proposed rulemaking also would redes-ignate §§ 36.11(1)(iv) and 36.12(1)(iv) as §§ 36.11(b)(4)and 36.12(b)(4), respectively.

For consistency of reorganization, the proposed rule-making would redesignate §§ 36.11(1)(i) and 36.12(1)(i) as§§ 36.11(b)(1) and 36.12(b)(1), respectively; redesignate§§ 36.11(1)(iii) and 36.12(1)(iii) as §§ 36.11(b)(3) and



36.12(b)(3), respectively; and redesignate §§ 36.11(1)(vi)and 36.12(1)(vi) as §§ 36.11(b)(5) and 36.12(b)(5), respec-tively. The proposed rulemaking also would make edito-rial changes to §§ 36.11(1)(i) and (vi) and 36.12(1)(i) and(vi).

Sections 36.11(2) and 36.12(2) currently require that anapplicant for certification demonstrate that the appli-cant’s classroom hours include coverage in the listedcourses topics. The course topics are identical to those setforth in the AQB’s current criteria. The AQB’s neweducation criteria, which will take effect January 1, 2008,replace the current listing of mandatory course topicswith separate core curricula for residential appraisercertification and general appraiser certification that re-flect the increased classroom hours. Each core curriculumhas nine course modules, plus electives, and each moduleis assigned a minimum number of classroom hours. Thecore curricula are as follows:Residential Appraiser General AppraiserBasic Appraisal Principles(30 hours)

Basic Appraisal Principles(30 hours)

Basic Appraisal Procedures(30 hours)

Basic Appraisal Procedures(30 hours)

National USPAP Course orEquivalent (15 hours)

National USPAP Course orEquivalent (15 hours)

Residential Market Analysisand Highest and Best Use(15 hours)

General Appraiser MarketAnalysis and Highest andBest Use (30 hours)

Residential Appraiser SiteValuation and CostApproach (15 hours)

Statistics, Modeling andFinance (15 hours)

Residential SalesComparison and IncomeApproaches (30 hours)

General Appraiser SalesComparison Approach (30hours)

Residential Report Writingand Case Studies (15 hours)

General Appraiser SiteValuation and CostApproach (30 hours)

Statistics, Modeling andFinance (15 hours)

General Appraiser IncomeApproach (60 hours)

Advanced ResidentialApplications and CaseStudies (15 hours)

General Appraiser ReportWriting and Case Studies(30 hours)

Appraisal Subject MatterElectives (20 hours)

Appraisal Subject MatterElectives (30 hours)

Total: 200 hours Total: 300 hours

The AQB has promulgated ‘‘guide notes’’ setting forththe suggested content subtopics for each module in thecore curriculum. Although the subtopics listed in theguide notes are not binding upon states for purposes ofimplementing the new education criteria, the Board be-lieves that the subtopics should be included in theproposed rulemaking because they help to ensure that allcandidates for each certification class will receive thesame body of knowledge and because the AQB will beusing the subtopics in developing the content outlines ofthe certification examinations.

The proposed rulemaking would redesignate §§ 36.11(2)and 36.12(2) as §§ 36.11(c) and 36.12(c), respectively. Thecurrent required course topics would be set forth inparagraph (1) of each subsection, while the new corecurriculum requirements, course modules and subtopics,would appear in paragraph (2) of each subsection. Thecontent requirements would be cross-referenced to theclassroom hour requirements in §§ 36.11(b) and 36.12(b).

The AQB’s revised criteria for initial education alsorequires, effective January 1, 2008, that an applicant forcertification as a residential or general appraiser havecompleted a minimum level of postsecondary education asfollows:Residential Appraiser General AppraiserPossession of associate’sdegree, or higher, from anaccredited college oruniversity

Possession of bachelor’sdegree, or higher, from anaccredited college oruniversity

OR OR

Completion of 21 semestercredits in the followingcourses from an accreditedcollege or university:

Completion of 30 semestercredits in the followingcourses from an accreditedcollege or university:

English CompositionMicro or MacroEconomicsFinanceAlgebra, Geometry orHigher MathStatisticsIntro. toComputers—Word

Processing/SpreadsheetsBusiness or Real EstateLaw

English CompositionMicro EconomicsMacro EconomicsFinanceAlgebra, Geometry orHigher MathStatisticsIntro. toComputers—Word

Processing/SpreadsheetsBusiness or Real EstateLawAny two of the following:

Accounting, Geography,Ag-Economics, RealEstate or BusinessManagement

The proposed rulemaking would add §§ 36.11(d) and36.12(d) setting forth the new AQB criteria regardingpostsecondary education. Consistent with the segmentedimplementation approach, subsection (d) would not applyto an applicant who completed the existing classroomhour requirement before January 1, 2008.

Sections 36.11(3) and 36.12(3) set forth the appraisalexperience requirements for certification based on theAQB criteria. An applicant for certification as a residen-tial appraiser must have acquired 2,500 hours of accept-able appraisal experience during a period of not less than24 months, while an applicant for certification as ageneral appraiser must have acquired 3,000 of acceptableappraisal experience, including 1,500 hours in nonresi-dential work, during a period of not less than 30 months.At least 50% of an applicant’s experience must have beenin the actual preparation of appraisal reports that in-cluded physical inspections of the interiors and exteriorsof the subject properties. Subparagraphs (i)—(ix) listcategories of acceptable appraisal experience including, insubparagraph (viii), the teaching of appraisal courses (upto a maximum of 300 hours of experience).

The proposed rulemaking would redesignate §§ 36.11(3)and 36.12(3) as §§ 36.11(e) and 36.12(e), respectively, andadd a cross-reference to § 36.13 (relating to experienceoptions), which specifies the manner in which an appli-cant may obtain qualifying experience in the preparationof appraisal reports. The proposed rulemaking also wouldmove to §§ 36.11(e) and 36.12(e) the requirement in§ 36.13(b) that experience acquired after August 2, 1993,will not be accepted unless the applicant has first com-pleted 45 classroom hours of initial appraiser education,



including 15 hours on USPAP. This provision is beingrelocated to §§ 36.11(e) and 36.12(e) because it applies toother categories of appraisal experience, not just ap-praisal experience regarding the preparation of appraisalreports. The proposed rulemaking also would add to§§ 36.11(e) and 36.12(e) a requirement that appraisalexperience obtained after January 1, 1991, must complywith USPAP. This requirement is consistent with theAQB’s interpretation of its experience criteria.

The proposed rulemaking would delete the teaching ofappraisal courses as an acceptable category of experience.As previously noted, the AQB interprets its experiencecriteria as not permitting teaching experience to qualifyas appraisal experience. The proposed rulemaking alsowould eliminate as redundant the references in certainexperience categories that the specified experience mustcomply with USPAP. The proposed rulemaking would addtwo experience categories that are permitted under theAQB’s interpretation of its experience criteria, casesstudies or practicum courses that are approved by theAQB’s Course Approval Program and evaluations of realestate that are performed under the FIRREA in accord-ance with the requirements of Federal financial institu-tion regulatory agencies. As revised, the categories ofacceptable experience would be redesignated as§§ 36.11(e)(1)—(10) and 36.12(e)(1)—(10).

Sections 36.11(4) and 36.12(4) state that an applicantwho is subsequently certified by the Board after passingthe certification examination is deemed to have satisfiedthe minimum criteria established by the AQB for thatcertification class and shall be entitled to perform ap-praisals in the specified Federally-related and non-Federally-related transactions. The proposed rulemakingwould delete these provisions as unnecessary in view ofthe amended definitions of ‘‘certified residential realestate appraiser’’ and ‘‘certified general real estate ap-praiser’’ in § 36.1 (relating to definitions).

§ 36.13 (relating to experience options)

Section 36.13 was developed to establish standards bywhich the Board could evaluate experience in performingappraisals (that is, preparing appraisal reports) that hasbeen acquired by an applicant for certification as aresidential or general appraiser. Under the requirementsin §§ 36.11 and 36.12, experience in the preparation ofappraisal reports must account for at least 50% of theapplicant’s hours of qualifying experience.

Section 36.13(a) currently identifies three ways that anapplicant may gain qualifying experience through theperformance of appraisals: (1) as a licensed real estatebroker under authority of the RELRA, with regard tonon-Federally related transactions; (2) as an officer, direc-tor or employee of a Federally or state-regulated bankingor savings institution, savings bank, credit union or trustcompany, in connection with a loan transaction, under anexemption from broker licensure requirements in section304(11) of the RELRA (63 P. S. § 455.304(11)); and (3) asan assistant to a residential or general appraiser, subjectto certain conditions. The conditions are that the ap-praiser must directly supervise and control the assistant’swork while not permitting the assistant to reach anindependent determination of value and assuming respon-sibility for the contents of the appraisal report; that theappraiser must conduct a complete interior and exteriorinspection of the property unless a complete inspection isnot possible or not required by the appraisal assignment;and that the appraiser and the assistant must both signthe appraisal report in a manner that specifically identi-fies their roles. Section 36.13(b), as previously noted,

provides that appraisal experience acquired after August2, 1993, will not be credited unless the applicant hascompleted at least 45 classroom hours in appraisal sub-jects, including 15 hours on USPAP.

The proposed rulemaking would amend and reorganize§ 36.13 and retitle it ‘‘Experience options for preparationof appraisal reports.’’ Section 36.13(a) would be amendedto include cross-references to §§ 36.11 and 36.12 and toadd an explicit statement that the options relate toexperience acquired in preparing appraisal reports.

Proposed § 36.13(a)(1)(i)—(iv) would set forth optionsfor experience acquired before September 3, 1998, whilethe proposed § 36.13(a)(2)(i) and (ii) would set forthoptions for experience acquired on or after September 3,1998. September 3, 1998, is the date when the authorityof licensed real estate brokers to perform appraisals innon-Federally related transactions under the RELRAexpired. At the same time, the authority of officers,directors and employees of lending institutions to performappraisals in loan transactions under the RELRA withouta real estate broker’s licenses likewise expired. TheREACA contains no similar exemption for personnel oflending institutions. Section 36.13(a)(1)(i)—(iv) would re-tain the three options in the current regulation (serviceas a real estate broker; as a bank officer, director oremployee; or as an assistant to a residential or generalappraiser) while adding experience as a broker/appraiser.The addition of the broker/appraiser option reflects thatthe broker/appraiser certification was available to a li-censed real estate broker as of September 3, 1996, andthat real estate brokers so credentialed had the optionprior to September 3, 1998, of signing their appraisalreports as real estate brokers or broker/appraisers. Sec-tion 36.13(a)(2)(i) and (ii) would reduce the options forappraisal experience on or after September 3, 1998, tothat acquired while serving as a broker/appraiser or as anassistant to a residential or general appraiser. The Boardhas elected not to allow an applicant to gain qualifyingappraisal experience while serving as an assistant to abroker/appraiser. The Board does not consider a broker/appraiser to have a sufficiently adequate appraisal back-ground to train other appraisers. Neither the RELRA northe regulations of the State Real Estate Commissionrequired an applicant for licensure as a real estate brokerto have acquired any appraisal education or experience,and the REACA required a candidate for certification as abroker/appraiser to satisfy no requirement other thanbeing a licensed real estate broker in good standing.

Current § 36.13(b), as previously noted, would be relo-cated to redesignated §§ 36.11(e) and 36.12(e). The pro-posed rulemaking would revise § 36.13(b) to set forth thefollowing conditions that an assistant to a residential orgeneral appraiser must satisfy when preparing an ap-praisal report: (1) perform a physical inspection of theinterior and exterior of the property; (2) refrain frommaking an independent determination of value; (3) andeither sign the report as an assistant or be referenced inthe report as having provided significant professionalassistance to the appraiser. The duties of the supervisingappraiser would be relocated to new § 36.54 (relating tosupervision of appraisal assistant). The revised languageregarding physical inspection clarifies that to receiveexperience credit for preparing an appraisal report, theassistant must participate in the inspection in the prop-erty. The current language references the obligation of thesupervising appraiser to inspect the property but not thatof the assistant, although the Board’s interpretation ofthe regulation has always been that the assistant mustaccompany the supervising appraiser during the inspec-



tion. The revised language also deletes the reference to acomplete physical inspection not being performed forreasons of impossibility or limitations on the appraisalassignment. Under §§ 36.11 and 36.12, a complete physi-cal inspection is required for an applicant to get credit forexperience based on the preparation of an appraisalreport. The proposed language that permits an assistantto be acknowledged in an appraisal report as opposed tosigning it is consistent with USPAP, which requires anappraiser to identify by name any person who renderedsignificant professional assistance in the preparation ofan appraisal report.

§ 36.41 (relating to continuing education requirement)

Section 36.41(a) requires residential and general ap-praisers and broker/appraisers to complete 28 hours ofcontinuing education, including 4 hours on USPAP and 2hours on the REACA and Board regulations and policies,during each biennial renewal period as a condition ofrenewal of certification for the next biennial renewalperiod. Section 36.41(a) further provides that the USPAPcomponent changed to the 7-hour National USPAP Up-date Course, or an equivalent 7-hour course approved bythe AQB, effective with renewal of certification for the2005-2007 biennial renewal period, which began July 1,2005. Section 36.41(b) provides that a residential orgeneral appraiser who obtained initial certification be-tween January 1 and June 30 of a biennial renewal yearis exempt from the continuing education requirement forthat biennial renewal year. Section 36.41(c) provides thata broker/appraiser may count continuing education ob-tained between January 1, 2001, and June 30, 2001,toward the continuing education requirement for renewalof certification for the 2003-2005 biennial renewal period,which began July 1, 2003.

The proposed rulemaking would make amend § 36.41to delete the outdated references to the 4-hour USPAPrequirement and to the acceptability of certain continuingeducation for renewal of broker/appraiser certifications in2003. The proposed rulemaking also would make editorialchanges to § 36.41.

§ 36.43 (relating to correspondence courses/video and re-mote television presentations)

Section 36.43 prescribes the requirements for Boardapproval of a correspondence course or video and remotetelevision course as a continuing education offering forcertified real estate appraisers. These requirements areidentical to those for approval of courses for initialeducation purposes in current §§ 36.11(1)(iv) and36.12(1)(iv).

The AQB’s distance education criteria for continuingeducation courses are less strict than its distance educa-tion criteria for courses offered for initial education inthat a written examination is not mandatory. Subject toBoard approval and to compliance with course contentand course length requirements, a distance educationcourse would be acceptable for continuing education pur-poses if the course provider presented the course to anorganized group in an instructional setting and with aqualified person available to answer questions, provideinformation and monitor attendance. The Board notesthat written examinations have never been required forcontinuing education courses that are taught in a tradi-tional classroom setting.

The proposed rulemaking would amend § 36.43 toreplace the current requirements with the previously-described criteria, together with the previously discussed,examination-based distance education options involving

courses offered by providers that are accredited collegesor universities or credentialed by the International Dis-tance Education Center.§ 36.51 (relating to Uniform Standards of Professional

Appraisal Practice)Section 36.51, which was adopted before the Board was

vested with authority to regulate the performance ofappraisals in non-Federally transactions, requires a certi-fied real estate appraiser, when performing an appraisalin a Federally related transaction, to perform a completephysical inspection of the interior and exterior of aproperty unless a complete inspection is not possible forthe following reasons: the improvements have been de-stroyed, removed or not yet built; an inspection is notlegally or contractually possible; the appraiser is deniedaccess to the property; or the appraisal contract stipulatesa ‘‘drive-by’’ appraisal. Section 36.51 also requires acertified real estate appraiser to perform an appraisal inaccordance with USPAP and that one or more violationsof USPAP could result in disciplinary action under theREACA. Section 36.51 further states that an appraisermay obtain the current annual edition of USPAP bycontacting the Appraisal Foundation and provides contactinformation (postal address and telephone number).

The proposed rulemaking would amend § 36.51 bydeleting as unnecessary the reference to a physicalinspection of the property. USPAP’s Advisory Opinion 2,regarding inspection of subject property real estate,makes it clear that the nature of the inspection process,or the need to conduct a personal inspection at all, variesdepending on such matters as the type of propertyappraised, the conditions of the appraisal, and whetherthere is adequate information about the property todevelop a credible appraisal. Requiring an appraisal to beperformed in accordance with USPAP is sufficient toensure that proper consideration is given to the matter ofproperty inspection. The proposed rulemaking also woulddelete the reference to the publication of an ‘‘annual’’edition of USPAP, because the ASB is contemplating aless frequent publication schedule, and would add ane-mail address to the contact information for the Ap-praisal Foundation.§ 36.52 (relating to use of certificate number and title)

Section 36.52 requires that a certified real estateappraiser place his name, signature and certificate num-ber immediately adjacent to or immediately below theappraiser’s title on each appraisal report and appraisalagreement. The section references the titles ‘‘Pennsylva-nia certified general real estate appraiser’’ and ‘‘Pennsyl-vania certified residential real estate appraiser’’ andprovides an example of how this information shouldappear on an appraisal report or appraisal agreement.The proposed rulemaking would add a reference to thetitle ‘‘Pennsylvania certified broker/appraiser’’ and wouldmake editorial changes to the example provided.§ 36.54. (relating to supervision of appraisal assistant)

Section 36.54 is a new section derived in part from thecurrent § 36.13(a) that prescribes the supervisory dutiesof a residential or general appraiser when utilizing anappraisal assistant.

Proposed § 36.54(1) would require an appraiser tonotify the Board whenever the appraiser retains anappraisal assistant. The purpose of the notification re-quirement is to enable the Board to maintain a currentroster of appraisal assistants so that information aboutcertification requirements and procedures can be mailedto them. While the AQB has adopted criteria relating to



an appraiser trainee classification, the REACA does notrecognize this classification. As a consequence, the Boardis without authority to require persons who are apprentic-ing or training to become certified as residential orgeneral appraisers to formally register with the Board orto otherwise participate in any structured training pro-gram.

Proposed § 36.54(2) would require an appraiser todirectly supervise and control the work of an assistant,assuming total responsibility for the contents of theappraisal report. This requirement is consistent with theexisting requirement in § 36.13(a).

Proposed § 36.54(3) would require an appraiser toaccompany an assistant during the physical inspection ofeach property until the assistant has logged 300 hours ofexperience or until the appraiser considers the assistantcompetent under USPAP to perform an inspection alone,whichever period of time is greater. In the case of anassistant who is a residential appraiser seeking to up-grade to certification as a general appraiser, the supervis-ing appraiser would have to accompany the assistantduring the physical inspection of each property until thesupervising appraiser considers the assistant competentunder USPAP to perform an inspection alone. The currentinspection standard in § 36.13(a), which requires anappraiser to personally inspect 100% of properties forwhich an assistant helped to prepare appraisal reports, iseconomically burdensome for appraisers and makes itdifficult for appraisers to extend apprenticeship opportu-nities to others seeking to enter the appraising profession.The proposed inspection standard is similar to thatprescribed by the AQB for an appraiser trainee; thesupervising appraiser must accompany the trainee oneach property inspection until the appraiser deems thetrainee competent under USPAP to perform an inspectionunaccompanied.

Proposed § 36.54(4) would require, consistent withproposed § 36.13(a), that an appraiser sign an appraisalreport prepared by an assistant and either have theassistant sign the report as well or acknowledge theassistant’s significant professional assistance in the re-port.

Proposed § 36.54(5) would require an appraiser to signa Board-approved appraisal assistant checklist that hasbeen completed by the assistant and that relates to theassistant’s work on the appraisal report, while proposed§ 36.54(6) would require an appraiser to provide a cur-rent or former assistant with copies of appraisal reportsand appraisal assistant checklists requested by the Boardfor the purpose of verifying the assistant’s experience.The Board requires an applicant for certification as aresidential or general appraiser to submit an experiencelog setting forth the number of hours that the assistantworked on each appraisal assignment. The Board staffselects approximately a dozen appraisals from the experi-ence log and requests that the applicant submit copies ofthe appraisal reports for review together with any ap-praisal assistant checklists that may have been completedat the time the appraisal reports were prepared. Theappraisal assistant checklist was developed by the Boardin the late 1990s and made available to residential andgeneral appraisers for their voluntary use. The checklistidentifies the various components of the appraisal processin which the assistant participated. The Board has foundthe checklist helpful in assessing the quality of theassistance rendered in the preparation of the appraisalreport, and believes that its use should be mandatory,rather than voluntary, so that the Board has available the

same type of verifying information for each applicant.While the overwhelming majority of residential and gen-eral appraisers cooperate in providing copies of requestedappraisal reports and appraisal assistant checklists totheir current or former assistants, making cooperationcompulsory helps to ensure that all assistants who applyfor certification will have an equal opportunity to satisfac-torily document their experience.

§ 36.91 (relating to reactivation of certification)

Section 36.91(a) establishes the procedure for a certifiedreal estate appraiser to reactivate a certification that haslapsed for lack of biennial renewal. The appraiser shallpay a renewal fee, complete required biennial continuingeducation and provide verification that the appraiser didnot perform appraisals or hold out as an appraiser duringthe period of lapsed certification. Section 36.91(b) pro-vides that the appraiser will not be assessed late fees ifthe appraiser refrained from practicing or holding out asan appraiser during the period of lapsed certification.Section 36.91(c) provides that if the appraiser engaged inunauthorized activities during the period of lapsed certifi-cation, the appraiser would be subject to possible disci-plinary action under the REACA and would be assessedlate renewal fees of $5 for each month, or part of amonth, that the appraiser engaged in unauthorized activi-ties.

The proposed rulemaking would retitle § 36.91 as‘‘Reactivation of lapsed certification’’ and reorganize it byeliminating the subsections and streamlining the descrip-tion of the requirements for reactivation. The proposedrulemaking also would clarify that the applicable continu-ing education would have to be completed within the2-year period preceding the filing date of the reactivationapplication.

§§ 36.224 and 36.225 (relating to correspondence courses;and video and remote television courses)

Sections 36.224 and 36.225 prescribe the requirementsfor Board approval of a correspondence course or a videoand remote television course, respectively, as an initialeducation offering for CPEs. The requirements are identi-cal to those in current §§ 36.11 and 36.12 for residentialand general appraisers.

Although CPEs are not subject to the AQB’s qualifica-tions criteria, the Board has always sought to harmonize,whenever appropriate, regulatory requirements affectingboth CPEs and certified appraisers. Because there is nomeaningful basis for having one set of distance educationstandards for CPEs and another set of distance educationstandards for certified appraisers, the proposed rule-making would delete § 36.225 and replace the contents of§ 36.224 with the AQB’s distance education criteria forinitial education in proposed §§ 36.11 and 36.12.

§ 36.261 (relating to continuing education requirement)

Section 36.261 requires a CPE, as a condition ofbiennial renewal of certification, to complete 28 hours ofcontinuing education, including 4 hours on USPAP and 2hours on the ACA and the Board’s regulations andpolicies, during the immediately preceding renewal pe-riod. A CPE whose initial certification becomes effectivebetween January 1 and June 30 of a biennial renewalyear is exempt from the continuing education require-ment for that biennial renewal year.

The proposed rulemaking would amend § 36.261 forclarity and provide that the USPAP requirement wouldincrease to 7 hours effective with renewal of certificationfor the 2007-2009 biennial renewal period. Each CPE



would have to complete the 7-hour National USPAPUpdate Course or an equivalent 7-hour course approvedby the AQB. The identical requirement was implementedfor residential and general appraisers and broker/appraisers effective with renewal of their certifications forthe 2005-2007 biennial renewal period (July 1, 2005—June 30, 2007). Because of the similarity between the realestate assessing and real estate appraising professions, aswell as the importance of having practitioners in bothprofessions maintain strict adherence to professionalstandards, the Board believes it is desirable that CPEs berequired to complete the same amount of biennial train-ing on USPAP as that required of certified appraisers.The Board’s Fall 2005 newsletter, which was sent toactive CPEs, gave notice of the Board’s intention topropose the new USPAP requirement for CPEs effectivewith the 2007-2009 biennial renewal period.

§ 36.263 (relating to correspondence courses/video andremote television presentations)

Section 36.263 prescribes the requirements for Boardapproval of a correspondence course or video and remotetelevision course as a continuing education offering forCPEs. These requirements are identical to those forapproval of such courses for initial education purposes incurrent §§ 36.224 and 36.225 (relating to correspondencecourses; and video and remote television courses). Forreasons previously discussed, the proposed rulemakingwould replace the contents of § 36.263 with the samedistance education criteria for a continuing educationcourse that are being proposed in § 36.43 (relating tocorrespondence courses/video and remote television pre-sentations).

§ 36.271 (relating to reactivation of certification)

Section 36.271 sets forth the same procedures forreactivation of a lapsed CPE certification as appear incurrent § 36.91 with regard to the reactivation of alapsed appraiser certification. The proposed rulemakingwould make the same amendments to § 36.271 that arebeing proposed in § 36.91 (relating to reactivation ofcertification).

§ 36.281 (relating to standards of professional conduct)

Section 36.281 establishes standards of professionalconduct for CPEs. Standard 1 requires that CPEs performall assessments and appraisal-related assignments inaccordance with USPAP and provides information abouthow a CPE can obtain a current annual edition of USPAPfrom the Appraisal Foundation. The proposed rulemakingwould make editorial changes to Standard 1, delete thereference to an ‘‘annual’’ edition of USPAP and add ane-mail address to the contact information for the Ap-praisal Foundation.

Fiscal Impact and Paperwork Requirements

The proposed rulemaking would cause candidates forcertification as residential and general appraisers to incuradditional costs in meeting the increased educationalrequirements for initial certification that are mandatedby the AQB. These costs cannot be quantified. Theproposed rulemaking, through its elimination of the re-quirement that residential and general appraisers mustaccompany appraisal assistants on all property inspec-tions, should allow appraisers who employ appraisalassistants to use their time more efficiently. The savingsto appraisers, and indirectly to users of appraisal ser-vices, cannot be quantified. The proposed rulemakingwould have no direct fiscal impact on the general publicor on the Commonwealth and its political subdivisions.

The proposed rulemaking would require residential andgeneral appraisers to provide written notification to theBoard when they employ appraisal assistants and tomaintain appraisal assistant checklists for the appraisalreports that the assistants helped to prepare. The pro-posed rulemaking would not create additional paperworkfor the general public or the Commonwealth and itspolitical subdivisions.Effective Date

The proposed rulemaking would become effective uponfinal-form publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.Regulatory Review

Under section 5(a) of the Regulatory Review Act (71P. S. § 745.5(a)), on May 17, 2006, the Board submitted acopy of this proposed rulemaking and a copy of aRegulatory Analysis Form to the Independent RegulatoryReview Commission (IRRC) and to the Chairpersons ofthe Senate Standing Committee on Consumer Protectionand Professional Licensure and the House Standing Com-mittee on Professional Licensure. A copy of this materialis available to the public upon request.

Under section 5(g) of the Regulatory Review Act, IRRCmay convey any comments, recommendations or objec-tions to the proposed rulemaking within 30 days of theclose of the public comment period. The comments, recom-mendations or objections must specify the regulatoryreview criteria which have not been met. The RegulatoryReview Act specifies detailed procedures for review, priorto final publication of the rulemaking, by the Board, theGeneral Assembly and the Governor of comments, recom-mendations or objections raised.Public Comment

The Board invites interested persons to submit writtencomments, suggestions or objections regarding the pro-posed rulemaking to Steven Wennberg, Counsel, StateBoard of Certified Real Estate Appraisers, P. O. Box 2649,Harrisburg, PA 17105-2649 within 30 days followingpublication of this proposed rulemaking in the Pennsylva-nia Bulletin.

ROBERT F. MCRAE,Chairperson

Fiscal Note: 16A-7014. No fiscal impact; (8) recom-mends adoption.

Annex A

TITLE 49. PROFESSIONAL AND VOCATIONALSTANDARDS

PART I. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Subpart A. PROFESSIONAL AND OCCUPATIONALAFFAIRS

CHAPTER 36. STATE BOARD OF CERTIFIEDREAL ESTATE APPRAISERS

Subchapter A. [ GENERAL PROVISIONS ]CERTIFIED REAL ESTATE APPRAISERS

GENERAL PROVISIONS

§ 36.1. Definitions.

The following words and terms, when used in thischapter, have the following meanings, unless the contextclearly indicates otherwise:

AQB—The Appraiser Qualifications Board of theAppraisal Foundation.

* * * * *



Certified broker/appraiser—A person who holds acertificate issued under authority of section 6(a)(3)of the act (63 P. S. § 457.6(a)(3)) and who is autho-rized to perform appraisals of all types of realproperty in non-Federally-related transactions.

Certified general real estate appraiser—A personwho holds a certificate issued under authority ofsection 6(a)(2) and (e) of the act and § 36.12 (relat-ing to qualifications for certification as general realestate appraiser) and who is authorized to performappraisals of all types of real property in all trans-actions, whether Federally-related or non-Federally-related.

Certified real estate appraiser—A certified broker/appraiser, certified residential real estate appraiseror certified general real estate appraiser.

Certified residential real estate appraiser—A per-son who holds a certificate issued under authorityof section 6(a)(1) and (d) of the act and § 36.11(relating to qualifications for certification as resi-dential real estate appraiser) and who is authorizedto perform appraisals of residential properties ofone-to-four dwelling units in all transactions,whether Federally-related or non-Federally-related.

Distance education—An educational processbased on the geographical separation of the learnerand instructor, which provides interaction betweenthe learner and instructor and includes testing.Examples include CD or DVD ROM, on-line learn-ing, correspondence courses, video conferencing,and video and remote television courses.

* * * * *

[ State certified general real estate appraiser—Aperson who satisfies the requirements of the actand this chapter, pertaining to the appraisal ofresidential and nonresidential real property uti-lized in connection with Federally related transac-tions, and who holds a current, valid certificateissued under the act and this chapter.

State certified residential real estate appraiser—Aperson who satisfies the certification requirementsof the act and this chapter, pertaining solely to theappraisal of residential real property utilized inconnection with Federally-related transactions, andwho holds a current, valid certificate under the actand this chapter. ]

USPAP—The Uniform Standards of ProfessionalAppraisal Practice promulgated by the AppraisalStandards Board of the Appraisal Foundation.§ 36.2 Application process.

(a) Application form. A person interested in becoming[ State certified as ] a certified residential real estateappraiser or a certified general real estate appraisershall complete and file with the Board a notarizedapplication form and an application fee. Application formsmay be obtained [ from the Administrative Office of ]by visiting the Board’s website at www.dos.state.pa.us/real or by writing, telephoning ore-mailing the Board[ , ] at Post Office Box 2649, Harris-burg, [ Pennsylvania ] PA 17105-2649, (717) 783-4866,or [email protected], respectively.

(b) Application fee. The application fee for certificationas a residential or general real estate appraiser is setforth in § 36.6 (relating to fees). Application fees are

nonrefundable. Payments [ shall ] must be in the form ofa personal check or money order made payable to the‘‘Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.’’

(c) Approved applications. Subject to the provisions ofsubsection (e), an approved application will be valid for 1year from the date of approval. If an applicant does notpass the certification examination within this 1-yearperiod, the applicant’s application will be considered tohave been withdrawn. If the applicant wishes to take theexamination after 1 year from the date of approval, a newapplication, along with the required fee, shall be submit-ted to the Board. [ The application will be reviewedon the basis of statutes and regulations in effect atthe time the new application is received by theBoard. ]

(d) Disapproved applications. Subject to the provisionsof subsection (e), an applicant whose application has beendisapproved by the Board will be notified in writing of thereasons for the disapproval, and will have 1 year from thedate of disapproval to correct the deficiencies or to file arequest for reconsideration. A request for reconsideration[ shall ] must give the reason for the applicant’s request,[ shall ] be accompanied by documentary materials notpreviously submitted which the applicant wishes theBoard to consider and may include a request for aninformal interview with the Board. If a request forreconsideration is denied or, subject to the provisions ofsubsection (e), an applicant is unable to correct thedeficiencies which resulted in the disapproval of theapplication within 1 year from the date of disapproval, anew application, along with the required fee, shall besubmitted to the Board. [ An applicant’s new applica-tion will be reviewed on the basis of statutes andregulations in effect at the time the new applica-tion is received by the Board. ]

(e) Compliance with new requirements. [ If theeducation or experience criteria established by theAppraiser Qualifications Board of the AppraisalFoundation (AQB) are amended during the 1-yearperiod following application approval under sub-section (c), the applicant will be required to satisfythe new education or experience requirements es-tablished by the AQB as a condition of receivingcertification from the Board. If the AQB’s educationor experience criteria is amended during the 1-yearperiod following application disapproval undersubsection (d), the applicant will have 1 year fromthe date of application disapproval to correct thedeficiencies which resulted in application disap-proval and to satisfy the AQB’s new education orexperience requirements. ] Except as otherwiseprovided in §§ 36.11 and 36.12 (relating to qualifica-tions for certification as residential real estateappraiser; and qualifications for certification asgeneral real estate appraiser), an applicant shallcomply with any increased education or experiencerequirements that take effect between the appli-cant’s filing of an initial application and the appli-cant’s passing the certification examination.

§ 36.3. Examinations.

(a) The examination required for certification as aresidential [ or general ] real estate appraiser is the[ National ] AQB-endorsed Uniform State CertifiedResidential Real Property Appraiser Examination [ is-sued or endorsed by the Appraiser Qualifications



Board of the Appraisal Foundation ] or its equiva-lent. The examination required for certification asa general real estate appraiser is the AQB-endorsedUniform State Certified General Real Property Ap-praiser Examination or its equivalent. The certifica-tion [ examination will be ] examinations are admin-istered by a professional testing organization undercontract with the Board at times and places establishedby the [ Board ] professional testing organization.

(b) [ General information regarding the real es-tate appraiser examinations and instructions re-garding examination scheduling will be preparedby the professional testing organization under con-tract with the Board and compiled in a candidatebooklet to be made available to each candidatewhose State-certified real estate appraiser applica-tion has been approved by the Board. ] Interestedpersons may obtain information about the certifica-tion examinations from the professional testingorganization. Contact information for the profes-sional testing organization appears on the Board’swebsite at www.dos.state.pa.us/real.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR CERTIFICATION

§ 36.11. [ Residential ] Qualifications for certifica-tion as residential real estate appraiser.(a) Overview. An applicant for certification as a resi-

dential real estate appraiser shall be of good moralcharacter, meet the following education and experiencerequirements prior to examination, and pass an exami-nation for certification as a residential real estate ap-praiser. Neither a real estate salesperson’s license nor areal estate broker’s license issued under the Real EstateLicensing and Registration Act (63 P. S. § 455.101—455.902) is a prerequisite to certification as a residentialreal estate appraiser.

[ (1) Education ] (b) Appraisal classroom hours.An applicant shall submit evidence to the Board of havingcompleted 120 classroom hours of courses in subjectsrelated to real estate appraisal, including the 15-hourNational [ Uniform Standards of Professional Ap-praisal Practice ] USPAP Course, together with cover-age of the topics listed in [ paragraph (2) ] subsection(c)(1). Effective January 1, 2008, an applicant shallsubmit evidence to the Board of having completed200 classroom hours in the appraisal curriculum setforth in subsection (c)(2), except that the newrequirement does not apply to an applicant whohas satisfied the existing education requirementbefore January 1, 2008.

[ (i) ] (1) Length of classroom hour requirement. Credittoward the classroom hour requirement will only begranted when the length of the [ educational offering ]course is at least 15 hours, and the applicant success-fully completes an examination pertinent to [ that edu-cational offering ] the course. A classroom hour isdefined as 50 minutes out of each 60 minute segment.

[ (ii) ] (2) Teaching credit. Credit toward the classroomhour requirement may be awarded to teachers of ap-praisal courses for actual classroom time, but credit willnot be given for course repetition. A teacher requestingcredit for the classroom hour requirement may not re-quest credit for experience. [ A teacher may requestcredit for either the classroom hour or experiencerequirement, but not both. No more than 300 hours

will be granted to teachers requesting credit to-ward the experience requirement for teaching ofappraisal courses. ]

[ (iii) ] (3) * * *

[ (iv) Correspondence courses ] (4) Distance edu-cation. [ Correspondence courses may be ] A dis-tance education course is acceptable to meet theclassroom hour requirement if [ each ] the course isapproved by the Board and meets the following condi-tions:

[ (A) ] (i) The course [ has been ] is presented by[ an accredited (Commission on Colleges or a re-gional accreditation association) college or univer-sity which offers correspondence programs in otherdisciplines ] one of the following:

(A) An accredited (Commission on Colleges or aregional accreditation association) college or uni-versity that offers distance education programs inother disciplines.

(B) A course provider that has received approvalfor course design and delivery mechanism from theInternational Distance Education Certification Cen-ter and approval for course content from the Boardor from the AQB through its Course ApprovalProgram.

[ (B) ] (ii) The applicant successfully completes a writ-ten examination [ administered at a location ] proc-tored by an official approved by the college [ or ],university or other course provider.

[ (C) ] (iii) The content and length of the course[ meets ] meet the requirements of [ subparagraph (i)and paragraph (2) ] paragraph (1) and subsection(c), respectively.

[ (v) Video and remote television courses. Videoand remote television courses may be acceptable tomeet the classroom hour requirement if each offer-ing is approved by the Board and meets the follow-ing conditions:

(A) The course has been presented by an accred-ited (Commission on Colleges or a regional accredi-tation association) college or university which of-fers similar programs in other disciplines.

(B) The applicant successfully completes a writ-ten examination administered at a location by anofficial approved by the college or university.

(C) The content and length of the course meetsthe requirements of subparagraph (i) and para-graph (2).

(vi) ] (5) Credit for challenge examination. The Boardmay [ grant credit for courses if ] accept toward theclassroom hour requirement a course for which theapplicant obtained credit from the course provider bychallenge examination without attending the [ courses ]course, if [ that credit was granted by ] the courseprovider granted credit prior to July 1, 1990, and theBoard is satisfied with the quality of the challengeexamination that was administered by the course pro-vider.

[ (2) Mandatory course topics ] (c) Content of ap-praisal education. [ Applicants ] The content of anapplicant’s appraisal education shall be as follows:



(1) An applicant who is subject to the 120-classroom hour requirement in subsection (b) shalldemonstrate that [ their education ] the classroomhours included coverage of the following topics [ listedin this paragraph ], with particular emphasis on theappraisal of one-to-four unit residential properties:

* * * * *(2) An applicant who is subject to the 200-

classroom hour requirement in subsection (b) shalldemonstrate that the classroom hours satisfy thefollowing curriculum requirements:

(i) Basic appraisal principles (30 hours).(A) Real property concepts and characteristics.(I) Basic real property concepts.(II) Real property characteristics.(III) Legal description.(B) Legal considerations.(I) Forms of ownership.(II) Public and private controls.(III) Real estate contracts.(IV) Leases.(C) Influences on real estate.(I) Governmental.(II) Economic.(III) Social.(IV) Environmental, geographic and physical.(D) Types of value.(I) Market value.(II) Other value types.(E) Economic principles.

(I) Classical economic principles.

(II) Application and illustrations of the economicprinciples.

(F) Overview of real estate markets and analysis.

(I) Market fundamentals, characteristics and defi-nitions.

(II) Supply analysis.

(III) Demand analysis.

(IV) Use of market analysis.

(G) Ethics and how they apply in appraisaltheory and practice.

(ii) Basic appraisal procedures (30 hours).

(A) Overview of approaches to value.

(B) Valuation procedure.

(I) Defining the problem.

(II) Collecting and selecting the data.

(III) Analyzing.

(IV) Reconciling and final value opinion.

(V) Communicating the appraisal.

(C) Property description.

(I) Geographic characteristics of the land/site.

(II) Geologic characteristics of the land/site.

(III) Location and neighborhood characteristics.(IV) Land/site considerations for highest and best

use.(V) Improvements—architectural styles and types

of construction.(D) Residential applications.(iii) National USPAP Course or Equivalent (15

hours).(A) Preamble and ethics rules.(B) Standard 1.(C) Standard 2.(D) Standards 3 to 10.(E) Statements and advisory opinions.(iv) Residential market analysis and highest and

best use (15 hours).(A) Residential markets and analysis.(I) Market fundamentals, characteristics and defi-

nitions.(II) Supply analysis.(III) Demand analysis.(IV) Use of market analysis.(B) Highest and best use.(I) Test constraints.(II) Application of highest and best use.

(III) Special considerations.

(IV) Market analysis.

(V) Case studies.

(v) Residential appraiser site valuation and costapproach (15 hours).

(A) Site valuation.

(I) Methods.

(II) Case studies.

(B) Cost approach.

(I) Concepts and definitions.

(II) Replacement/reproduction cost new.

(III) Accrued depreciation.

(IV) Methods of estimating accrued depreciation.

(V) Case studies.

(vi) Residential sales comparison and income ap-proaches (30 hours).

(A) Valuation principles and procedures—salescomparison approach.

(B) Valuation principles and procedures—incomeapproach.

(C) Finance and cash equivalency.

(D) Financial calculator introduction.

(E) Identification, derivation and measurement ofadjustments.

(F) Gross rent multipliers.

(G) Partial interests.

(H) Reconciliation.

(I) Case studies and applications.



(vii) Residential report writing and case studies(15 hours).

(A) Writing and reasoning skills.(B) Common writing problems.(C) Form reports.(D) Report options and USPAP compliance.(E) Case studies.(viii) Statistics, modeling and finance (15 hours).(A) Statistics.(B) Valuation models (AVMs and mass appraisal).(C) Real estate finance.(ix) Advanced residential applications and case

studies (15 hours).(A) Complex property, ownership and market

conditions.(B) Deriving and supporting adjustments.(C) Residential market analysis.(D) Advanced case studies.(x) Appraisal subject matter electives (20 hours).(d) Postsecondary education.(1) Effective January, 1, 2008, an applicant shall

submit evidence to the Board of having satisfiedone of the following requirements:

(i) Possession of an associate’s degree, or higher,from an accredited college or university.

(ii) Completion of 21 semester credit hours in thefollowing college-level subjects at an accreditedcollege or university:

(A) English composition.(B) Principles of economics (micro or macro).(C) Finance.

(D) Algebra, geometry or higher mathematics.

(E) Statistics.

(F) Introduction to computers—word processing/spreadsheets.

(G) Business or real estate law.

(2) This subsection does not apply to an applicantwho completed 120 classroom hours of qualifyingappraisal education under subsection (b) beforeJanuary 1, 2008.

[ (3) ] (e) Experience.

(1) In addition to meeting the education requirements,an applicant shall submit evidence to the Board of having[ completed ] acquired 2,500 hours of acceptable ap-praisal experience [ obtained ] during [ no fewerthan ] a period of at least 24 months. [ Fifty per-cent ] At least 50% of the experience [ obtained ]acquired by an applicant [ shall ] must be in the actualpreparation of real estate appraisal reports, which [ in-clude a ] includes physical [ inspection ] inspectionsof the interior and exterior of the subject [ property ]properties, in accordance with § 36.13 (relating toexperience options regarding preparation of ap-praisal reports). Hours may be treated as cumulative toachieve the necessary 2,500 hours of appraisal experience.Cumulative is defined to mean that experience may be

acquired over any time period in excess of 24 months.There is no minimum number of hours which must beacquired in any 12 months. The following will serve as anexample:Year 1 400 HoursYear 2 800 HoursYear 3 200 HoursYear 4 500 HoursYear 5 600 Hours

Total 2,500 Hours

(2) Experience acquired after January 1, 1991,must comply with USPAP. Experience acquired af-ter August 2, 1993, will not be accepted unless theapplicant has first completed 45 classroom hours ofappraisal education, including 15 hours on USPAP.Acceptable categories of appraisal experience [ in-cludes ] include:

* * * * *

(iii) Review appraisals[ , if the reviews are in com-pliance with Standard 3 of the Uniform Standardsof Professional Appraisal Practice ].

* * * * *

(viii) [ Teaching of appraisal courses; however, nomore than 300 hours will be granted to teachersrequesting credit toward the experience require-ment for teaching of appraisal courses and nocredit will be given for course repetition.

(ix) ] Real estate related experience such as that of anofficer of a lending institution, if the experience consistsof the actual performance or professional review of realestate appraisals [ in compliance with the UniformStandards of Professional Appraisal Practice ].

(ix) Evaluations under FIRREA in accordancewith requirements of Federal financial institutionregulatory agencies.

(x) Case studies or practicum courses that areapproved by the AQB Course Approval Program.

[ (4) State certified residential real estate ap-praiser. An applicant who has passed an examina-tion and who is certified under this section will bedeemed to have met the minimum criteria for thecertified residential real property appraiser classi-fication adopted by the Appraiser QualificationsBoard of the Appraisal Foundation, and shall bequalified to perform residential real property ap-praisals in Federally-related and non-Federally re-lated transactions without regard to value. ]§ 36.12. [ General ] Qualifications for certification

as general real estate appraiser.

(a) Overview. An applicant for certification as a gen-eral real estate appraiser shall be of good moral charac-ter, meet the following education and experience require-ments prior to examination, and pass an examinationfor certification as a general real estate appraiser. Nei-ther a real estate salesperson’s license nor a real estatebroker’s license issued under the Real Estate Licensingand Registration Act (63 P. S. § 455.101—455.902) is aprerequisite to certification as a general real estateappraiser.

[ (1) Education ] (b) Appraisal classroom hours.An applicant shall submit evidence to the Board of having



completed 180 classroom hours of courses in subjectsrelated to real estate appraisal, including the 15-hourNational [ Uniform Standards of Professional Ap-praisal Practice ] USPAP Course, together with cover-age of the topics listed in [ paragraph (2) ] subsection(c)(1). Effective January 1, 2008, an applicant shallsubmit evidence to the Board of having completed300 classroom hours in the appraisal curriculum setforth in subsection (c)(2), except that the newrequirement does not apply to an applicant whohas satisfied the existing education requirementbefore January 1, 2008.

[ (i) ] (1) Length of classroom hour requirement. Credittoward the classroom hour requirement will only begranted when the length of the [ educational offering ]course is at least 15 hours, and the applicant success-fully completes an examination pertinent to [ that edu-cational offering ] the course. A classroom hour isdefined as 50 minutes out of each 60 minute segment.

[ (ii) ] (2) Teaching credit. Credit toward the classroomhour requirement may be awarded to teachers of ap-praisal courses for actual classroom time, but credit willnot be given for course repetition. A teacher requestingcredit for the classroom hour requirement may not re-quest credit for experience. [ A teacher may requestcredit for either the classroom hour or experiencerequirement, but not both. No more than 300 hourswill be granted to teachers requesting credit to-ward the experience requirement for teaching ofappraisal courses. ]

[ (iii) ] (3) Providers of appraisal courses. Credit forthe classroom hour requirement may be obtained fromaccredited colleges or universities and community orjunior colleges. Subject to Board approval under § 36.31(relating to provider registration/appraisal courses), creditfor the classroom hour requirement may also be obtainedfrom real estate appraisal or real estate related organiza-tions, State or Federal agencies or commissions, propri-etary schools and other providers.

[ (iv) Correspondence courses ] (4) Distance edu-cation. [ Correspondence courses may be ] A dis-tance education course is acceptable to meet theclassroom hour requirement if [ each ] the course isapproved by the Board and meets the following condi-tions:

[ (A) ] (i) The course [ has been ] is presented by[ an accredited (Commission on Colleges or a re-gional accreditation association) college or univer-sity which offers correspondence programs in otherdisciplines ] one of the following:

(A) An accredited (Commission on Colleges or aregional accreditation association) college or uni-versity that offers distance education programs inother disciplines.

(B) A course provider that has received approvalfor course design and delivery mechanism from theInternational Distance Education Certification Cen-ter and approval for course content from the Boardor from the AQB through its Course ApprovalProgram.

[ (B) ] (ii) The applicant successfully completes a writ-ten examination [ administered at a location ] proc-

tored by an official approved by the college [ or ],university or other course provider.

[ (C) ] (iii) The content and length of the course[ meets ] meet the requirements of [ subparagraph (i)and paragraph (2) ] paragraph (1) and subsection(c), respectively.

[ (v) Video and remote television courses. Videoand remote television courses may be acceptable tomeet the classroom hour requirement if each offer-ing is approved by the Board and meets the follow-ing conditions:

(A) The course has been presented by an accred-ited (Commission on Colleges or a regional accredi-tation association) college or university which of-fers similar programs in other disciplines.

(B) The applicant successfully completes a writ-ten examination administered at a location by anofficial approved by the college or university.

(C) The content and length of the course meetsthe requirements of subparagraph (i) and para-graph (2).

(vi) ] (5) Credit for challenge examination. The Boardmay [ grant credit for courses if ] accept toward theclassroom hour requirement a course for which theapplicant obtained credit from the course provider bychallenge examination without attending the [ courses ]course, if [ credit was granted by ] the course pro-vider granted credit prior to July 1, 1990, and theBoard is satisfied with the quality of the challengeexamination that was administered by the course pro-vider.

[ (2) Mandatory course topics ] (c) Content of ap-praisal education. [ Applicants ] The content of anapplicant’s appraisal education must be as follows:

(1) An applicant who is subject to the 180-classroom hour requirement in subsection (b) shalldemonstrate that [ their education ] the classroomhours included coverage of the following topics [ listedin this paragraph ], with particular emphasis on theappraisal of nonresidential properties. Residential is de-fined as one to four residential units.

* * * * *(2) An applicant who is subject to the 300-hour

classroom requirement in subsection (b) shall dem-onstrate that the classroom hours satisfy the fol-lowing curriculum requirements:

(i) Basic appraisal principles (30 hours).(A) Real property concepts and characteristics.(I) Basic real property concepts.(II) Real property characteristics.(III) Legal description.(B) Legal considerations.(I) Forms of ownership.

(II) Public and private controls.

(III) Real estate contracts.

(IV) Leases.

(C) Influences on real estate.

(I) Governmental.



(II) Economic.(III) Social.(IV) Environmental, geographic and physical.(D) Types of value.(I) Market value.(II) Other value types.(E) Economic principles.(I) Classical economic principles.(II) Application and illustrations of the economic

principles.(F) Overview of real estate markets and analysis.(I) Market fundamentals, characteristics and defi-

nitions.(II) Supply analysis.(III) Demand analysis.(IV) Use of market analysis.(G) Ethics and how they apply in appraisal

theory and practice.(ii) Basic appraisal procedures (30 hours).(A) Overview of approaches to value.(B) Valuation procedure.(I) Defining the problem.(II) Collecting and selecting the data.(III) Analyzing.(IV) Reconciling and final value opinion.(V) Communicating the appraisal.(C) Property description.(I) Geographic characteristics of the land/site.(II) Geologic characteristics of the land/site.(III) Location and neighborhood characteristics.(IV) Land/site considerations for highest and best

use.(V) Improvements—architectural styles and types

of construction.(D) Residential applications.(iii) National USPAP Course or equivalent (15

hours).(A) Preamble and ethics rules.(B) Standard 1.(C) Standard 2.(D) Standards 3 to 10.(E) Statements and advisory opinions.(iv) General appraiser market analysis and high-

est and best use (30 hours).

(A) Real estate markets and analysis.

(I) Market fundamentals, characteristics and defi-nitions.

(II) Supply analysis.

(III) Demand analysis.

(IV) Use of market analysis.

(B) Highest and best use.

(I) Test constraints.

(II) Application of highest and best use.(III) Special considerations.(IV) Market analysis.(V) Case studies.(v) General appraiser site valuation and cost ap-

proach (30 hours).(A) Site valuation.(I) Methods.(II) Case studies.(B) Cost approach.(I) Concepts and definitions.(II) Replacement/reproduction cost new.(III) Accrued depreciation.(IV) Methods of estimating accrued depreciation.(V) Case studies.(vi) General appraiser sales comparison approach

(30 hours).(A) Value principles.(B) Procedures.(C) Identification and measurement of adjust-

ments.(D) Reconciliation.(E) Case studies.(vii) General appraiser income approach (60

hours).(A) Overview.(B) Compound interest.(C) Lease analysis.(D) Income analysis.(E) Vacancy and collection loss.(F) Estimating operating expenses and reserves.

(G) Reconstructed income and expense state-ment.

(H) Stabilized net operating income estimate.

(I) Direct capitalization.

(J) Discounted cash flow.

(K) Yield capitalization.

(L) Partial interests.

(M) Case studies.

(viii) General appraiser report writing and casestudies (30 hours).

(A) Writing and reasoning skills.

(B) Common writing problems.

(C) Report options and USPAP compliance.

(D) Case studies.

(ix) Statistics, modeling and finance (15 hours).

(A) Statistics.

(B) Valuation Models (AVMs and mass appraisal).

(C) Real estate finance.

(x) Appraisal subject matter electives (30 hours)

(d) Postsecondary education.



(1) Effective January 1, 2008, an applicant shallsubmit evidence to the Board of having satisfiedone of the following requirements:

(i) Possession of a bachelor’s degree, or higher,from an accredited college or university.

(ii) Completion of 30 semester credit hours in thefollowing college-level subjects at an accreditedcollege or university:

(A) English composition.(B) Macro economics.(C) Micro economics.(D) Finance.(E) Algebra, geometry or higher mathematics.(F) Statistics.(G) Introduction to computers—word processing/

spreadsheets.(H) Business or real estate law.

(I) Two elective courses in accounting, geography,ag-economics, business management or real estate.

(2) This subsection does not apply to an applicantwho completed 180 classroom hours of qualifyingappraisal education under subsection (b) beforeJanuary 1, 2008.

[ (3) ] (e) Experience.

(1) In addition to meeting the education requirements,an applicant shall submit evidence to the Board of having[ completed ] acquired 3,000 hours of acceptable ap-praisal experience, including 1,500 hours in nonresiden-tial work, [ obtained ] during [ no fewer ] a period ofno less than 30 months. [ Fifty percent ] At least 50%of the experience [ obtained ] acquired by an applicantshall be in the actual preparation of real estate appraisalreports, which [ include a ] includes physical [ inspec-tion ] inspections of the interior and exterior of thesubject [ property ] properties, in accordance with§ 36.13 (relating to experience options regardingpreparation of appraisal reports). Hours may betreated as cumulative to achieve the necessary 3,000hours of appraisal experience. Cumulative is defined tomean that experience may be acquired over any timeperiod in excess of 30 months. There is no minimumnumber of hours which must be acquired in any 1 year.The following will serve as an example:Year 1 1,000 HoursYear 2 800 HoursYear 3 100 HoursYear 4 1,000 HoursYear 5 100 Hoursl Total 3,000 Hours

(2) Experience acquired after January 1, 1991,must comply with USPAP. Experience acquired af-ter August 2, 1993, will not be accepted unless theapplicant has first completed 45 classroom hours ofappraisal education, including 15 hours on USPAP.Acceptable categories of appraisal experience [ in-cludes ] include:

* * * * *

(iii) Review appraisals[ , if the reviews are in com-pliance with Standard 3 of the Uniform Standardsof Professional Appraisal Practice ].

* * * * *

(viii) [ Teaching of appraisal courses; however, nomore than 300 hours will be granted to teachersrequesting credit toward the experience require-ment for teaching of appraisal courses and nocredit will be given for course repetition.

(ix) ] Real estate experience such as that of an officerof a lending institution, if the experience consists of theactual performance or professional review of real estateappraisals [ in compliance with the Uniform Stan-dards of Professional Appraisal Practice ].

(ix) Evaluations under FIRREA in accordancewith requirements of Federal financial institutionregulatory agencies.

(x) Case studies or practicum courses that areapproved by the AQB Course Approval Program.

[ (4) State certified general real estate appraiser.An applicant who has passed examination and whois certified under this section will be deemed tohave met the minimum criteria for the CertifiedGeneral Real Property Appraiser Classificationadopted by the Appraiser Qualifications Board ofthe Appraisal Foundation, and shall be qualified toperform residential and nonresidential real prop-erty appraisals in Federally related and non-Federally-related transactions without regard tovalue. ]§ 36.13. Experience options for preparation of ap-

praisal reports.

(a) An applicant [ seeking to meet the experiencerequirements ] for certification as a residential realestate appraiser or a general real estate appraiser [ maydo so by ] under §§ 36.11 and 36.12 (relating toqualifications for certification as residential realestate appraiser; and qualifications for certificationas general real estate appraiser) shall have ac-quired experience in the preparation of appraisalreports in one or more of the following:

(1) Prior to September 3, 1998:

[ (1) ] (i) [ Performing real estate appraisalswhich are not required by FIRREA to be performedby State-certified or State-licensed real estate ap-praisers, ] As a licensed real estate broker under theReal Estate Licensing and Registration Act (63 P. S.§§ 455.101—455-901) and Chapter 35 (relating to StateReal Estate Commission).

[ (2) ] (ii) [ Performing appraisals or other evalua-tions of real estate in connection with a loantransaction in the capacity of ] As an elected officer,director or [ employe ] employee of a banking institu-tion, savings institution, savings bank, credit union ortrust company operating under applicable Federal orState laws, when acting on behalf of the institution [ inperforming the appraisal ] in connection with aloan transaction.

(iii) As a certified broker/appraiser.

[ (3) ] (iv) [ Assisting in the preparation of a realestate appraisal required by FIRREA to be per-formed by a State-certified or State-licensed realestate appraiser, under the supervision of a certi-fied residential real estate appraiser or a certified



general real estate appraiser, if the certified realestate appraiser: ] As an assistant to a certifiedresidential real estate appraiser or certified gen-eral real estate appraiser, provided the assistantsatisfies the requirements of subsection (b).

[ (i) Directly supervises and controls the appli-cant’s work, assuming total responsibility for thecontent of the appraisal documents and value con-clusions. The applicant may not arrive at an inde-pendent determination of value.

(ii) Personally makes a physical inspection of theinterior and exterior of the subject property, unlessan interior and complete exterior inspection of theproperty is not possible as of the effective date ofthe appraisal—that is, where improvements havebeen destroyed, removed or not yet built; inspec-tions are not legally or contractually possible; theappraiser is denied access by the property owner;or, a contract stipulates a ‘‘drive-by’’ appraisal.

(iii) Signs the appraisal document as ‘‘certifiedreal estate appraiser’’ and has the applicant sign as‘‘assistant to the certified real estate appraiser.’’ ]

(2) On or after September 3, 1998:

(i) As a certified broker/appraiser.

(ii) As an assistant to a certified residential realestate appraiser or certified general real estateappraiser, provided the assistant satisfies the re-quirements of subsection (b).

(b) [ Experience obtained after August 2, 1993,will only be acceptable to the Board if an applicantshows evidence of first having completed 45 class-room hours in subjects related to real estate ap-praisal in §§ 36.11(2) and 36.12(2) (relating to resi-dential real estate appraiser; and general realestate appraiser), which includes at least 15 hoursof the Uniform Standards of Professional AppraisalPractice. Appraisal experience obtained prior toAugust 2, 1993, will not be subject to the educa-tional requirement imposed by this section. ] Anassistant to a certified general appraiser or certi-fied residential appraiser shall observe the follow-ing requirements when preparing an appraisal re-port:

(1) The assistant shall perform an inspection ofthe interior and exterior of the property.

(2) The assistant may not arrive at an indepen-dent determination of value.

(3) The assistant shall sign the appraisal reportas ‘‘assistant to the certified real estate appraiser’’or be referenced in the certification section of theappraisal report, or in an addendum to the ap-praisal report, as having provided significant pro-fessional assistance.

CONTINUING EDUCATION

§ 36.41. Continuing education requirement.

(a) Continuing education for certified [ general ap-praisers, residential appraisers and broker/appraisers ] real estate appraisers is necessary toensure that they maintain and increase their skill, knowl-edge and competency in real estate appraising. Except asprovided in subsection (b), [ every general ] a certifiedreal estate appraiser[ , residential appraiser and

broker/appraiser ] shall complete 28 classroom hours ofcontinuing education—including [ at least 4 hours onthe Uniform Standards of Professional AppraisalPractice ] the 7-hour National USPAP UpdateCourse, or an equivalent 7-hour course approved bythe AQB, and at least 2 hours on the act, this chapterand the policies of the Board—during each biennialrenewal period as a condition of renewal of certificationfor the next biennial renewal period. [ Effective withrenewal of certification for the 2005-2007 biennialrenewal period, the 7-hour National USPAP UpdateCourse, or an equivalent 7-hour course approved bythe Appraiser Qualifications Board, will replace theminimum 4-hour requirement on the USPAP. ]

(b) A certified general real estate appraiser or residen-tial real estate appraiser whose initial certificationbecomes effective between January 1 and June 30 of abiennial renewal year will not be required to furnishproof of continuing education as a condition of renewal ofcertification in that biennial renewal year.

[ (c) The Board will accept continuing educationhours completed by a certified broker/appraiserbetween January 1, 2001, and June 30, 2001, towardthe continuing education requirement for renewalof certification for the 2003-2005 biennial renewalperiod. ]§ 36.43. [ Correspondence courses/video and re-

mote television presentations ] Distance educa-tion.

[ (a) Correspondence courses. Correspondencecourses may be ] A distance education course isacceptable for continuing education credit [ provided ] ifit is approved by the Board and meets the followingconditions:

(1) The course [ has been ] is presented by [ anaccredited (Commission on Colleges or a regionalaccrediting association) college or university whichoffers correspondence programs in other disci-plines. ] one of the following:

(i) A course provider that presents the course toan organized group in an instructional setting witha person qualified and available to answer ques-tions, provide information and monitor attendance.

(ii) An accredited (Commission on Colleges or aregional accreditation association) college or uni-versity that offers distance education programs inother disciplines.

(iii) A course provider that has received approvalfor course design and delivery mechanism from theInternational Distance Education Certification Cen-ter and approval for course content from the Boardor from the AQB through its Course ApprovalProgram.

(2) [ An individual ] With regard to a course pre-sented under paragraph (1)(ii) or (iii), the certifiedreal estate appraiser successfully completes a writtenexamination [ administered at a location ] proctoredby an official approved by the college [ or ], university orother course provider.

(3) The [ offering is equivalent to a minimum of 10classroom hours in length and is consistent withthe accepted topics listed in ] content and length of



the course meet the requirements of § 36.42[ (a) ](relating to continuing education subject matter).

[ (b) Video and remote television presentations.Video and remote television presentations are ac-ceptable for continuing education credit if thepresentation is for an organized group in an in-structional setting, with a qualified resource per-son available to answer questions and provide in-formation or if the following exist:

(1) The offering has been presented by an accred-ited (Commission on Colleges or a regional accredi-tation association) college or university which of-fers similar programs in other disciplines.

(2) An individual successfully completes a writtenexamination administered at a location by an offi-cial approved by the college or university.

(3) The offering is equivalent to a minimum of 10classroom hours in length and is consistent withthe accepted topics listed in § 36.42(a). ]§ 36.51. [ Uniform Standards of Professional Ap-

praisal Practice ] Compliance with USPAP.

[ Certified real estate appraisers are under a dutyto perform a physical inspection of the interior andcomplete exterior of the subject property on ap-praisals required by FIRREA to be performed by aState-certified or State-licensed real estate ap-praiser, unless an interior and complete exteriorinspection is not possible as of the effective date ofthe appraisal-that is, when improvements havebeen destroyed, removed or not yet built; inspec-tions are not legally or contractually possible; theappraiser is denied access by the property owner;or, a contract stipulates a ‘‘drive-by’’ appraisal.Certified appraisers shall perform real estate ap-praisals in accordance with the Uniform Standardsof Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) as pro-mulgated and adopted by the Appraisal StandardsBoard (ASB) of the Appraisal Foundation. TheUSPAP will be amended by the ASB and publishedannually in separate yearly bound editions. A copyof the USPAP may be obtained from the AppraisalFoundation, 1029 Vermont Avenue, N.W., Suite 900,Washington, D.C. 20005, (202) 347-7722. A violationof one or more provision of the USPAP may resultin disciplinary action by the Board under theauthority of section 11(a)(6) of the act (63 P. S.§ 457.11(a)(6)). ] A certified real estate appraisershall perform an appraisal in accordance withUSPAP. A certified real estate appraiser who vio-lates one or more provisions of USPAP may besubject to disciplinary action under the act. Acertified real estate appraiser can obtain a currentedition of USPAP by writing, telephoning ore-mailing the Appraisal Foundation at 1029 Ver-mont Avenue, N.W., Suite 900, Washington D.C.20005-3517, (202) 347-7722, or [email protected], respectively.

§ 36.52. Use of certificate number and title.

[ Each ] A certified real estate appraiser shall place hisname, signature and certificate number adjacent to orimmediately below the title ‘‘Pennsylvania certified gen-eral real estate appraiser,’’ [ or ] ‘‘Pennsylvania certifiedresidential real estate appraiser’’ or ‘‘Pennsylvania cer-tified broker/appraiser,’’ as appropriate, on eachwritten appraisal report and each written appraisal

agreement [ used by the certified appraiser certifi-cate holder in conducting appraisal activities ].Professional designations may be included adjacent to thesignature, if applicable. The following will serve as anexample:

/s/John Doe, (Professional designation, if applicable)

[ Pa. ] Pennsylvania Certified Residential Real EstateAppraiser

Certification number [ 1234 ] RL-999999-L

§ 36.54. Supervision of appraisal assistant.A certified residential real estate appraiser or

certified general real estate appraiser who utilizesan appraisal assistant shall:

(1) Provide written notification to the Board ofthe name and address of the assistant when theassistant begins work for the appraiser.

(2) Directly supervise and control the assistant’swork, assuming total responsibility for the contentsof the appraisal report, including all value conclu-sions.

(3) Accompany the assistant during the physicalinspection of the property as follows:

(i) In the case of an assistant who is not acertified residential real estate appraiser, accom-pany the assistant during the physical inspection ofthe property until the assistant has logged 300hours of experience or until the supervising ap-praiser determines the assistant is competent un-der USPAP to perform the physical inspection un-accompanied, whichever is the longer period.

(ii) In the case of an assistant who is a certifiedresidential real estate appraiser seeking to obtainqualifying experience for certification as a generalreal estate appraiser, accompany the assistant dur-ing the physical inspection of the property until thesupervising appraiser determines the assistant iscompetent under USPAP to perform the physicalinspection unaccompanied.

(4) Sign the appraisal report as a certified realestate appraiser under § 36.52 (relating to use ofcertificate number and title) and either have theassistant sign the appraisal report as assistant tothe certified real estate appraiser or identify theassistant in the certification section of the ap-praisal report, or in addendum to the appraisalreport, as having provided significant professionalassistance.

(5) Sign a Board-approved appraisal assistantchecklist that has been completed by the assistantand that relates to the assistant’s work on theappraisal report.

(6) Provide a current or former assistant who isapplying for appraiser certification with copies ofdesignated appraisal reports and appraisal assis-tant checklists requested by the Board to verify theassistant’s experience.

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS§ 36.91. Reactivation of lapsed certification.

[ (a) ] A [ certificate holder ] certified real estateappraiser whose certification has lapsed [ by failing ]for failure to biennially renew certification may apply tothe Board for reactivation of certification by paying [ the



current biennial renewal fee as set forth in § 36.6(relating to fees), meeting the continuing educationrequirement of § 36.41 (relating to purpose) for thecurrent renewal period and submitting documenta-tion to verify the period of time in which thecertificate holder abstained from performing ap-praisals in connection with Federally-related trans-actions in this Commonwealth and from holdinghimself out as a State-certified real estate ap-praiser ] the renewal fee required under § 36.6(relating to fees) and providing documentation ofhaving completed 28 hours of continuing educationas required under § 36.41 (relating to continuingeducation requirement) within the 2-year periodimmediately preceding the date of filing of thereactivation application. A certified real estate ap-praiser who performed an appraisal, or held him-self out as an appraiser, during a period when hiscertification was lapsed may be subject to disciplin-ary action by the Board under section 3 of the act(63 P. S. § 457.3) in addition to being required topay late renewal fees under section 225 of theBureau of Professional and Occupational AffairsFee Act (63 P. S. § 1401-225).

[ (b) A certificate holder will not be assessed alate renewal fee for the preceding biennial periodsin which the certificate holder abstained from theperformance of appraisals in connection withFederally-related transactions in this Common-wealth and from holding himself out as a State-certified real estate appraiser.

(c) A certificate holder whose certificate haslapsed by failing to biennially renew certification isprohibited from performing an appraisal in connec-tion with a Federally-related transaction in thisCommonwealth unless the certification is reacti-vated. If a certificate holder performs an appraisalin connection with a Federally-related transactionin this Commonwealth or holds himself out as aState-certified real estate appraiser during a periodin which the certificate holder’s certification is notrenewed, the certificate holder shall pay a laterenewal fee of $5 for each month or part of themonth beyond the date specified for renewal, asprovided in section 225 of the Bureau of Profes-sional and Occupational Affairs Fee Act (63 P. S.§ 1401-225), in addition to the prescribed biennialrenewal fee. The certificate holder may also besubject to disciplinary action by the Board forperforming an appraisal in connection with aFederally-related transaction in this Common-wealth or for holding himself out as a State-certified real estate appraiser without a currentcertificate, or both. ]

Subchapter C. CERTIFIED PENNSYLVANIAEVALUATORS

QUALIFICATIONS FOR CERTIFICATION

§ 36.224. [ Correspondence ] Distance educationcourses.

[ Correspondence courses will be ] A distanceeducation course is acceptable to meet the classroomhour requirement if [ each ] the course is approved bythe Board and meets the following conditions:

(1) The course is presented by [ an accredited col-lege or university which offers correspondence pro-grams in other disciplines. ] one of the following:

(i) An accredited (Commission on Colleges or aregional accreditation association) college or uni-versity that offers distance education programs inother disciplines.

(ii) A course provider that has received approvalfor course design and delivery mechanism from theInternational Distance Education Certification Cen-ter and approval for course content from the Boardor from the AQB through its Course ApprovalProgram.

(2) The applicant successfully completes a written ex-amination [ administered ] proctored by an officialapproved by the college [ or ], university or othercourse provider.

(3) The content and length of the courses [ meets ]meet the requirements of § 36.222[ (a) and (b) ] (relat-ing to required courses of study).

§ 36.225. [ Video and remote television courses ](Reserved).

[ Video and remote television courses will beacceptable to meet the classroom hour requirementif each offering is approved by the Board and meetsthe following conditions:

(1) The course has been presented by an accred-ited college or university which offers similar pro-grams in other disciplines.

(2) An applicant successfully completes a writtenexamination administered by an official approvedby the college or university.

(3) The content and length of the course meetsthe requirement of § 36.222(a) and (b) (relating torequired courses of study). ]

CONTINUING EDUCATION

§ 36.261. Continuing education requirement.

(a) [ Continuing education of 28 classroom hoursper biennium, including at least 4 hours on theUniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Prac-tice and at least 2 hours on the Assessors Certifica-tion Act (63 P. S. §§ 458.1—458.16), this chapter andthe policies of the Board, shall be required of acertified Pennsylvania evaluator as a condition ofbiennial renewal of certification. ] Except as pro-vided in subsection (b), a certified Pennsylvaniaevaluator shall complete 28 classroom hours ofcontinuing education—including at least 4 hours onUSPAP and at least 2 hours on the act, this chapterand the policies of the Board—during each biennialrenewal period as a condition of renewal of certifi-cation for the next biennial renewal period. Effec-tive with renewal of certification for the 2007-2009biennial renewal period, the USPAP requirementshall be the 7-hour National USPAP Update Courseor an equivalent 7-hour course approved by theAQB.

(b) A certified Pennsylvania evaluator whose initialcertification becomes effective between January 1 andJune 30 of a biennial renewal year will not be requiredto furnish proof of continuing education as a condition ofbiennial renewal of certification in that biennial renewalyear.



§ 36.263. [ Correspondence courses/video and re-mote television presentations ] Distance educa-tion.

[ (a) Correspondence courses. Correspondencecourses will be ] A distance education course isacceptable for continuing education credit if it is ap-proved by the Board and meets the following condi-tions:

(1) The course [ has been ] is presented by [ anaccredited college or university which offers corre-spondence programs in other disciplines ] one ofthe following:

(i) A course provider that presents the course toan organized group in an instructional setting witha person qualified and available to answer ques-tions, provide information and monitor attendance.

(ii) An accredited (Commission on Colleges or aregional accreditation association) college or uni-versity that offers distance education programs inother disciplines.

(iii) A course provider that has received approvalfor course design and delivery mechanism from theInternational Distance Education Certification Cen-ter and approval for course content from the Boardor from the AQB through its Course ApprovalProgram.

(2) [ An individual ] With regard to a course pre-sented under paragraph (1)(ii) or (iii), the certifiedPennsylvania evaluator successfully completes a writ-ten examination [ administered ] proctored by an offi-cial approved by the college [ or ], university or othercourse provider.

(3) The [ offering is at least 10 classroom hours inlength and covers the accepted topics in ] contentand length of the course meets the requirements of§ 36.262 (relating to continuing education subject mat-ter).

[ (b) Video and remote television presentations.Video and remote television presentations are ac-ceptable for continuing education credit if thepresentation is for an organized group in an in-structional setting, with a qualified resource per-son available to answer questions and provide in-formation or if the following conditions are met:

(1) The offering has been presented by an accred-ited college or university which offers similar pro-grams in other disciplines.

(2) An individual successfully completes a writtenexamination administered by an official approvedby the college or university.

(3) The offering is at least 10 classroom hours inlength and covers the accepted topics listed in§ 36.262. ]

REACTIVATION OF CERTIFICATION§ 36.271. Reactivation of lapsed certification.

(a) A certified Pennsylvania evaluator whose certifica-tion has lapsed [ by failing ] for failure to bienniallyrenew certification may apply to the Board for reactiva-tion of certification by paying [ the current biennialrenewal fee as set forth in § 36.6 (relating to fees),meeting the continuing education requirement es-

tablished by law and regulation for the currentbiennial renewal period and submitting documenta-tion to verify the period of time in which thecertified Pennsylvania evaluator abstained fromperforming valuations of real property for ad valo-rem tax purposes in this Commonwealth and fromholding himself out as a certified Pennsylvaniaevaluator ] the renewal fee required under § 36.6(relating to fees) and providing documentation ofhaving completed 28 hours of continuing educationas required under § 36.261 (relating to continuingeducation requirement) within the 2-year periodimmediately preceding the date of filing of thereactivation application. A certified Pennsylvaniaevaluator who performed a valuation of real prop-erty for ad valorem tax purposes, or held himselfout as a certified Pennsylvania evaluator, during aperiod when his certification was lapsed may besubject to disciplinary action by the Board underthe act in addition to being required to pay laterenewal fees under section 225 of the Bureau ofProfessional and Occupational Affairs Fee Act (63P. S. § 1401-225).

[ (b) A certified Pennsylvania evaluator will notbe assessed a late renewal fee for the precedingbiennial periods in which the certified Pennsylva-nia evaluator abstained from the performance ofvaluations of real property for ad valorem taxpurposes in this Commonwealth and from holdinghimself out as a certified Pennsylvania evaluator.

(c) A certified Pennsylvania evaluator whose cer-tification has lapsed by failing to biennially renewcertification is prohibited from performing valua-tions of real property for ad valorem tax purposesin this Commonwealth unless the certification sta-tus is reactivated. If a certified Pennsylvania evalu-ator performs valuations of real property for advalorem tax purposes in this Commonwealth orholds himself out as a certified Pennsylvania evalu-ator during a period in which the certified Pennsyl-vania evaluator’s certification is not renewed, thecertified Pennsylvania evaluator shall pay a laterenewal fee of $5 for each month or part of themonth beyond the date specified for renewal, asprovided in section 225 of the Bureau of Profes-sional and Occupational Affairs Fee Act (63 P. S.§ 1401-225), in addition to the prescribed biennialrenewal fee. The certified Pennsylvania evaluatormay also be subject to disciplinary action by theBoard for performing valuations of real propertyfor ad valorem tax purposes in this Commonwealthor for holding himself out as a certified Pennsylva-nia evaluator without a current certificate, orboth. ]

STANDARDS OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT

§ 36.281. Standards of Professional Conduct.

* * * * *

Standard 1. General duties.

Certified Pennsylvania evaluators shall perform theirduties in accordance with the general and specific countyassessment laws and generally accepted assessment stan-dards. Certified Pennsylvania evaluators shall perform allassessments in accordance with [ the Uniform Stan-dards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP)as promulgated and adopted by the Appraisal Stan-dards Board of the Appraisal Foundation ] USPAP.



[ The USPAP will be amended by the ASB andpublished annually in separate yearly bound edi-tions. A ] Certified Pennsylvania evaluators mayobtain a copy of the current edition of the USPAP[ may be obtained from ] by writing, telephoningor e-mailing the Appraisal Foundation[ , ] at 1029 Ver-mont Avenue, N.W., Suite 900, Washington, D.C. 20005-3517, (202) 347-7722 or [email protected], respectively.

* * * * *[Pa.B. Doc. No. 06-932. Filed for public inspection May 26, 2006, 9:00 a.m.]



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