Through Ohio EPA's eBusiness Center, operators can access their operator profile, update contact information, view completed courses, submit a variety of applications and even pay program fees electronically.

How to apply for Water/Wastewater Certification:

• Ohio EPA Paper and Pencil Examination (PDF, Video)
• Application for Certification Through an Approved Exam Provider (PDF, Video)
• Reciprocity Application (PDF, Video)
  Note: Upon approval of your application, certificates are issued after verification of employment in Ohio.

​How do I Renew my Ohio EPA Operator's Certificate? (PDF, Video) — For answers to Commonly Asked Questions concerning operator certificate renewals, please click here.

​How to Obtain Contact Hour Approval — Operator's Application for Ohio EPA Contact Hour Course Approval (PDF, Video)
Note: Applications must be submitted within 30 days of course completion.

Training Providers will be able to update program contact information, apply for courses, upload course schedules and course attendance information for operators. The following eBusiness Center links should be used by new training providers and those training providers who currently submit Contact Hour Course Approval Applications to Ohio EPA for each course. These course approval numbers are generated by Ohio EPA with the "OEPA" prefix and can be found on the approved course list on our website.

• Apply for Ohio EPA Contact Hour Course Approval (PDF, Video)
• Schedule Training Dates for "OEPA" Prefix Courses (PDF, Video)
• ​Upload Attendance for Courses with "OEPA" Prefix Approval Numbers (PDF, Video)
  Note: Attendance should be uploaded within 30 days of course completion. You will need the Core Person ID number for each operator in attendance.

Approved Contact Hour Training Providers (ACHTPs) are training providers who have received authority from Ohio EPA to issue their own unique course approval numbers without having to submit individual course applications. Training providers will be given the option to apply for the ACHTP program in eBusiness Center once they have provided a minimum of 12 Ohio EPA-approved contact hours for at least three years. ACHTPs submit monthly training calendars to Ohio EPA by the first of the month for each month they are conducting training.

• Apply for the ACHTP Program
• Upload ACHTP Unique Prefix Course Schedules (PDF, Video)
  Note: Schedules must be uploaded by the first of the month. These schedules will contain ACHTP unique approval numbers and may contain any "OEPA" numbers your organization has been approved to use. You may upload course schedules for more than one course at a time. 
• Upload Attendance for ACHTP Unique Prefix Courses (PDF, Video)
  Note: Attendance should be uploaded within 30 days of course completion. You may upload attendance for more than one course at a time. You will need the Core Person ID number for each operator in attendance.

Exam entrance letters are emailed to applicants once the application is approved by the Operator Certification Unit. Please check your email for your letter. Exam entrance letters can also be found in your Operator Profile in the eBusiness Center’s Operator Service. You will need a hard copy of your Exam entrance letter to enter the exams.

• 2018 Ohio EPA Exam Dates and Deadlines
  IMPORTANT: Applications must be SUBMITTED with PIN and payment in the eBusiness Center by the exam application deadline. Submissions after the exam application deadline will not be accepted. If you have any questions, please call our office at (866) 411-6728.
  

• Class A, I, II and III Application Instructions for Ohio EPA Exams
  IMPORTANT: All currently certified operators must include their supervisor's information and signature in the "Supervisor Information" portion of the exam application. Any applications received without this information will automatically be considered for an operator in training (OIT).

Ohio EPA is pleased to announce alternative water and wastewater operator certification examinations, which are available more frequently and in more locations than Ohio EPA’s traditional paper and pencil testing.

The State of Ohio has approved the Association of Boards of Certification (ABC) as an approved examination provider. Operators may now choose to take an ABC examination and then seek State of Ohio certification for all levels of certification except Class IV.

ABC examinations will be offered in Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton and Toledo. Ohio EPA will continue to offer paper and pencil examinations in Columbus in the spring and fall of each year.

Applications for the traditional paper and pencil testing are available here. If you have any questions, feel free to contact the operator certification unit at 1-866-411-OPCT (6728) or by email. To find out more about the ABC certification program, please visit ABC's Ohio Certification website.

• Schedule an Examination Through ABC
• Application for Certification Through an Approved Exam Provider - To be completed by an operator who has passed an exam given by an approved examination provider (e.g., ABC)

• Class IV Eligibility Requirements
• Class IV Exam Application
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Policy statement, Guidance and Examination
  
  • Additional guidance on wastewater plant section
• Advisory Council Class IV exam review checklists
  
  • Drinking water
  • Wastewater

• Courses and Experience Credit
• Free Class A Water Operator Training
• Free Class A Wastewater Operator Training
  • Note: This course is not approved for contact hours. This course can be used to assist in preparing for the Class A Wastewater exam.

Need-to-know Criteria

The following documents provide need-to know criteria that test-takers will be expected to know for each type of certified operator exam.

• Water
• Wastewater
• Wastewater Collection

Formulas

Those taking the certified operator exam will be expected to know the formulas provided in the appropriate document below (e.g., those taking the wastewater operator certification exam should consult the "wastewater formulas" document).

• Water
• Wastewater

References

A number of helpful references have been compiled to assist those studying for Ohio EPA operator certification exams. These references are only intended as a resource and are not required to be purchased in order for individuals to pass their exams. 

• References

Anyone Can Submit an Exam Question Suggestion

The Division of Drinking and Ground Waters accepts exam question suggestions. Complete and submit the Ohio EPA Operator Certification Exam Question Submittal Form provided below.  Instructions for submitting the form are included in the document.

• Ohio EPA Operator Certification Exam Question Submittal Form [PDF] or [Word]

• Contact Hour Course Approval Application
  Attention Training Providers: As of April 1, 2015, Ohio EPA no longer accepts paper Contact Hour Course Approval Applications. Please go the eBusiness Center tab for instructions on how to set up an eBusiness Center account and apply for contact hours.
• Example Course Completion Certificate (PDF)
• Example Sign-in Sheet (PDF)

Ohio’s certified operators are required to complete contact hour training to renew their certificates. A number of courses have been pre-approved by Ohio EPA and have “OEPA” numbers generated by our Agency for contact hour use. Courses are also being approved by our Approved Contact Hour Training Providers (ACHTPs). Both course approval types will appear on the following lists.

• Water (as of March 21, 2018)
• Wastewater (as of March 21, 2018)

Note:

• Effective April 21, 2017, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) courses approved through Ohio EPA DDAGW Central Office will no longer be accepted for Operation & Maintenance (OM) hours. These course will still be accepted for Other (X) hours. Please refer to the above lists for the new approval numbers for the associated courses.
• Effective Jan. 1, 2014, we will no longer accept Montana State University CD-ROM courses for contact hour credit. Most of these courses are 10 years old or older, there is no technical support for them and operators have experienced significant difficulties tracking the hours they have completed. If you need additional contact hours for your operator certification renewal, please view our approved course lists above for options or take a look at the free Class A Water Supply training.

Approved Contact Hour Training Providers (ACHTPs) have received authority from Ohio EPA to conduct contact hour courses without having to submit a Contact Hour Course Approval application to the Operator Certification Unit for each course. These ACHTPs have the ability to assign their own unique approval number and contact hours to each course they offer. Training providers who are not included in the List of Approved Contact Hour Training Providers may still provide contact hour courses by getting each individual course approved by the Ohio EPA.

• List of Approved Contact Hour Training Providers
• List of Internet and Correspondence Based Training Providers — Contact hours can also be earned through internet, correspondence or CD-ROM based courses. Examples of these types of training providers are included in the above list. This list is meant as a resource and is not intended to be exhaustive.
• Application for Approval as an Approved Contact Hour Training Provider — to request to be added to the list of ACHTPs, complete and submit this form.