Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection

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Commercial Junior Operator Certification to Engage in Use of Pesticides

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Who should have a Junior Operator Certification?

  1. Any person who applies pesticides or assists in the commercial application of pesticides in Connecticut, in other than a supervisory capacity, must have a junior operational certification (also called a junior operator license).   
  2. Any person who is hired to do pesticide application work for a commercial company will need an operational certificate. 
  3. Any certified supervisor doing work outside a catagorey they do not have.
  4. Any person not employed by a commercial business (examples include: golf course, property management, and government employees), but applying any restricted-use pesticide must also have a junior operator's certification and work under the supervision of a certified supervisor.
Junior Operator Certification Requirements
  1. An applicant must be at least 18 years old.
  2. Pass a written examination (given in English only).
  3. The exam is 55 single answer multiple choice questions, you must get at least 44 correct.
Registering for the Exam

  1. Complete the Application for Pesticide Junior Operator's Certification (Word Form; PDF) and submit it, along with a copy of the applicant's photo ID and the required fees.

  2.  Confirmation regarding receipt of your exam application will be sent by CPPU via email.

  3. After you receive a confirmation with an application number you may attend any of the scheduled exam dates. 

  4. The exam is a walk-in exam, you do not need to be on an attendance list. You will not be admitted into the exam unless the proctor has an application for you.

  5. You will receive your results by email after your application, fee, and exam have been processed, approximately 30 days after the exam has been taken.  Do not call the Pesticide Management Program Office for results of your test.

  6. You will be allowed 90 days to complete the exam process from when the application is received in CPPU.  If the exam is not taken within the 90 days, the application will be denied.  You will need to submit another application and fee if you wish to take the exam.

  7. The certificate should be printed on yellow paper or with yellow ink.

  8. If you fail an exam you must wait at least 30 days until you can retake the exam, a new application and fee must be submitted.

Fees

  • Each examination requires a fee of $200.00, payable to DEEP.
  • A re-examination appointment requires another application and $200.00 fee.  
  • No fee is charged to federal, state or municipal employees who apply pesticides as part of his or her duties as a governmental employee; however, any certificate for which a fee is not charged is automatically void if the holder is no longer a government employee. 
  • If a governmental employee wishes to convert the governmental certification to a commercial certification, he or she would need to send in another application with the $200.00 exam fee and indicate on the top of the application "please convert 'G' to 'O'".  It will not be necessary to retest, only pay the examination fee.

Payment Information:

Any fee submitted with a hard copy application, by mail, shall be paid by check or money order to the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection or DEEP. Do not send cash in the mail.

Cash Payments:

To pay in cash, the required fee along with completed applications/documents must be delivered to the Central Permit Processing Unit (CPPU) at DEEP (79 Elm Street in Hartford, CT). The exact fee amount must be provided; the department cannot provide change.

Credit Card Payments:

To pay by credit card, the card holder and only the card holder must come to the Central Permit Processing Unit (CPPU) at DEEP (79 Elm Street in Hartford, CT). They must bring all completed applications/documents that are being processed in the transaction.

A receipt will be provided for the fee payment and the applications/documents will move forward to be processed.

Exam Cancellations

If school is cancelled in the town that the exam is to be held, the exam will be cancelled.  Check radio and television announcements for information on school closures due to inclement weather.

Certificate Renewal

  • The operator's certificate must be renewed prior to the expiration date that appears on the certificate. The Pesticide Management Program will email renewal information to the certified operator prior to the expiration of the certificate.
  • In accordance with state regulation 22a-66-5(e), if your address or email changes, you must notify the Pesticide Management Program within 30 days.  
  • Complete the renewal application (Word Form; PDF) and submit it, along with the required fees (check or money order for $80.00 payable to the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection or DEEP) to the address specified on the application form. Be sure to sign and date the form.  You can expect your renewed certificate 30 days after CPPU/DEEP has received your renewal application and fee.
  • Note:  The fee is waived for Government employees who will be using the certificate only for their governmental affiliation.  

To possess an operator's certificate is a privilege. Remember that it can be suspended or revoked if pesticides are misused or if pesticide laws and regulations are not followed.

For more information please call the Pesticide Management Program at (860) 424-3369, email deep.pesticideprogram@ct.gov or write to:

Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
Bureau of Materials Management and Compliance Assurance
Pesticide Management Program
79 Elm Street
Hartford, CT 06106-5127

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Content Last updated on May 10, 2019