Louisiana

General Information on Louisiana Professional Geologist Licenses

Does state provide a license: Yes

Current Active Licensees

Title Licensees
Professional Geoscientist 973

License: Professional Geoscientist

Exam Entity: ASBOG

Licensing Board: Louisiana Board of Professional Geoscientists

Licensing Board Website: http://www.lbopg.org/

Continuing Education and Experience

Degree required:

Minimum degree level required to licensure as specified by the state regulations. ‘Other’ indicates that minimum education requirements must be met that are considered equivalent to a college degree, or minimum experience requirements must be met. See notes and applicable state laws and regulations for complete information.

  • Bachelor’s Degree

Majors accepted:

Majors defined in the state regulations as acceptable to obtain a professional geologist or geoscientist license, or for the specified environmental professional license in states without a PG license.

  • Environmental Geology
  • Petroleum Geology
  • Geology
  • Hydrogeology
  • Engineering Geology
  • Geophysics
  • Soil Science

Courses required:

  • Not specified

Courses accepted:

  • Paleontology
  • Environmental Geology
  • Structural Geology
  • Economic Geology
  • Petrology
  • Geochemistry
  • Petroleum Geology
  • Stratigraphy
  • Historical Geology
  • Hydrogeology
  • Engineering Geology
  • Mineralogy
  • Geophysics
  • Physical Geology
  • Mining Geology

Geology credits required: 30

Minimum number of semester hours in relevant course work required for licensure. Thirty (30) semester hours = forty-five (45) quarter hours; twenty-four (24) semester hours = thirty-six (36) quarter hours.

Credit information: The applicants courses must consist of at least four (4) years of study and includes at least thirty(30) semester hours or forty-five (45) quarter hours of credit in geoscience, of which at least twenty (20) semester hours or thrity (30) quarter hours of credit must be in upper-level college courses in that discipline.

Education Notes: See the state regulations for a complete explanation of the education requirements for licensure.

Years of experience required: 5

Experience credits needed: 2

Experience information: Each year of full-time graduate study in a discipline of geoscience that is acceptable to the board constitutes one year of qualifying work experience. However, the board may not accept more than two years of full-time graduate study in a discipline of geoscience as qualifying work experience. The board may accept research in or the teaching of a discipline of geoscience at the college or university level as qualifying work experience if the research or teaching, in the judgment of the board, is comparable to work experience obtained in the practice of geoscience.

Continuing education requirements: Yes

Ethics required for continuing education: Yes

Continuing education years: 15

Continuing education details: Each license holder is required to obtain fifteen (15) professional development hours (PDH) of continuing education credit per year for license renewal. A minimum of one PDH hour per renewal period must be in the area of professional ethics, roles and responsibilities of professional geoscientists.

Geologist in Training license available: Yes

Can take Fundamentals of Geology test before graduation: Yes

Fundamentals of Geology test details: Applicant has completed the education requirements as specified in R.S. 37:11.13 and 37:11.15(A)(4), or is currently enrolled in a course of study that meets the education requirements for licensure/certification and is within two regular semesters of completion of the qualifying course of study.

Legal Code Reference for GIT, FG: L.A.C. Title 46 Part LXII §907

Sunset and Audit Legislation Information

Most registration and licensure systems include structural approaches to review both the need and operational effectiveness of the process.

Some states provide formal sunset evaluation processes for their licensure programs. Many also include a periodic audit process of the licensure program/agency, which can range from cursory financial reviews to comprehensive evaluation of program effectiveness.

The audit process is often leveraged when political pressure is applied to eliminate geologist licensure, so awareness of the history and codes for audits and sunset evaluations is critical to montioring the health of the licensure within the state.

Current modes for sunsetting evaluation: Audit

License subject to sunset review: No

License subject to audit review: Yes

Sunset regulation name: Termination and Re-creation of Statutory Entities

Sunset statute: Revised Statutes, Title 49. State Administration, Part XII 49:190. Termination and Re-creation of Statutory Entities.

Sunset statute reference: http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/Laws_Toc.aspx?folder=75&level=Parent

Sunset committee website: https://www.lla.la.gov/

Sunset duration: None identified

Sunset notes: There is a formal Sunset Review process for Departments within the State of Louisiana. However, there is no formal process for boards. Ref: Louisiana Legislative Auditor (LLA) 2018 report to the Legislature, Key Audit Issues reported that “Auditors found that all 23 of LDAF’s boards and commissions met their statutory purposes or powers and duties. However, auditors also found that Louisiana does not have a process to review and sunset boards and commissions on a regular basis and recommended that the Legislature consider creating such a process.”

Other sunset references: Key Audit Issues, 2018 and Act 461 Report

Other sunset references website: https://lla.la.gov/PublicReports.nsf/D7C287027FC6FD25862582350070EA4E/$FILE/000179BA.pdf

Auditor name: Louisiana Legislative Auditor (LLA)

Auditor website: https://www.lla.la.gov/

Audit statute: Revised Statutes, Title 24. Chapter 8. Legislative Auditor; Legislative Audit Advisory Council

Audit Statute abbreviation: Revised Statutes, Title 24. Chapter 8. Legislative Auditor; Legislative Audit Advisory Council Section 41-5A-1

Audit statute link: http://www.legis.la.gov/legis/Laws_Toc.aspx?folder=75&level=Parent

Audit legislation committee: Joint Legislative Committee, Legislative Audit Advisory Council (LAAC)

Audit legislation committee website: https://lla.la.gov/laac/

Audit notes: According to LLA’s report Boards, Commissions, and Like Entities issued on April 6, 2016, Louisiana has the highest number of boards and commissions among southeastern states.

Sunset and Audit Legislation History

Year Action Notes
1976 Sunset law created The Termination and Re-creation of Statutory Entities law was created by Act No. 277 of 1976, LA Revised Statutes Annotated 49:190.
1978 Sunset law amended The sunset law was amended by Acts 1978, No. 674.
1983 Sunset law amended The sunset law was amended by Acts 1983, No. 450.
1995 Sunset law amended The sunset law was amended by Acts 1995, No. 712.
2011 Practice regulation The Louisiana Professional Geoscience Practice Act was created.
2014 Sunset law amended Senate Bill (SB)316 Act 461 passed and requires the Louisiana Legislative Auditor to make quarterly and annual reports to the Joint Legislative Committee on Budget when audits identify more the $150,000 of specific financial impacts.
2016 ASBOG The first ASBOG exam was administered.