Utah Administrative Code R68-7 — Utah Pesticide Control Act Rules

Citation

Utah Administrative Code Title R68 (Department of Agriculture and Food), Chapter 7 (Utah Pesticide Control Act Rules). Administered by the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF), 4315 South 2700 West, Suite 2100, Taylorsville, UT 84129. R68-7 implements the Utah Pesticide Control Act (Utah Code Title 4, Chapter 14) and establishes the legal framework for pesticide application, applicator licensure, recordkeeping, and enforcement in Utah.

What It Says (Operative Provisions)

R68-7 establishes three applicator classifications and a set of certification categories. The classifications and categories most relevant to healthcare pest management:

Applicator classifications:

• Commercial applicators: Apply pesticides for hire on properties not owned by their employer
• Non-commercial applicators: Apply pesticides as employees of the property owner on property owned, leased, or rented by the employer
• Private applicators: Apply restricted-use pesticides on agricultural land or facilities owned by the applicator

Certification categories relevant to healthcare facilities:

Category names and scope below are the rule’s own, from R68-7-7. Full verbatim text of Category 7 is quoted further down.

• Category 7 — Structural and Health Related Pest Control: applicators applying pesticides in, on, or around food handling establishments, dwellings, educational institutions, medical institutions, industrial buildings, business establishments, and other structures and immediately adjacent areas; includes vertebrate pests in and within three feet of structures. Excludes Fumigation (13) and Wood Destroying Organisms (15).
• Category 8 — Public Health Pest Control: limited to applicators managing pests “due to issues of medical and public health importance.” The commercial branch is valid only while the applicator is actively contracted by a government entity; the non-commercial branch is limited to government employees in government-sponsored public health programs. A pest company serving a private hospital does not work under this category.
• Category 12 — Vertebrate Animal Pest Control: applicators applying pesticides for the outdoor control of vertebrate pests such as rodents, birds, bats, predators, or domestic animal pests. Excludes Regulatory Pest Control (9), and specifically excludes sodium cyanide and sodium fluoroacetate.
• Category 15 — Wood Destroying Organisms Pest Control: applicators applying pesticides to control termites, carpenter ants, wood-boring or tunneling insects, bees, wasps, wood-decaying fungi, and other pests destroying wood products.

The Category 7 / Category 12 boundary is the one that catches healthcare facilities out. Rodent work inside the building and within three feet of it is Category 7; rodent and bird work beyond that — dumpster corrals, loading docks set back from the wall, roof and grounds — is Category 12. A vendor certified only in Category 7 is not certified for the exterior rodent program most hospitals actually need.

Examination requirement:

Commercial and Non-Commercial applicators must score 70% or higher on the General Standards examination and at least one category examination. Each category requires a separate examination.

License fees (Commercial Applicator):

• 3-year license: $65
• 1-year license: $55 + $35 for each of the next two years

Continuing Education Unit (CEU) requirement — R68-7-11(10)(c)(ii), verbatim and complete:

“(10) Commercial Pesticide Applicator and Commercial Pesticide Business License Recertification and Renewal. (a) Each commercial pesticide applicator and commercial pesticide business license shall expire on December 31 of the third calendar year following its issuance. (b) Commercial pesticide applicators shall recertify before their license expires, and may be subject to re-examination at any time during their valid license period. (c) Recertification options include: (i) completion of the original certification process by taking the required pesticide core and pesticide category tests and successfully completing each required test with a minimum score of 70%; or (ii) participation in approved CEUs and accumulating the required amount of 24 total CEU credits during the licensure period. A minimum of two credits in law, six in safety, and ten in pesticide use are required, while any combination of the three categories may be used for the remaining six credits.”

The licensure period for Utah commercial applicators is three years: a license expires on December 31 of the third calendar year following issuance. Recertification is either/or — retest at 70% per test, or 24 CEUs allocated 2 law / 6 safety / 10 pesticide use, with the remaining 6 in any combination.

Application records — R68-7-11(11), verbatim:

“(11) Records Maintained. Commercial applicators shall keep and maintain records of any pesticide applications. (a) These records shall be recorded within 24 hours after the pesticide application is made. (b) The application records shall include the following information: (i) the name and address of the person or entity for whom the pesticide is applied; (ii) the address of the pesticide application location, if the pesticide application location differs from Subsection R68-7-11(11)(a)(i); (iii) the total square footage or total size of the area to be treated with pesticides; (iv) a description of the specific target sites, crops, commodities, or stored products at the pesticide application location to which any pesticides are applied; (v) the time and date, including the month, day, and year when the pesticide was applied; (vi) the brand name of the pesticides, EPA registration number, and mix rate for any pesticides applied; (vii) the total amount of pesticides, including diluted or ready-to-use (RTU) pesticides, applied per location and per application; (viii) the purpose of the pesticide application, the pesticide target site, and pest to be treated; (ix) the name, commercial pesticide business address, and commercial pesticide applicator license number of the certified commercial pesticide applicator who applied the pesticides; and (c) Records shall be kept for a period of at least two years from the date of the pesticide application and shall be available for inspection by the department upon request. (d) Records shall be furnished in a uniform format.”

This is the enforceable service-record specification for Utah. Nine elements, recorded within 24 hours, retained at least two years, inspectable on request. A healthcare facility reviewing a vendor’s service tickets can check them against this list directly.

Hospital-specific application restriction — R68-7-19(8), verbatim:

“No pesticides shall be applied by aircraft or air blast sprayers to property abutting or adjacent to schools in session, hospitals, nursing homes, or other similar establishments, when occupied, under conditions that may result in contamination of these establishments or their premises.”

This is the one place in R68-7 where hospitals and nursing homes are named as such.

What It Means in Plain Language

Utah R68-7 establishes the legal floor for who may apply pesticides commercially in Utah. Any individual applying pesticides for hire in a Utah hospital, skilled nursing facility, ambulatory surgery center, or any other healthcare facility must hold current Utah commercial applicator licensure with the appropriate category certification.

The category most directly relevant to healthcare facility pest management is Category 7 — Structural and Health Related Pest Control. The rule’s own definition, at R68-7-7(7), verbatim:

“This category includes applicators applying pesticides in, on, or around any public or private food handling establishment; dwelling, educational institution, or medical institution; industrial building; business establishment; packing house; food-processing facility; prison; manufacturing facility; grain elevator; or any other structure or area, or immediately adjacent structure or area, to control pests. This category excludes any pesticide applications included in Subsection R68-7-7(13) Fumigation Pest Control and Subsection R68-7-7(15) Wood Destroying Organisms Pest Control. This category includes applicators applying pesticides on vertebrate pests in buildings and structures, and immediately adjacent to, or no further than three feet from, buildings and structures. If the label for a structural pesticide permits the use of the pesticide more than three feet from the structure, then the pesticide may be used beyond three feet from the structure, but may not exceed the maximum distance permitted by the label.”

The operative words for healthcare are “medical institution” — the rule does not use the word “hospital” in this category definition. Category 7 covers general structural pest management in healthcare facilities and, notably, vertebrate pests within three feet of the structure, with the three-foot limit extendable only as far as the product label permits. Beyond that distance, outdoor vertebrate work falls to a different category.

Category 12 (Vertebrate Animal Pest Control) is relevant for outdoor rodent and bird management at healthcare facility exterior perimeters, loading docks, and roof environments.

Category 15 (Wood-Destroying Organisms) is relevant for termite and carpenter ant management on healthcare facility structures, particularly older buildings and facilities with significant structural wood elements.

The R68-7 framework is the legal baseline — it is not interchangeable with BCE professional credentialing:

• State pesticide applicator licensure confers the legal authority to apply pesticides commercially
• BCE professional credentialing confers the professional credential to design programs, audit operations, supervise other applicators, and sign off on technical documentation
• A healthcare facility can be served by appropriately Category 7-licensed technicians
• What BCE-led programs add is the credentialed professional accountable for program design, infection prevention coordination, and audit-defensible documentation

Who It Applies To

R68-7 applies to all commercial and non-commercial pesticide applicators operating in Utah. For healthcare facility pest management contexts:

• Contracted pest management providers serving Utah hospitals, SNFs, ambulatory surgery centers, and other healthcare facilities
• In-house facility staff who apply pesticides as part of employment (non-commercial applicator licensure)
• Pest management programs in Utah VA medical facilities, IHS facilities, and federal property within Utah (where state licensure interacts with federal jurisdiction)

Out-of-state licensed applicators must obtain Utah reciprocity or Utah licensure before applying pesticides commercially in Utah hospitals.

Documentation Evidence Required

For Utah hospital pest management compliance with R68-7:

• Verification of applicator’s current Utah commercial (or non-commercial) license with appropriate category certification (typically Category 7 at minimum for general healthcare structural work)
• Pesticide application records meeting all nine elements of R68-7-11(11)(b), recorded within 24 hours and retained at least two years
• Pesticide storage and labeling compliance with UDAF requirements
• CEU compliance documentation for licensed applicators

For healthcare facilities verifying applicator credentials before contracting:

• Request current UDAF license number and verify status at UDAF
• Verify category certifications match the scope of work to be performed (Category 7 for general structural; Category 12 for outdoor vertebrate; Category 15 for WDO)
• Document the verification in the contractor file

How Surveyors Evaluate It

UDAF conducts compliance inspections of licensed pesticide applicators and complaint investigations. UDAF does not survey healthcare facilities directly; the facility’s responsibility is to contract with appropriately licensed applicators and to verify credentials.

Joint Commission, CMS, and DNV-GL healthcare facility surveyors verify applicator licensure indirectly when evaluating pest management contracts and service records. Surveyors look for:

• Named applicator credentials in pest management contracts
• UDAF license verification in contractor files
• Pesticide application records demonstrating that all applications were performed by appropriately licensed applicators
• Coordination between healthcare facility risk management and contracted pest management providers regarding licensure compliance

Common findings: pest management contracts that do not specify applicator credentials, applicator licensure verification gaps in contractor files, and pesticide application records that do not identify the individual applicator and credential.

Confidence Notes

HIGH confidence as of September 12, 2026. The full text of R68-7 as rendered by the Utah Office of Administrative Rules is held in this reference’s primary-source archive (Utah_AdminCode_R68-7_PesticideControlRule_LastChange_2022-09-07.txt, captured from adminrules.utah.gov on September 11, 2026). Every quotation on this page was read from that capture: R68-7-7(7), R68-7-11(10), R68-7-11(11), and R68-7-19(8).

Rule currency: Date of Last Change September 7, 2022; Notice of Continuation November 17, 2025. A 2022 rule that received a Notice of Continuation in 2025 is current, not stale — the continuation is Utah’s five-year review confirming the rule remains in force.

Related Killed Claims

• “Utah pesticide applicator licensure is interchangeable with BCE professional credentialing.” Disconfirmed. State applicator licensure is the legal floor for pesticide application. BCE is a separate voluntary professional credential. The two confer different authorities and serve different purposes.

• “Category 7 certification authorizes pest management program design and oversight in healthcare facilities.” Disconfirmed. Category 7 authorizes commercial pesticide application within the structural and health-related category. Program design, oversight, and sign-off authority are professional credentialing functions (BCE) rather than applicator licensure functions.

• “UDAF’s Category 7 definition names ‘institutions such as schools, hospitals.’” Disconfirmed on September 12, 2026, and carried on this page inside quotation marks until that date. R68-7-7(7) says “dwelling, educational institution, or medical institution.” The phrase “institutions such as schools, hospitals” does not appear in R68-7. The substance — that Category 7 reaches healthcare facilities — is correct; the quotation was not.

• “The CEU requirement is at R68-7-11(10)(b)(ii).” Disconfirmed. It is at R68-7-11(10)(c)(ii). Subsection (10)(b) is the requirement to recertify before expiry; (10)(c) lists the two recertification options, and the CEU option is (c)(ii).