Source: USDA NATURAL RESOURCE CONSERVATION SERVICE, 12/17/14

We are happy to announce to you that CAP 128 Agricultural Energy Management Plan is now available in TechReg for you to apply for certification. The CAP 128 was announced in October as the Conservation Activity Plan that is replacing the CAP 122 Agricultural Energy Management Plan-Headquarters and CAP 124 Agricultural Energy Management Plan-Landscape.

Who can work on CAP 122, 124 and 128 contracts?
• All new contracts signed by landowners for EQIP Technical Assistance will be done under CAP 128. A TSP must be certified for CAP 128 in order to work on a CAP 128 contract.
• Any TSP currently certified for a CAP 122 or 124 with a current certification agreement for these CAPs, may continue to work on CAP 122 and 124 contracts.
• Anyone certified under the new CAP 128 can also work on prior FY15 contracts for CAP 122 or 124.

Applying for Certification for CAP 128:
• Log into your TSP Profile in TechReg and go to Section G2-Conservation Activity Plans
• Click on Add Activity Plan button
• Select a state from the drop down list
• Click on CAP-Agricultural Energy Management Plan (128) from the list of Activity Plans Available. CAP 128 is the first one listed.
• Use the >>>> button in the middle to move the CAP 128 to the box on the right, then click save.

This will bring the CAP 128 into your profile. For each CAP 128 entry listed in Section G2, you need to confirm you have met the qualifications for this CAP by clicking on the Confirm Qualifications button. To confirm qualifications:

• Choose the certification option that matches your specific qualifications.
• Associate your certification or license as it applies to you from the drop down list in the License/Certificate column next to the criteria that requires it.
• Check a corresponding box to the right of each criterion that corresponds to the section(s) in Part 1 of your profile where you have documented you have met the requirement. At least one box needs to be checked for each criterion listed within the certification option.
• Once you have confirmed qualifications for each criterion within a single certification option, then click Save.

For each item you added to your application and completed the confirmed qualifications step, you should notice the status in Section G2 go from Incomplete to Ready to Sign. Once you have confirmed qualifications for each new item added to Section G, then you need to work through Section H for the CAP 128 to only associate practices that you have knowledge and experience at providing. You will do this by locating CAP 128 in your application in Section H, click on the Edit button, select only those practices you wish to keep, use the >>>> button in the middle to move them to the box on the right, then click Save.

Once you have added the CAP 128 in Section G2 and worked through associating practices in Section H, make sure all other information in your profile has been updated including expiration dates for any licenses/certificates listed in Section C1. Once all information in your profile has been updated, please sign the certification agreement in Section J to submit your application.

Application review and sample plan waiver:
As with all application reviews we have a period of 60 days to review your application. The requirement of a sample plan review will be waived if the following two criteria are true:
a. A sample plan was initially submitted and approved for either 122 or 124; and
b. At least one plan has been submitted and approved for payment.

PE license requirements for individual states:
It is the expectation of NRCS that TSPs understand, and will work within, all state, local and tribal laws and regulations, including all licensing and certification requirements. It is the responsibility of the TSP to know if a specific license/certification is required by state, local or tribal law. If a TSP doesn’t qualify for a state due to a license/certification requirement not being met, then the TSP should not apply for that state. If clarification of a law or regulation is needed or if a TSP wishes to have a determination made, then it is the responsibility of the TSP to obtain it from the appropriate state’s licensing board. If a license/certification is required by a state to complete a CAP 128, then NRCS does have the obligation to honor the requirement and certify accordingly.

If there is no license specifically required by a state, then TSPs should select No License Required for this State from the drop down list in the license/certificate column when confirming qualifications.

Expiring certifications for CAP 122 and 124:

TSPs who are currently certified for CAP 122 and 124 will remain certified for until the date their certification agreement expires. TSPs will not be able to reapply for certification for CAP 122 or 124 and must apply for certification for CAP 128 if they wish to continue TSP services for Agricultural Energy Management Plans for NRCS.

TSPs who are currently certified for CAP 122 and 124 have been temporarily removed from the public site. There will be a delay on the public side of expiring CAP 122 and 124 which will cause filtering for certified TSPs for CAP 122 and 124 to be unavailable. TSPs certified for CAP 122 and 124 should reappear on the public site in a few weeks.

Anyone with questions or needing assistance, please contact your State TSP Coordinator.