General Information
Texas Board of Professional Engineers & Land Surveyors
What We Do:
The Board's role in the protection of the public is to license qualified engineers and surveyors, enforce the Texas Engineering and Surveying Practice Acts, and regulate the practice of professional engineering and surveying in Texas. Currently, over 69,000 Professional Engineers and over 2,800 Registered Surveyors offer services in Texas. The Board handles over 600 enforcement cases per year, and provides a system of rules and regulations for the ethical and acceptable practice of professional engineering and surveying.
Agency Mission Statement
Our mission is to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the people of Texas through the licensure and registration of qualified individuals as professional engineers and land surveyors, compliance with applicable laws and rules, and education about engineering and land surveying.
Filing a Complaint
To act upon your complaint, the Board must know the "who, what, when, where, how", and, if possible, "why". Provide as much information as you can, including the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of other persons who know about the problem you're complaining about. Give the name(s) of city and/or county staff if you have had contact with them and they know something about your complaint. The Board needs all the facts you can provide in order to process your complaint. The Board does not have the staff to investigate inquiries based only upon suspicion or speculation. Before mailing your complaint, make an extra copy of everything for your own files. That way, if you get a telephone call from Board staff asking for clarification or additional information about your complaint, you'll be able to find the information.
The Board DOES accept anonymous complaints; however, please understand that since an investigator will be unable to contact you for clarification or for further information, please take care to include the information addressed in the paragraph above. Further, understand you will not be notified of the results of the investigation of your anonymous complaint. If using the complaint form you may write "anonymous" where it asks for your name and signature. If possible, all complaints should be filed in English.
For further information, refer to: http://pels.texas.gov/complaint.htm.
Who Should be Licensed and Registered
Under the Texas Engineering and Surveying Practice Act, only duly licensed and registered persons may legally perform, or offer to perform engineering or surveying services for the public. Furthermore, public works must be designed and constructed under the direct supervision of a licensed professional engineer or registered land surveyor. The terms "P.E." or "professional engineer" can only be used by persons who are currently licensed and the term "R.P.L.S. or "registered surveyor can only be used by persons who are currently registered. Anyone who violates these parameters is subject to legal penalties.
To be eligible for a license or registration, engineers and surveyors must have achieved certain professional milestones. They must have earned an engineer or surveying education, performed certain levels of work experience, and passed specific examinations. Examinations are in English. Although some of these milestones are quite specific, there are limitless combinations of education, experience, and examinations that the Board can consider acceptable for a license. Applicants must demonstrate proficiency in English.
For further information, refer to: Engineer Licensure and Surveyor Registration.
CEP certification is required for renewals. You must certify that you have met the CEP requirements for renewal or that you are exempt due to one of the following allowed reasons: inactive status, disabled, active military duty or first renewal after exam. Do not submit your CEP documentation with your payment. If your license or registration is audited, you will need to provide the supporting documentation to the Board.
Firm Registration
Any firm offering engineering or surveying services to the public of Texas must register that firm with the Board. A firm is defined as any entity that engages or offers to engage in the practice of professional engineering or professional surveying in this state. This includes sole practitioners, sole proprietorships, firms, co-partnerships, corporations, partnerships, or joint stock associations.
Firm Renewal
A firm registration is active for 1 year. The Board sends out annual renewal invoices approximately 45 days prior to the registrations' expiration date. A registration that is not renewed or postmarked by the registration expiration date may renew by submitting the annual registration renewal invoice sent by the Board and include a payment of two (2) times the normal registration renewal fee; along with a statement of whether engineering services were offered, pending, and/or performed for the public in Texas during the time the registration was not current. If the registration has expired for more than 1 year, it will be necessary to re-apply for new registration under the current law & rules and shall be issued a new registration number.
Online Rosters
Rosters allow easy searches for licensed and registered engineers, surveyors, firms and those in training.
To search for any of these individuals, for engineers, go to: http://pels.texas.gov/search for surveyors, go to https://pels.texas.gov/roster/ls_rosters.html.