OAR 806-010-0045: Stamps and Signatures

(1) Every registered architect shall have a stamp (seal) bearing the name of the registered architect only, together with the city and state in which the architect's principal office is located. The stamp may include the architect's registration number issued by the Board. (2) The stamp may be a crimp or rubber style hand stamp or a computer-generated (digital) stamp. (3) All technical submissions which are required by public authorities for building permits or regulatory approvals, or are intended for construction purposes, including all addenda and other changes to such submissions, shall be stamped and signed by the architect. (4) A registered architect may stamp and sign technical submissions only if the technical submissions were: (a) prepared by the architect; (b) prepared by persons under the architect’s responsible control; or (c) prepared by another architect registered in the same jurisdiction if the stamping and signing architect has confirmed the other architect’s work and either has coordinated the preparation of the work or has integrated the work into their own technical submissions. (5) An architect shall maintain documentation of technical submissions for at least ten (10) years from the date of submittal and make records available to the Board upon request. Records must be adequate to demonstrate the architect’s responsible control over the technical submissions, whether prepared entirely by the architect or by integrating the work of others. (6) The term "signature" or "signed" as used in ORS Chapter 671 means the following: (a) A handwritten or digital representation of a handwritten identification that represents the act of the architect putting the architect’s name on a document to attest to its validity. The handwritten or digital representation must be: (A) An original written by hand; (B) A scanned image of an original, handwritten identification; or (C) A digital identification that is an electronic authentication process attached to or logically associated with an electronic document. (b) Signatures must be: (A) Permanently affixed to the document(s) being certified; (B) Applied to the document by the identified registrant; (C) Placed across the stamp of the registrant; (D) Unique to the registrant using it; (E) Capable of independent verification; and (F) Under the exclusive control of the registrant using it. (7) The stamp with the registrant's manual or digital signature must appear on all technical submissions including the title page of specifications and on every sheet of the drawings intended for permit or construction, whether or not the project is exempt under ORS 671.030, and must be the stamp of an Oregon registered architect with responsible control of the project. If the specifications and drawings bear the name of an Oregon registered architectural firm, the registrant stamping the documents must also possess written legal authority to accept responsibility for the specifications and drawings on behalf of the firm. The originals may be reproduced for permit and construction purposes. (8) By stamping and signing a technical submission, the architect represents that the architect was in responsible control over the content of such technical submissions during their preparation and has applied the required professional standard of care. (9) An architect may not stamp and sign, or countersign, or allow their stamp or signature to be affixed to any technical submissions or reports not prepared by them or under their responsible control. (10) Any architect stamping and signing technical submissions not prepared by that architect, but prepared under the architect's responsible control, will maintain, and make available to the Board, upon request, reasonably adequate records to demonstrate the nature and extent of the architect's control over, and professional knowledge of, such technical submissions throughout their preparation. (11) Notwithstanding other sections of these rules, a successor registered architect may complete a deceased or disabled architect's technical submissions intended for permitting and construction as though they were the successor's original but must perform a thorough review and will become fully responsible for the content. The successor registered architect must use their own title block, stamp, and signature, and must remove the title block, stamp, and signature of the deceased or disabled architect. [ED. NOTE: Images of stamps referenced are available from the agency.]