OAR 836-071-0225: Continuing Education; Standards for Granting Credit Hours

(1) Subject to the subject matter requirements of OAR 836-071-0230, an insurance producer may receive credit for continuing education for a course taken for academic credit, for a course registered under OAR 836-071-0240 or a course certified under OAR 836-071-0250: (a) For not more than the credit hours authorized by the director; (b) Only if an hour includes at least 50 minutes of instruction or study; (c) For class hours in which an insurance producer is an instructor of a course if the course meets the continuing education requirements of an insurance producer attending it. Credit may be taken by an insurance producer with respect to a course only once in each renewal period in which the insurance producer instructs the course; (d) For not more than eight credit hours in any given day; (e) Only if the hour for which credit is taken was completed during the license period immediately preceding the renewal date; (f) For a course taken through independent study, but only as provided in section (4) of this rule. (2) An insurance producer may take credit for a course only if the insurance producer has successfully completed the course before the insurance producer applies for renewal or reinstatement. For the purpose of taking credit for a course other than one taken through independent study, an insurance producer successfully completes the course if the insurance producer is present for the full approved time and has signed in and out on the attendance register for the course. (3) An insurance producer may not take continuing education credit for: (a) Hours devoted to preparation for a course; when the insurance producer is acting as an instructor for the course; (b) Travel time; (c) Time exceeding the actual class time; (d) Unplanned or incidental learning experiences; (e) Any course not completed; (f) Any course repeated within a two year period; or (g) Any course during which the insurance producer is absent more than 5 minutes for each hour of credit granted, or is absent more than 20 minutes from the course as a whole. (4) For purposes of subsection (1)(f) of this rule, a course is taken through independent study if the course is designed to allow each student to take the course at the student's own pace on an individual basis. An insurance producer may claim credit for an independent study course if the provider and the course are both registered with the director when the course is taken, if the insurance producer passes an examination by a score of 70 percent or higher and if the proctor of the examination affirms and the provider certifies completion and passage as provided in this section. If the independent study course is a textbook, the examination must be conducted as a closed book examination. The examination for an independent study course need not be proctored if the course is computerized and includes safeguards ensuring that the insurance producer cannot review the study material while taking the examination and if the examination has safeguards ensuring that the insurance producer cannot change answers after completing the examination. Proctor affirmation and provider certification shall be made as follows: (a) The proctor must submit materials electronically that affirm by affidavit that the insurance producer took the examination for the course without assistance from the textbook or from any person. The proctor must disclose in the affidavit the proctor's name, address, telephone number and the proctor's position or connection with the insurance producer, such as a continuing education school or a librarian, and the proctor's registration number, if the proctor is required to be registered under section (7) of this rule. The provider must retain the affidavit with the examination. A proctor affidavit is not required if the independent study course is taken from a provider that offers a nationally recognized insurance industry designation. (b) If the provider determines that the insurance producer completed and passed the examination, the provider may issue the certificate of completion. The provider shall date the certificate according to the date on which the provider received the examination for grading, state on the certificate that to the best of the provider's knowledge the insurance producer passed the examination and submit the certificate electronically to the division in accordance with directions provided on the Division of Financial Regulation website of the Department of Consumer and Business Services at dfr.oregon.gov. (5) The provider of a course shall submit electronically completion information for the course for each qualifying insurance producer not later than the 15th day after the date on which an insurance producer completes a course or not later than the 15th day after the date on which the director approved the course, whichever date is later. The period for issuance of a certificate does not apply to a provider who discloses to the insurance producer in writing, when the insurance producer pays for or registers for the class, the date by which or the time period within which the certificate will be issued. (6) A provider shall notify the director immediately of any change in authorized signers for certificates. (7) A person may act as a proctor for one or more independent study courses under section (4) of this rule only if the person is registered as a proctor with the Division of Financial Regulation. A person applying for registration must submit the name, address and telephone number of the person; the location or locations at which examinations will be proctored; the fee or fees that will be charged, if any, for the proctoring service; and whether the person will proctor examinations for the general insurance producer population. There is no registration fee. If the person will proctor independent study course examinations for other than the general insurance producer population, the person must specify for whom the proctoring will be done. The registration requirement under this section does not apply to city, county and state public libraries, state colleges and universities, private colleges and universities other than those that are owned by or operated primarily for the insurance industry, law offices or currently licensed certified public accountants.