(a) An on-site training facility must be certified by the commission in each discipline for which the facility provides training for fire protection personnel certification. An on-site training facility is where instructors and students are in immediate proximity and where content is instructed primarily in classrooms, at demonstration projects, in fire simulation structures, on fire apparatus, or at training sites in the field under direct supervision of the training facility instructors.
(b) A certified on-site training facility may be approved to instruct in any one or all of the disciplines for which fire protection personnel certification is available.
(c) Minimum requirements for certification as a certified on-site training facility shall include facilities, apparatus, equipment, reference materials, standard operating procedures, instructors, and records to support a quality education and training program. The resources must provide for classroom instruction, demonstrations, and practical exercises for the trainees to develop the knowledge and skills required for fire protection personnel certification.
(d) The on-site facilities and training shall be performance oriented, when required. Practical performance training with maximum participation by trainees shall be an integral part of the training program. The evaluation process will emphasize performance testing to determine if the trainee has acquired the knowledge and skills to achieve the required level of competency required by the respective training program.
(e) It must be clearly understood that the minimum standard for training facilities is applicable only as the title implies and does not address the additional training facility resources which are required for the continuing in-service training essential to the development and maintenance of a well-coordinated and effective fire service organization.
(f) An organization must submit an application for certification as an on-site training facility to the commission. The application will include descriptions, addresses of physical facilities and an inventory of apparatus, equipment, and reference material to be utilized in conducting the training. It is not required that the equipment be owned by, permanently assigned to, nor kept at a training facility, but must be readily available for instructional purposes. In such a case, the training facility must submit a letter of commitment from the provider of the resources with the original training facility certification application authorizing the use of resources not controlled by the training facility. A copy of the letters of commitment must be maintained on-site and available for review. Photographs of resources annotated to reflect their identity may be required as part of the application. When submitting training approvals, the facility shall certify that the resources are provided in accordance with this chapter.
(g) The chief training officer will:
  (1) attest to the fact that the training meets the competencies in the applicable commission curriculum and/or NFPA Standards; and
  (2) submit a testing schedule for all required academy skills.

Source Note: The provisions of this §427.1 adopted to be effective November 1, 1998, 23 TexReg 10895; amended to be effective January 1, 2000, 24 TexReg 6097; amended to be effective March 8, 2001, 26 TexReg 2044; amended to be effective January 27, 2002, 27 TexReg 481; amended to be effective May 26, 2005, 30 TexReg 3033; amended to be effective March 27, 2006, 31 TexReg 2696; amended to be effective February 17, 2008, 33 TexReg 1132; amended to be effective August 31, 2011, 36 TexReg 5382; amended to be effective May 20, 2014, 39 TexReg 3874; amended to be effectiveMay 20, 2018, 43 TexReg 3103