In 2003, House File 644 was passed and required commercial manure businesses to have licenses. This law also allows for the substitution of employees and for annual education fees. The new law further defined the business and the employees by breaking the program into the following categories:
Commercial Manure Service: A commercial manure service (CMS) or business is a sole proprietor or business association engaged in the business of transporting, handling, storing or applying manure for a fee. A CMS must be licensed and must pay the annual business license due by March 1. The annual business license includes the certification fee of the business manager.
Commercial Manure Service Representative: A commercial manure service representative or CMSR is a manager, employee, agent or contractor of a CMS, if the person is engaged in transporting, handling, storing or applying manure on behalf of the business. A representative must pay an annual certification fee and an annual education fee.
A manager is a person actively involved in and makes management decisions in the operation of the business. A manager is also a representative. One manager per business must be designated on the application forms. In addition to the certification fees for the manager that are included in the CMS business license fee, the manager must also pay an annual education fee.
Commercial manure service representative certification is accomplished in one of four ways:
In addition to completing one of the above requirements, you must also submit the appropriate fees and forms to the DNR.
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach highly encourages all commercial manure applicators attend training at one of the sites listed for the January 2023 training or to consult their local County Extension Office’s policy for "reshow" dates for these programs. There is no charge for attending the workshops or viewing the video on the scheduled reshow date and time at the local County Extension Office. However, applicators requesting to view the training materials on dates not scheduled at the local County Extension Office will be charged a fee of $10 per person. Anyone not able to attend training should schedule an appointment with their DNR field office to take the certification exam or get their training online at DNR E-Learning site https://elearning-dnr.iowa.gov
The certification period for both business and the representative expires on March 1 annually regardless of when the business, manager or employee was originally certified. While certificates expire annually on March 1, renewal of the next license must occur prior to March 1 annually to avoid paying a late fee. Applications for certification (from previously certified applicators) received at the DNR postmarked after March 1, 2023 will be considered late and a late fee of $12.50 will be charged in addition to the certification fee and education fees.
A commercial manure service (business) must be licensed annually and the fee is $200. This fee is due annually by March 1st. The business license includes the certification fee of one designated manager. In addition, the manager will need to pay an annual education fee of $25.
The fee for commercial manure service representatives will be $75 annually. In addition, the commercial manure service representative will also be required to pay an annual education fee. The education fee for 2023 is $25. Both the education fee and the certification fee are due by March 1st annually. There are no new certification or education fee changes for 2023.
For more information about certification fees, education fees, business fees and late fees and how businesses can substitute employees without additional certification fees, please see the links in the column to the right.
Please note- you may be charged a $10 fee at your county extension office if you choose to view the training video on a date and time that is not currently scheduled. Please see an explanation of this policy above.
All certification and education fees are paid directly to DNR. The $10 fee at the county office is a separate fee that is paid directly to the county office.
Many local Extension offices will offer the three hours of annual training through a statewide showing in January. This program will serve as training for recertification or for initial certification. Contact your local County Extension Office for more details regarding this program. The DNR also offers E-Learning for both Confinement and Commercial Applicators. To take the education course online, applicators will need to register for an IowaID. This can be done by clicking on the E-Learning link above and following the prompts. The DNR also offers manure applicators online payment processing and information regarding their renewals, expiration dates, and fees. This information is available at the Manure Applicator Certification Application.
New employees of commercial manure applicators who are not yet certified can apply manure for the first 30 days of employment after they are hired if they are directly supervised by a certified commercial manure service representative. The supervisor must be physically present at the application site and be in sight or immediate communication with the new employee at all times. After 30 days, new employees must be certified. This 30-day exemption is only valid once and does not apply each time the employee is rehired.