Section 250-RICR-20-00-3.8 - Protocol for Consensual InspectionsA. When seeking consent to perform an administrative inspection the inspector must locate an owner, operator or other person having apparent authority or control of the property in order to identify himself/herself, explain the purpose, scope and legal authority for the inspection and request consent for the inspection. An inspector may enter onto private property and use reasonable efforts to locate a person from whom to obtain consent for the inspections. Consent need not be sought where other lawful means for access to the property in question exist under these Guidelines (See §§ 3.9 and 3.10 of this Part herein).B. Consent for inspections relating to an activity requiring a permit, license or other approval from the Department may be required and obtained by the Department in writing as part of the application process. Consent that is given as part of an application process may not be revoked on-site at the time of the inspection and may only be revoked by the applicant in writing by withdrawing the underlying application. The presence or absence of consent relating to an application shall not impair the Department's ability to perform inspections in accordance with any other section of these Guidelines (e.g. § 3.9 of this Part, administrative inspection warrants or § 3.10(A)(1) of this Part, closely regulated industries).C. On occasion, person(s) may agree to consent to an administrative inspection if the inspector will agree to conditions or limitations on the nature and extent of the proposed inspection. In the past, inspectors have been asked to sign liability waivers and other legal documents as a precondition to consent to perform an inspection. An inspector should never agree to any conditions or sign any documents without first obtaining prior authorization from a supervisor. The Department may, on a case-by-case basis, accommodate reasonable requests for conditions or limitations in order to secure consent for an inspection provided that the requests will in no way jeopardize the quality or effectiveness of the inspection.D. The scope of a consensual inspection may not exceed the scope of the consent that was given. Consent may be revoked at any time during the inspection without justification, unless the consent was given as part of an application process (See § 3.8(B) of this Part, above). Absent discovery of evidence or conditions during the consented to inspection that give rise to a lawful warrant-less inspection pursuant to § 3.10 of this Part, an inspector may not exceed the scope of the consent given or continue with any inspection after consent has been revoked.E. If consent to perform an administrative inspection is denied, the inspector may make observations from adjacent public areas, open fields (See § 3.10 of this Part) or from abutting private property, provided the inspector has permission from the owner, operator or other person having apparent authority or control over such property.F. Unless the inspector requires additional time for research or consultation, prior to leaving the premises the inspector should advise the person that gave consent for the inspection of the inspector's preliminary findings and of potential follow-up actions by DEM. If violation are discovered, then the inspector should explain the applicable legal requirements and inform the consenting party that the violations must be corrected. Upon request, the inspector may provide general guidance regarding the correction of violations; however, inspectors should not require or recommend specific methods, procedures or corrective actions. In the event that additional assistance, advice or information is requested, the inspector should direct that person to the appropriate compliance assistance or permitting office. Any preliminary findings, recommendations or other assistance offered by the inspector should be recorded in his/her inspection report.G. If no owner, operator or other person having apparent authority or control over the property is present, the inspector should leave a calling card identifying the inspector and, when possible, should provide other information explaining the purpose and scope of the investigation.250 R.I. Code R. 250-RICR-20-00-3.8