Information for Businesses

NOTE: The Deadline for Business Registrations was September 14, 2017. Please use the Business Registration Application to apply. Please note that the Board may issue civil penalties (click here for list) of up to $1000.00 for the first violation of 7:3A-9.6. for "engaging in the business of providing tree care services for hire in New Jersey without first registering with the Board." A late fee of $25.00 will be charged to a business that files for a registration on or after January 1, 2018.

Download Must Do for Businesses

Every Business engaged in providing tree care services for hire in New Jersey shall register biennially with the Board, as a condition of doing business in New Jersey. This includes businesses that are located outside New Jersey, yet perform tree care services in the state.

This licensing program and Business Registration will allow the Board to identify and communicate directly to all companies doing tree care work within the state and provide opportunities for worker safety information and materials to be disseminated. The training requirement will ensure that employees have regular safety instruction and bring about the reduction of injuries and fatalities to tree care workers.

On April 17, 2017, the Tree Expert and Tree Care Operators Licensing Law's rules were adopted and promulgated.

With the adoption of the rules, every Business providing tree care services within the state will have to register with the New Jersey Board of Tree Experts, and has 60 days or until June 16, 2017 to provide the required documentation.

Businesses either based in New Jersey or providing services within the state will be required to:

Register with the Board using the Board's Business Registration Application.
Have at least one licensed individual working full time in the company.
Maintain a minimum amount of $1,000,000 of general liability insurance or a letter of credit in the amount of $1,000,000 issued by a bank or lending institution to do business in New Jersey
Secure and maintain worker's compensation insurance coverage for its employees or be approved for self-insurance by the New Jersey Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau. The worker's compensation insurance shall be based on applicable New Jersey Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau code.
Abide by adopted industry standards: ANSI A300 American National Standard for Tree Care Operations – Tree, Shrubs, and Other Woody Plant Management including Part 1 through Part 10, ANSI Z60.1 American Standard for Nursery Stock, ANZI Z133 Safety Standards for Arboriculture Operations, OSHA, Federal Motor Coach Safety and FHA regulation set forth in Z133 and each of the Best Management Practices published by the ISA.
Abide by the Canons of Professional Ethics and Standards of Conduct for Businesses.
Provide training to their employees in the safe operation of equipment and the maintenance of a safe work area on a regular basis and submit proof of training to the Board. Within 90 days of registering the Business with the Board, a Business must develop and establish a written comprehensive safety policy.
A Model Tree Safety Training Checklist Form and the Safety Training Attendance Form are to be submitted by January 31st of each year to the Board, to document the annual employee training requirement.
A Registered Business shall keep records for at least four years and shall keep safety training for each employee for at least as long as the individual is employed.
All records and information required to be kept by the New Jersey Board of Tree Experts shall be provided to the Board within 10 days of the Board's written request.

Depending upon the services a business provides, it may be required to have either a Licensed Tree Expert or a Licensed Tree Care Operator as an employee. The Licensed Tree Care Operator (LTCO) is for companies that only provide standard tree care work like pruning, removals and stump grinding. The Licensed Tree Expert (LTE) is permitted to oversee standard tree work and more specialized work such as cabling and bracing, tree risk assessment, tree appraisals and consultations.

Review and Approval and Use of the Business Registration

If the New Jersey Board of Tree Experts determines that the Business meets the requirements of the Registration, the Business will be assigned a NJTC number and issued a registration certificate that specifies the Business's assigned NJTC number. A business is required to display the registration certificate for public view in its principle office, and display a duplicate copy at any branch office.

Vehicle Business Registration Number

The Registered Business shall prominently display the NJTC number assigned to that Business by the Board of Tree Experts on every service vehicle operated by that Business to perform tree care services in New Jersey. The NJTC number has to be three inches high and located on at least two sides of each vehicle. The number color must contrast with the background color of the vehicle.

Consumer Protection

The Law and the adopted rules set industry tree care standards within New Jersey and empower the New Jersey Board of Tree Experts to remedy complaints against both registered and unregistered tree care companies that seek to defraud the public by revoking business registrations or instituting civil penalties.

Advertising as an Individual

A Licensed Tree Expert (LTE) who wishes to use the Licensed Tree Expert designation in advertising, or a Licensed Tree Care Operator (LTCO) who wishes to use the Licensed Tree Care Operator designation in advertising, shall include his or her name and license number in any form of advertising relating to tree care services, using the following format:

Name of the individual
Either the abbreviation LTE or Licensed Tree Expert, or LTCO or Licensed Tree Care Operator
Licensee's license number preceded by the "#" symbol

Examples are:

John Doe, LTE #100
John Smith, LTCO #100
John Doe, Licensed Tree Expert #100
John Smith, Licensed Tree Care Operator #100

Advertising by Business

No business shall advertise or represent itself to the public as offering tree care services within the State of New Jersey or use any title, designation, words, letter or abbreviations tending to indicate that a business is a registered business unless it is in fact registered with the New Jersey Board of Tree Experts.

A registered business shall only advertise those tree care services which its licensee(s) is/are licensed to perform.

Any registered business that wishes to advertise shall include its name and its registration number in any form of advertising related to tree care services. The registered business shall identify its registration number in the following way: The words "NJTC Registration" and the business's registration number preceded by the "#" symbol. An example of the correct advertisement form for businesses is: Red Oak Tree Experts, NJTC Registration #100

Failure to comply may result in the suspension or revocation of the business's registration, refusal by the Board to register the business and/or the issuance of civil penalties.

Advertising Without a Business Registration

All forms of advertising shall conform to the requirements of Subchapter 5 "Advertising", of the Board of Tree Experts rules, within 30 days following the promulgation of the rules. Failure to comply may result in the issuance of civil administrative penalties.

Safety Policy

The New Jersey Board of Tree Experts Safety Policy

Definition: A Safety Policy is a written statement by an employer stating the company's commitment for the protection of the health and safety of employees and to the public. It is an endorsed commitment by management to its employees regarding their health and safety.

According to 7:3A-2.13, of the adopted rules of the Tree Expert and Tree Care Operator Licensing Act (P.L. 2009, c231) a registered business shall develop, establish, and/or adopt from other industry sources a written comprehensive safety policy within 90 days of initially registering with the Board. The policy shall be given to each new employee and be available to every employee of the registered business, and the registered business must comply with the policy. Guidelines for developing a comprehensive safety policy are available from the Board and are posted on the Board's website at www.njtreeexperts.org. and found below.

Board of Tree Experts' Actions Related to a Business's Safety Policy

Further, the Board may (will) request from a business a copy of its comprehensive safety policy for review. The registration of a business that fails to develop and establish a written comprehensive safety policy within the first three months of registering the business with the Board may be suspended until such time as the business establishes its comprehensive safety policy.

The Board may also invalidate a business's comprehensive safety policy if it determines that it fails, in its scope or any of its standards, to meet the industry standards for arboriculture and safety set forth at N.J.A.C. 7:3A-8.1. The business shall have three months (90 days) to revise a comprehensive safety policy invalidated by the Board. Following invalidation of a business's comprehensive safety policy under the above, the business's registration may be suspended if it fails to establish a revised comprehensive safety policy within three months (90 days) or if the Board invalidates the revised policy because it fails, in its scope or any of its standards, to meet the industry standards for arboriculture and safety set forth at N.J.A.C. 7:3A-8.1. In such case, the business's registration shall continue to be suspended until the business again revises the policy, submits the revised policy to the Board for review, and the Board finds that the revised policy meets in full the industry standards for arboriculture and safety set forth at N.J.A.C. 7:3A-8.1.

Download an outline of a Safety Policy. Please note, this is not a comprehensive Safety Policy and should be used as a guide for your company's Safety Policy.

Safety Policy Development Guidelines

Guidelines for Developing a Comprehensive Safety Policy for Tree Care Companies

A Written Comprehensive Safety Policy

A written safety policy is the beginning of any safety program. The policy statement sets the tone and indicates what the consequences will be. It does not have to be elaborate, but a written policy should reflect the following:

The purpose of the safety program
Who will be assigned safety responsibilities and what their responsibilities and accountability requirements will be

Communicating and Enforcing the Safety Policy

Having a policy doesn't mean that you've done enough to ensure safety. Make sure that your policy is understood and followed. To protect the company, you'll also want to document that the company has shared the Safety Policy and enforced it, in the event of an accident. While the policy doesn't have to be elaborate, it must be comprehensive. Follow these guidelines to make sure that the Safety Policy is implemented and applied:

All employees should sign a document stating that they have read, understood, and will follow the company policy
The signed document should be retained in the employee's personnel file
New employees should sign prior to actual work
As the policy is updated, new sign-offs should be secured
Safety training should be provided for supervisors and employees
Safety bulletins and other communications should be distributed as information changes
Discipline should be consistently applied to all individuals in similar circumstances
Supervisors should be fully advised of the impact of their actions, given special caution concerning sole reliance on verbal instructions for safety directions, and urged to provide closer supervision to workers who are known to have violated safety rules or have personal problems that may interfere with their attention to their work
As requested or scheduled, supervisors should perform independent inspections and follow up inspections to ensure the work areas and employees are conforming to safety rules

All forms of advertising shall conform to the requirements of Subchapter 5 "Advertising", of Tree Experts rules, within 30 days following the promulgation of the rules. Failure to comply may result in the issuance of civil administrative penalties.

Download a copy of this article.

Safety Policy Elements for Companies

Specific Elements of a Safety Policy for Tree Care Companies

There are specific statements and elements your comprehensive safety policy should contain. They will help to not only reflect the company's philosophy and the intent of the company's safety policy, but also give specific information and guidance to employees about safety.

The Comprehensive Safety Policy should contain:

A strongly worded affirmative statement that acknowledges and supports the company's safety responsibility
Titles, positions, and locations of those responsible for policy design, enforcement, and modification
A system for any employee to report violations of safety rules confidentially
Documentation that establishes that the policy was given to all employees, posted prominently, and included in policy manuals
A statement that supervisors are held to act as agents for the company
A statement that any deviation from known policy by supervisors will not be tolerated
A process to address how questions are to be answered and emergencies handled
The penalties for employees who don't follow safety rules
The Policy meets in full the industry standards for arboriculture and safety set forth at N.J.A.C. 7:3A-8.1. (Conformance with certain industry standards such as ANSI Z133 – 2012: Safety Standards for Arboricultural Operations and applicable OSHA regulations)
Equipment Inspection Schedule
Mobile Equipment Inspection Schedule
PPE Inspection Schedule
Traffic Control around Work Zone
Accident/Incident Report
Safety Policy closing with a signature place for employees to acknowledge

Download a copy of this list.

Safety Culture Checklist

Checklist to follow, to insure long-term success in creating a safety culture within your company:

✔ The Safety Policy is kept current with workplace changes and Board of Tree Expert policies

✔ The Safety Policy is clearly stated and easily understood

✔ The Safety Policy is communicated to all employees

✔ The Safety Policy is signed by senior management

✔ The Safety Policy is adhered to in all work activities

✔ The Safety Policy is a summary of the company's commitments

✔ The Safety Policy is well displayed around the workplace

✔ The Safety Policy is clear about the workplace/s to which it applies

✔ The Safety Policy is reviewed at least every year

Sample Outline of Safety Policy

Sample Safety Policy Note: This is not a complete, comprehensive safety policy, it is only an outline that must be completed by the individual company.

Download a copy of this outline.

Sample: Outline of Comprehensive Safety Policy Statement

This Comprehensive Safety Policy below is not complete. It is only meant to be a guide to get your company started. It is a good starting point for you to develop your company's safety policy statement and put it in place at your workplace. A Registered Business must submit a copy of the developed Comprehensive Safety Policy to the Board of Tree Experts to satisfy the requirements of the law. It gives you a base from which to build a comprehensive safety policy and the options to build into it, the elements you need to have a safer company. The aim is to produce a safer operation, not to prepare a set of documents that sit in a folder in an office. Once a comprehensive safety policy is in place, your safety culture can grow year to year as the operation develops.

SAMPLE TEXT:

This is the statement of safety policy and arrangements for: XYZ Tree Care Company, LLC

1.0 - A strongly worded affirmative statement that acknowledges and supports the company's safety responsibility:

At (Company Name) we care about the safety, health and well-being of our employees. We value the contributions our employees make toward our success. We support local community interests, and value honesty, integrity, and teamwork.

We Value Our Employees

Our business operates with a goal of zero damage to people, property and product. It is our policy to provide safe working conditions. At XYZ Tree Care Company, LLC everyone shares equally in the responsibility of identifying hazards, following safety rules and operating practices. All jobs and tasks must be performed in a safe manner following industry safety and performance standards, as safety is crucial to the quality of our work and service.

Safety Policy

At (Company Name) no phase of the operation is considered more important than accident prevention. It is our policy to provide and maintain safe working conditions and to follow operating practices and industry safety standards that will safeguard all employees. No job will be considered properly completed unless it is performed in a safe manner. XYZ Tree Care Company, LLC is concerned about the health and good work habits of its employees. In the event an employee is injured or unable to perform their job, we want to help them obtain the best treatment, so you can return to the job as soon as possible.

OTHER ITEMS WITHIN A WRITTEN COMPREHENSIVE SAFETY POLICY TO INCLUDE:
2.0 - Titles, positions, and locations of those responsible for policy design, enforcement, and modification. PLEASE SPECIFY
3.0 - A system for any employee to report violations of safety rules confidentially. EXPLAIN
4.0 - Documentation that establishes that the policy was given to all employees, posted prominently, and included in policy manuals. SIGNED FORM
5.0 - A statement that supervisors are held to act as agents for the company. Name of Supervisor
6.0 - A statement that any deviation from known policy by supervisors will not be tolerated. Write Statement
7.0 - A process to address how questions are to be answered and emergencies handled. Person to Notify
8.0 - The penalties for employees who don't follow safety rules. DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURE
9.0 - The Policy meets in full the industry standards for arboriculture and safety set forth at N.J.A.C. 7:3A-8.1. (Conformance with certain industry standards such as ANSI Z133 – 2012: Safety Standards for Arboricultural Operations and applicable OSHA regulations).
10.0 - Equipment Inspection Schedule
11.0 - Mobile Equipment Inspection Schedule
12.0 - PPE Inspection
13.0 - Traffic Control around Work Zone
14.0 - Accident/Incident Report
15.0 - Safety Policy closing with a signature place for employees to acknowledge

I have read (Company Name's) Safety Policy statement and understand the commitment to the safety and health of employees and customers/clients.

(Employee's Name - Please Print)

(Employee's Signature) Date

(Supervisor's Name - Please Print)

(Supervisor's Signature) Date