AGRICULTURE
- Youth
Tractor & Machinery Safety Certification
Dates
Scheduled
The Tractor & Machinery
Safety Certification course will be held at Burlington High School,
located at 400 McCanna Parkway in Burlington. The
cost will be $45.00/youth. Dates for 2008 are June 23-27 with
the test scheduled for June 30. Classes will be held in
the morning from 8 a.m. to noon.
 Registration form and information
Coordinated
By
UW-Extension
of Walworth, Racine and Kenosha Counties. UW-Extension
developed the program to allow families to be in compliance with Wisconsin
Act 455, Section 10 which creates section 346.925 of the state statutes
(see below).
Wisconsin
State Statute "346.925
Operation
of agricultural machinery by youthful operators
After
April 30, 1996 no person may direct or permit a child under
the age of 16 years to operate a farm tractor or self-propelled
implement of husbandry on the highway unless the child has
been certified as successfully completing a tractor and machinery
operation safety training course that is equivalent to the
requirements other than age, specified under 29 CFR part 570.70
to 570.72.
Subsection
(1) does not apply to operation of a farm tractor or self-propelled
implement of husbandry on the highway on a course that is perpendicular
to the direction of the highway.
Age
Requirement
This
is a hands-on program designed to meet both state and federal
requirements and is open to any youth:
- under
the age of 16 who will be operating tractors or self-propelled
implements of husbandry on a public road under direction
of their parent or guardian for work related to their family
farm
operation, or
- ages
14 -15 who will be employed or working without pay on a
farm other than their family farm and completes the requirements
for a federal certificate of training.
Note: The
minimum age requirement for this class, as set in WI Act 178
effective May, 1998, is 12. The course and literature are geared towards 14-15
year olds. This
doesn't restrict someone age 12 or 13 from taking the course,
but the material may be more difficult for a younger individual. Certification
will not be valid until the youth turns 14. Also,
youth who do not pass the written and driving exams will need
to retake the course.
What
does the course consist of?
The
Tractor Safety program offered in Walworth County provides
24 hours of instruction and includes traditional classroom
time as well as several hands-on activities that teach youth
equipment and farmstead safety. Materials
used in the classroom phase are written for 14-year-olds, so
you need to be aware that your son may find the material a
bit more difficult should he take the course at age 12.
To
successfully complete the course, participants need to attend
24 hours of training, pass a written exam with a score of 70%
or greater, and pass a driving exam that demonstrates operating
ability in driving a tractor pulling a piece of equipment. After
successfully completing the program, your son will receive the
State certificate acknowledging that he can legally operate equipment
on your farm. The
Federal certificate is held by our office until participants
reach their 14th birthday; at that point, the Walworth
County UW-Extension Office mails them out.
Goals
of the Course  Our
goal in offering the Tractor & Machinery Safety Certification
Course is two-fold. First,
it provides parents with an opportunity to meet State and Federal
mandates for children who will be operating farm equipment. Second,
and equally important, our efforts are meant to keep our children
safe on the farm and the busy highways we deal with in agriculture
today.
To
register
Contact the Ag Secretary at the Walworth County UW-Extension
Office to get your name on a waiting list for course information. (Please
provide your child's name, age, and date of birth; parents' names;
complete mailing address; and a daytime phone number).
You will be receiving an informational letter several weeks prior to the class with instructions
on getting your child registered for the class.
Walworth County UW-Extension
Attention: Tractor Safety Certification
100 W. Walworth St.
PO Box 1001
Elkhorn, WI 53121-1001
Phone: (262) 741-4951
Fax: (262) 741-4955
E-mail: cervenka@co.walworth.wi.us
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