Arizona ADHS
Arizona environmental lab licensure, ADHS and Article 6.
Which Arizona agency licenses your lab, what counts as compliance testing, how out-of-state labs are licensed, and the calibration rules written into Article 6.
At a glance
How environmental lab licensure works in Arizona.
Arizona is not a NELAP state. The Arizona Department of Health Services licenses environmental labs under state statute and its own rules in Title 9, Chapter 14, Article 6 of the Arizona Administrative Code.
State program (non-NELAP)
- Program
- Environmental Laboratory Licensure, Bureau of State Laboratory Services, Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS)
- Legal basis
- A.R.S. Title 36, Chapter 4.3 (section 36-495 and following); rules in 9 A.A.C. 14, Article 6, revised in a rulemaking effective October 1, 2016
- Who needs it
- Any facility performing compliance testing, defined as laboratory analysis of substances regulated under A.R.S. Title 49 or federal laws including the Safe Drinking Water Act, Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act and RCRA. Exemptions in A.R.S. 36-495.02 and R9-14-602 include in-state labs performing only field parameters analyzed at the time of sample collection, using approved methods.
- Parameters covered
- One licensing program, with separate rule sections for drinking water, wastewater, waste, and air and stack parameters (R9-14-611 through R9-14-614)
- Accreditation exemption
- Labs holding current NVLAP accreditation from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and approved by the department, are exempt for the term of that accreditation (A.R.S. 36-495.02, R9-14-604)
- Out-of-state labs
- Must be licensed under the same statute and Article 6 and pay the Department’s actual expenses caused by the lab’s location, including inspection costs (A.R.S. 36-495.14, R9-14-619). Renewal applications are due at least 60 days before expiration.
- NELAP status
- Not a NELAP accreditation body. Article 6 names NELAP only as an example of a national organization whose recognition can make a proficiency testing provider acceptable.
The accreditation cycle
The ADHS licensing cycle.
The steps below summarize A.R.S. 36-495.03 and 9 A.A.C. 14, Article 6. Your license and ADHS correspondence govern the specifics for your lab.
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Apply by parameter
Submit the application with the list of parameters you are requesting, the states in which the lab is licensed or certified, and any EPA certification number (R9-14-603).
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One-year license
A regular license expires one year after issuance (A.R.S. 36-495.03). Renewals are due at least 30 days before expiration for in-state labs and 60 days for out-of-state labs (A.R.S. 36-495.14, R9-14-603).
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Proficiency testing
At least once in each 12-month period, including at least one PT sample for each licensed parameter where samples exist, from ADHS, EPA or a PT service (R9-14-609). ADHS may also send blind PT samples.
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Inspections
At least an initial inspection and a follow-up annual inspection, with later frequency based on past findings, corrective actions and PT performance. Drinking water labs are inspected at least once every three years or as EPA requires (R9-14-605).
Initial calibration
What auditors check in your initial calibrations.
Arizona writes its calibration expectations into Article 6 itself. R9-14-615 ties each instrument’s calibration to the approved method and controls which calibration model a lab may use.
A range that brackets what you report
The lowest standard should sit at or below your reporting limit and the highest at or above the top concentration you report. Results outside the calibrated range need to be qualified.
Error at the low end, not r² alone
A correlation coefficient of 0.999 can still hide a low standard that back-calculates 30 percent off. Auditors look at relative error, especially at the lowest levels.
Records that rebuild the curve
Raw responses, the model and weighting used, any excluded points with the reason, and the verification that followed. An auditor should be able to reconstruct every initial calibration from the record.
Calibration models the rule controls
R9-14-615(C) requires each instrument to be calibrated as its approved method requires, using the method’s model or one of its listed options unless ADHS approved another as a method alteration, or manufacturer specifications if the method has none, with documented calculations. A model may not be used or changed to avoid necessary instrument maintenance.
Source: 9 A.A.C. 14, R9-14-615(C)
R9-14-615 also requires each method SOP to list calibration standard concentrations and a calibration frequency. Where a lab statistically develops its own control limits, the lower end of the detectable range is the limit of quantitation or the lowest standard in the initial calibration.
Self-check
Are your initial calibrations ready for an Arizona assessment?
Tick what your lab could show an auditor today. Nothing you select is saved or sent anywhere.
6Checks to work through
Select each item your lab could show an auditor today.
A self-assessment to help you prepare, not a compliance determination.
Arizona specifics
One license, written to Arizona’s own rule.
ADHS licenses environmental labs through a single program that covers drinking water, wastewater, waste, and air and stack parameters. Arizona is not a NELAP accreditation body. The accreditation exemption in statute and in R9-14-604 is for NVLAP accreditation administered by NIST, not for NELAP accreditation.
Out-of-state labs are licensed to the same statute and rule as in-state labs. They pay the Department’s actual expenses that result from their location, including inspection costs, and must file renewals at least 60 days before a one-year license expires. Statute allows reciprocity agreements with states whose requirements are substantially equal, but NELAP accreditation alone is not a substitute for an Arizona license.
The calibration rule is specific. R9-14-615 ties the model to the approved method: the model it specifies, one of its listed options, or one ADHS approved as a method alteration, and manufacturer specifications where the method has none. It was last amended effective October 1, 2016. ADHS lists rules update workshop presentations on its licensure page, so check there for planned changes.
How WLTR helps
Calibration evidence ready for an Arizona inspection.
WLTR independently reviews the calibration your instrument software produced. Your analyst still makes the final call. What changes is that the evidence is complete, consistent across analysts, and ready before the auditor asks for it.
- Each analyte reviewed one at a time in the instrument software.
- The model and weighting are whatever the batch was processed with.
- r² is the number most people look at, even though it does not measure error at the low end.
- QA signs off without an independent check on the curve.
- Every analyte and every candidate model side by side in the Calibration Intelligence dashboard.
- Diagnostics run automatically and the best fit curve is identified, with the reasons recorded.
- Relative error at every level, including the lowest standard, shown on one screen.
- A traceable record your QA manager can review, sign and hand to an ADHS auditor.
See how your own ICAL data looks when every analyte and model is laid out for review.
Questions
Arizona accreditation FAQs
Is Arizona a NELAP state?
No. The Arizona Department of Health Services is not on TNI’s list of NELAP accreditation bodies. It licenses labs under its own rules in 9 A.A.C. 14, Article 6.
Who licenses environmental labs in Arizona?
The Bureau of State Laboratory Services at the Arizona Department of Health Services, under A.R.S. Title 36, Chapter 4.3 and 9 A.A.C. 14, Article 6. One program covers drinking water, wastewater, waste, and air and stack parameters.
Do out-of-state labs need an Arizona license?
Generally yes, if Arizona compliance testing is performed there. A.R.S. 36-495.14 and R9-14-619 require out-of-state labs to be licensed, meet the same statute and rules, and pay the Department’s actual expenses caused by the lab’s location, including inspection costs.
How long does an Arizona environmental lab license last?
A regular license expires one year after issuance (A.R.S. 36-495.03). Renewals are due at least 30 days before expiration for in-state labs and 60 days for out-of-state labs, and PT is required at least once in each 12-month period.
Does Arizona have its own calibration rule?
Yes. R9-14-615 requires each instrument to be calibrated as its approved method requires, using the method’s model or one of its listed options unless ADHS approved another as a method alteration, or manufacturer specifications where the method has none, with documented calculations.
Sources
Primary sources for this page.
- ADHS, Laboratory Licensure and Certification (opens in a new tab)
- A.R.S. 36-495, definitions (opens in a new tab)
- A.R.S. 36-495.03, license application, issuance and expiration (opens in a new tab)
- A.R.S. 36-495.14, out-of-state laboratories and reciprocity (opens in a new tab)
- 9 A.A.C. 14, Arizona Secretary of State official code (opens in a new tab)
- R9-14-605, compliance monitoring (Justia, secondary copy) (opens in a new tab)
- R9-14-615, quality assurance (Cornell LII, secondary copy) (opens in a new tab)
- R9-14-619, out-of-state licensing (Justia, secondary copy) (opens in a new tab)
- TNI, NELAP recognized accreditation bodies (opens in a new tab)
This page summarizes public program information to help labs prepare. Requirements change, and the agency’s current rules and guidance always take precedence. WLTR is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Arizona Department of Health Services. Spot something out of date? Tell us at admin@wltr.tech.
Before your next assessment
See your Arizona ICALs the way an auditor will.
Bring a recent initial calibration. We will walk you through every analyte and candidate model in the Calibration Intelligence dashboard, the best fit, and the record your QA manager would sign.
Request a demoHow the methodology works
Running environmental methods? See how WLTR works for environmental testing labs and water and wastewater utility labs.