Oklahoma Statutes
Title 59. Professions and Occupations
§59-46.3. Definitions.

As used in the State Architectural and Registered Commercial Interior Designers Act:

1. "Architect" means any person who is licensed in the practice of architecture in the State of Oklahoma as hereinafter defined;
2. "Practice of architecture" means rendering or offering to render certain services, in connection with the design and construction, enlargement or alteration of a building or a group of buildings and the space surrounding such buildings, including buildings which have as their principal purpose human occupancy or habitation. The services referred to include planning, providing preliminary studies, designs, drawings, specifications, investigations and other technical submissions, the administration of construction contracts, and the coordination of any elements of technical submissions prepared by other consultants including, as appropriate and without limitation, consulting engineers and landscape architects; provided, that the practice of architecture shall include such other professional services as may be necessary for the rendering of or offering to render architectural services;
3. "Registration" or "license" means a certificate of registration or license issued by the Board. The definition of "license" shall apply to those persons licensed under a practice act. The definition of "registration" shall apply to those persons registered under the title registered commercial interior designer under this act;
4. "Building" means a structure consisting of a foundation, walls, all floors and roof, with or without other parts;
5. "Board" means the Board of Governors of the Licensed Architects, Landscape Architects and Registered Commercial Interior Designers of Oklahoma;
6. "Certificate of authority" means the authorization granted by the Board for persons to practice or offer to practice architecture, or landscape architecture, through a partnership, firm, association, corporation, limited liability company or limited liability partnership;
7. "Certificate of title" means the authorization granted by the Board for a partnership, firm, association, corporation, limited liability company or limited liability partnership to use the title registered commercial interior designer or any modification or derivation of these terms;
8. "Technical submissions" means drawings, plans, specifications, studies and any other technical reports or documents which are issued in the course of practicing architecture, landscape architecture or registered commercial interior design with the intent that they be considered as formal or final documents but shall not include record drawings. Prototypical plans are not technical submissions;
9. "Responsible control" means the amount of direct control and personal supervision of architectural, landscape architectural or registered commercial interior designer's work and detailed knowledge of the content of tactical and technical submissions during their preparation as is ordinarily exercised by licensed architects , landscape architects or registered commercial interior designers applying the required professional standard of care. The terms direct control and personal supervision, whether used separately or together, mean active and personal management of the firm's personnel and practice to maintain charge of, and concurrent direction over, architecture, landscape architecture or the work of a registered commercial interior designer's decisions and the instruments of professional services to which the licensee or registrant affixes the seal, signature, and date;
10. "Landscape architect" means a person licensed to practice landscape architecture as provided in the State Architectural and Registered Commercial Interior Designers Act;
11. "Landscape architecture" means the performance of professional services defined as teaching, consultations, investigations, reconnaissance, research, planning, design, preparation of construction drawings and specifications, construction observation and the coordination of any elements of technical submissions prepared by others in connection with the planning and arranging of land and the elements thereon for public and private use and enjoyment, including the design and layout of roadways, service areas, parking areas, walkways, steps, ramps, pools, parks, parkways, trails and recreational areas, the location and site of improvements including buildings and other structures, and the grading of the land, surface and subsoil drainage, erosion control, planting, reforestation, and the preservation of the natural landscape, in accordance with accepted professional standards, and to the extent that the dominant purpose of such services or creative works is the preservation, conservation, enhancement, or determination of proper land uses, natural land features, ground cover and plantings, or naturalistic and aesthetic values.
The practice of landscape architecture shall include the location and arrangement of tangible objects and features as are incidental and necessary to the purpose outlined for landscape architecture. The practice of landscape architecture shall not include the design of structures or facilities with separate and self-contained purposes for habitation or industry, or the design of public streets, highways, utilities, storm and sanitary sewers and sewage treatment facilities, that are statutorily defined as the practice of engineering or architecture;
12. "Code" means the nationally recognized codes adopted by the Uniform Building Code Commission of the State of Oklahoma;
13. "Applicable building official" means the official responsible for the application of the adopted building code as implemented by the local, municipal or county jurisdiction in which a building is located. Where no building code has been adopted by the local, municipal or county jurisdiction, the applicable building official shall be defined as the State Fire Marshal;
14. "Registered commercial interior designer" means a person recognized by this state who is registered, qualified by examination and meeting all the requirements set forth in the State Architectural and Registered Commercial Interior Designers Act and the Board's rules;
15. "Plans" means technical documents issued by the licensed and/or registered professionals intended to meet all current and applicable codes as adopted by the Uniform Building Code Commission of the State of Oklahoma, other statutory codes and applicable federal codes and which shall be submitted to all required building code and/or permit offices required by the State of Oklahoma, county, municipal and/or federal government;
16. "Equivalent standards" means those standards adopted by the Board intended to be used as alternative equivalents to determine competency for education, training and testing for licensing architects and/or landscape architects and registering commercial interior designers and for complying with the Military Service Occupation, Education and Credentialing Act for military personnel and their spouses;
17. "Commercial interior design" means the rendering of or the offering to render designs, consultations, studies, planning, drawings, specifications, contract documents or other technical submissions and the administration of interior construction and contracts relating to nonstructural interior construction by a registered commercial interior designer in a new constructed or existing building when the core and shell elements are not going to be changed;
18. "Nonstructural commercial interior construction" means the construction of elements which do not include exterior components of a building such as exterior walls, any load-bearing wall, any load-bearing column or any other load-bearing elements of a building essential to the structural integrity of the building such as wind loads and seismic loads and to any element which must be designed for wind loads and seismic loads; and
l9. "Fire and life safety systems" means those systems and construction that pertain to fire and life safety protection, such as fire sprinklers, fire alarms, smoke evacuation systems, fire walls, fire barriers or smoke barriers as defined by the current International Building Code adopted by the Oklahoma Uniform Building Code Commission.
The definitions in the State Architectural and Registered Commercial Interior Designers Act shall have the same meaning when applicable to any rule promulgated pursuant to such act.
Added by Laws 1947, p. 347, § 3, emerg. eff. April 16, 1947. Amended by Laws 1949, p. 387, § 1, emerg. eff. May 6, 1949; Laws 1978, c. 191, § 1; Laws 1980, c. 314, § 2, eff. July 1, 1980; Laws 1986, c. 154, § 1, eff. July 1, 1986; Laws 1986, c. 287, § 3, operative July 1, 1986. Renumbered from § 45.3 of this title by Laws 1986, c. 287, § 30, operative July 1, 1986. Amended by Laws 1998, c. 220, § 2, eff. July 1, 1998; Laws 2005, c. 77, § 1, eff. July 1, 2005; Laws 2006, c. 163, § 3, eff. July 1, 2006; Laws 2006, c. 193, § 2, eff. July 1, 2006; Laws 2009, c. 184, § 3, eff. July 1, 2009; Laws 2014, c. 234, § 3, eff. July 1, 2014; Laws 2021, c. 443, § 3, eff. July 1, 2021.

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