BY ANNE MICHAUD
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Hamilton County's sewer district chief was ordered Monday to stop calling himself a professional engineer until he applies for the title in Ohio.
Mark Jones, executive director of the State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Surveyors, said Thomas Quinn has been using "P.E." after his name to designate himself as a professional engineer. But Mr. Quinn, director of the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD), is not registered in Ohio.
"Since you are not registered . . you may not use the initials,"
Mr. Jones wrote to Mr. Quinn on Monday.
Mr. Quinn said he plans to update his original engineer's license from the state of New York, which has lapsed. He then plans to apply in Ohio. States usually honor the title earned elsewhere.
When Mr. Quinn applied for his job in Cincinnati in 1992, the job description said, "Each applicant must be a registered professional engineer in the state of Ohio or qualify for registration in the state of Ohio through reciprocity."
At the time, Mr. Quinn's New York license was still current, said MSD spokeswoman Ann Newsom. It lapsed two years into his work here. Ms. Newsom said the renewal application from New York went to Mr. Quinn's old address in Indianapolis, and it was never forwarded to Mr. Quinn in Cincinnati.
She called the lapsed New York license and failure to apply for the Ohio license "an oversight."
Mr. Jones said that, as far as he is concerned, it is a minor violation. To his knowledge, he said, nobody has accused Mr. Quinn of practicing engineering in Ohio.
"We are, quite honestly, more concerned with people who are practicing without a license than somebody saying or (implying) he has a license," Mr. Jones said. "It is in the law, so we do enforce it."
The embarrassment comes at a time when MSD's procedures are under criminal investigation by a Hamilton County grand jury, and city Audit Manager Greg Hanfbauer has made a separate MSD investigation his top priority.
