2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 30. Professions and Occupations › Article 13A. Land Surveyors › §30-13A-3. Definitions

As used in this article, the following words and terms have the following meanings:
(a) "Applicant" means a person making application for a license or a firm making application for a certificate of authorization, under the provisions of this article.
(b) "Board" means the West Virginia Board of Professional Surveyors.
(c) "Boundary survey" means a survey, in which property lines and corners of a parcel of land have been established by a survey and a description of survey has been written and a plat has been prepared for the property.
(d) "Cadastral survey" means a survey representing the ownership, relative positions and dimensions of land, objects and estates.
(e) "Certificate holder" means a firm holding a certificate of authorization issued by the board.
(f) "Certificate of authorization" means a certificate issued under the provisions of this article to a firm providing surveying services.
(g) "Construction survey" means the laying of stakes for a construction project.
(h) "Direct supervision" means the responsible licensee is in direct control of all field and office surveying operations. Direct control does not necessarily require the actual physical presence of the responsible licensee at the site of the survey, nor prohibit the responsible licensee from maintaining simultaneous direct supervision of more than one survey.
(i) "Endorsee" means a person holding an endorsement to practice in a specialized field of surveying issued by the board under the provisions of this article.
(j) "Endorsement" means an authorization, in addition to a professional surveyor license, to practice in a specialized field of surveying issued by the board.
(k) "Firm" means any nongovernmental business entity, including an individual, association, partnership or corporation, providing surveying services.
(l) "Geodetic control survey" means a survey involving the precise measurement of points on the earth's surface which form the framework or control for a large map or project.
(m) "Geographic information system (GIS)" means a system of hardware, software and procedures designed to support the capture and management of spatially referenced information.
(n) "Hydrographic survey" means a survey that measures and determines the topographic features of water bodies and the adjacent land areas, including the width, depth and course of water bodies and other relative features.
(o) "Inactive" means the status granted by the board to a licensee or endorsee.
(p) "Land information system (LIS)" means a system of hardware, software and procedures designed to support the capture and management of spatially referenced information.
(q) "License" means a surveying license issued under the provisions of this article.
(r) "Licensee" means a person holding a surveying license issued under the provisions of this article.
(s) "Metes and bounds" means a description where the land or the associated effects on the land have been measured by starting at a known point and describing, in sequence, the lines by direction and distance forming the boundaries of the land or a defined area relative to the physical land features, associated effects or structural improvements on the land.
(t) "Monument" means a permanent marker, either boundary or nonboundary, used to establish corners or mark boundary lines of a parcel of land or reference the geospatial relationship of other objects.
(u) "Mortgage/loan inspection survey" means a survey in which property lines and corners have not been established.
(v) "Oil or gas well survey" means a survey and plat of a proposed oil or gas well, including the location of the well, the surface or mineral tract on which the well is located, the physical features surrounding the well, all creeks or streams near the well and any other identifying characteristics of the land to specify the location of the well. An oil or gas well survey must be performed in accordance with other provisions of this code affecting oil and gas well surveys.
(w) "Partition survey" means a survey where the boundary lines of a newly created parcel of land are established and the new corners are monumented.
(x) "Photogrammetry" means the use of aerial photography, other imagery and surveying principles to prepare scaled maps or other survey products reflecting the contours, features and fixed works of the earth's surface.
(y) "Practice of surveying" means providing professional surveying services, including consulting, investigating, expert testimony, evaluating, planning, mapping and surveying.
(z) "Responsible charge" means direct control of surveying work under the direct supervision of a licensee or person authorized in another state or country to engage in the practice of surveying.
(aa) "Retracement survey" means a survey where the boundary lines and corners of a parcel of land are reestablished from an existing legal or deed description.
(bb) "Strip" means a description of an area by reference to an alignment, usually a right-of-way or an easement, stating the number of feet on each side of the alignment, the relative position of the alignment, a reference to the measurements and monuments where the alignment crosses a parcel of land and the source of title for each parcel of land the alignment crosses.
(cc) "Subdivision" means the division of a lot, tract or parcel of land into two or more lots, tracts or parcels of land.
(dd) "Surface mine survey" means a survey of the surface mine permit area, including the location of the surface mine, the surface or mineral tracts on which the surface mine is located, the physical features surrounding the surface mine, all creeks or streams near the surface mine and any other identifying characteristics of the land to specify the location of the surface mine permit area. A surface mine survey must be performed in accordance with other provisions of this code affecting surface mine surveys.
(ee) "Survey" or "land survey" means to measure a parcel of land and ascertain its boundaries, corners and contents or make any other authoritative measurements.
(ff) "Surveying" or "land surveying" means providing, or offering to provide, professional services using such sciences as mathematics, geodesy, and photogrammetry, and involving both:
(1) The making of geometric measurements and gathering related information pertaining to the physical or legal features of the earth, improvements on the earth, the space above, on or below the earth; and
(2) Providing, utilizing or developing the same into survey products such as graphics, data, maps, plans, reports, descriptions or projects. Professional services include acts of consultation, investigation, testimony evaluation, expert technical testimony, planning, mapping, assembling and interpreting gathered measurements and information related to any one or more of the following:
(A) Determining by measurement the configuration or contour of the earth's surface or the position of fixed objects thereon.
(B) Determining by performing geodetic surveys the size and shape of the earth or the position of any point on the earth.
(C) Determining the position for any survey control monument or reference point.
(D) Creating, preparing or modifying electronic, computerized or other data relative to the performance of the activities in the above-described paragraphs (A) through (C), inclusive, of this subdivision.
(E) Locating, relocating, establishing, reestablishing or retracing property lines or boundaries of any tract of land, road, right-of-way or easement.
(F) Making any survey for the division, subdivision, or consolidation of any tract or tracts of land.
(G) Locating or laying out alignments, positions or elevations for the construction of fixed works.
(H) Determining, by the use of principles of surveying, the position for any boundary or nonboundary survey monument or reference point, or establishing or replacing any such monument or reference point.
(I) Creating, preparing or modifying electronic or computerized or other data relative to the performance of the activities in the above-described paragraphs (E) through (H), inclusive, of this subdivision.
(3) Any person who engages in surveying, who by verbal claim, sign, advertisement, letterhead, card or in any other way represents themselves to be a professional surveyor, or who implies through the use of some other title that they are able to perform, or who does perform, any surveying service or work or any other service designated by the practitioner which is recognized as surveying, is practicing, or offering to practice, surveying within the meaning and intent of this article.
(gg) "Surveyor", "professional surveyor" or "land surveyor" means a person licensed to practice surveying under the provisions of this article.
(hh) "Surveyor, retired", "professional surveyor, retired" or "land surveyor, retired" means a licensed surveyor no longer practicing surveying, who has chosen to retire and has been granted the honorific title of "Professional Surveyor, Retired".
(ii) "Surveyor-in-charge" means a licensee designated by a firm to oversee the surveying activities and practices of the firm.
(jj) "Surveyor intern" means a person who has passed an examination covering the fundamentals of land surveying.
(kk) "Underground survey" means a survey that includes the measurement of underground mine workings and surface features relevant to the underground mine, the placing of survey points (spads) for mining direction, the performance of horizontal and vertical control surveys to determine the contours of a mine, the horizontal and vertical location of mine features, and the preparation of maps, reports and documents, including mine progress maps and mine ventilation maps. An underground mine survey must be performed in accordance with other provisions of this code affecting underground mine surveys.