(1) Effective January 31, 2021, to be eligible for dental laboratory registration the applicant must document that the applicant or one of the applicant's employees who works at least thirty hours per week in the applicant's dental laboratory:

(a) Has successfully completed at least twelve hours of continuing education in dental laboratory technology approved by the national board for certification in dental laboratory technology during the twelve months immediately preceding their application for registration; or

(b) Is certified by the national board for certification in dental laboratory technology as a certified dental technician in good standing.

(2)(a) Effective January 31, 2025, the department may not issue a registration to a dental laboratory unless the applying dental laboratory documents that it employs a certified dental technician in good standing with the national board for certification in dental laboratory technology who works at least thirty hours per week in the applying dental laboratory or that the dental laboratory is operated under the supervision of a dentist licensed under chapter 18.32 RCW.

(b) Subsection (2)(a) of this section does not apply to a dental laboratory that provides the department with documentation that the dental laboratory has been continuously owned and operated by the same individual since January 1, 1996.

(3) A dental laboratory must maintain a qualified owner or employee identified in subsections (1) and (2) of this section.