Al-Khattat v. Engineering and Surveying Bd.

• Decision Date: 08 May 2002
• Docket Number: No. 00-1254.,00-1254.
• Citation: 644 N.W.2d 18
• Parties: Ibrahim AL-KHATTAT, Appellant, v. ENGINEERING AND LAND SURVEYING EXAMINING BOARD OF THE STATE OF IOWA, Appellee.
• Court: Iowa Supreme Court

644 N.W.2d 18

Ibrahim AL-KHATTAT, Appellant, v. ENGINEERING AND LAND SURVEYING EXAMINING BOARD OF THE STATE OF IOWA, Appellee.

No. 00-1254.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

May 8, 2002.

James C. Larew of Larew Law Office, Iowa City, for appellant.

Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, and Pamela D. Griebel, Assistant Attorney General, for appellee. CADY, Justice.

This appeal centers on an application to the State of Iowa Engineering and Land Surveying Examining Board for licensure without examination as a professional mechanical engineer under the foreign licensure comity provisions of Iowa Code section 542B.20 (1997). The Board denied the application after determining the professional examination process completed by the applicant to obtain licensure in the foreign country was not equivalent to the professional examination requirements for applicants seeking initial licensure in Iowa under section 542B.14. The district court affirmed the decision of the Board. On our review, we conclude the professional examination components of the two jurisdictions' licensure processes are designed to accomplish different purposes, and therefore are not equivalent. We affirm.

I. Background Facts and Proceedings.

Dr. Ibrahim Al-Khattat is a sixty-three-year-old mechanical engineer. He has enjoyed a long and distinguished career in the engineering field. He was born in Iraq, and completed his secondary and college education in European institutions. In 1962, he received a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from the University of Wales. In addition, he has obtained several graduate degrees from reputable United States colleges. He received a Master's of Science in applied mechanics from Kansas State University in 1976, a Master's of Science in mechanical engineering from Stanford University in 1979, and a Doctorate of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in mechanical engineering from Stanford in 1981.

In addition to a diverse academic background, Dr. Al-Khattat has a broad range of experiences, from research assistant, to professor of mechanical engineering, to founder of engineering corporations. At the time of this action, Dr. Al-Khattat was the founder and president of Sustainable Science International (SSI). SSI is based at the University of Iowa in Coralville, and focuses on conservation and environmental sustainability.

In 1987, Dr. Al-Khattat became registered as a charter engineer in the mechanical engineering branch of the United Kingdom. To become a member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in the United Kingdom, an applicant must satisfactorily complete a "professional review." In essence, the review consists of a written report, resembling an essay, and an oral interview by the applicant's peers. The report must briefly summarize the applicant's career, as well as contain a detailed description of at least one significant project demonstrating the engineering experiences of the applicant. The peer interviewers derive their questions for the oral interview from the prepared report.

The purpose of the interview is to examine the applicant's professional judgment, problem-solving and decision-making capabilities, and the breadth of the responsibilities afforded to the applicant in his or her experiences. Although the oral interview is designed to evaluate the applicant's professional development following the attainment of an accredited college degree, the interview is tailored to the specific applicant. The questions only concern the projects and experiences listed in the applicant's written report.

In Dr. Al-Khattat's professional review, the written report and oral interview primarily focused on the dissertation he prepared for his Ph.D. In general, Dr. Al-Khattat explained the justifications supporting the conclusions he reached in his dissertation. This included the physical, theoretical, experimental, and computational reasoning underlying his conclusions. Additionally, Dr. Al-Khattat discussed the credibility and practicality of mathematical modeling and numeric analyses of engineering systems and processes.

Dr. Al-Khattat applied for a comity license in mechanical engineering with Iowa's Engineering and Land Surveying Examining Board on April 30, 1997. Because he had been licensed as a professional mechanical engineer in the United Kingdom, Dr. Al-Khattat believed he could be licensed without further examination in Iowa pursuant to Iowa Code section 542B.20.

The Board denied the application. The Board concluded the licensing process in the United Kingdom was not based on requirements and qualifications equal to those imposed on applicants seeking licensure by examination in Iowa. Thus, the Board found Dr. Al-Khattat's failure to pass the Principles and Practice of Engineering examination,¹ or an equivalent examination offered by another jurisdiction, precluded his licensure in Iowa based on the failure to satisfy the requirements of section 542B.14(1)(d). The Board again denied Dr. Al-Khattat's application after entertaining his request for reconsideration.

A contested case hearing was then held in accordance with Iowa Administrative Code rule 193C—1.11(1) (1998). Three witnesses testified at the hearing. One witness was the Board's executive officer, who acknowledged that the Board has never granted a comity license to an applicant from a foreign country or another state who has not passed the Principles and Practice of Engineering examination. Another witness was the director of examination development for the National Council of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors (NCEES). The NCEES produces and scores the Fundamentals and Principles and Practice of Engineering examinations administered by states, such as Iowa, for engineering and land surveying licensure. In designing the exams, the NCEES surveys engineers to determine what knowledge and tasks demonstrate minimal competence in the profession. The director also explained the various purposes underlying the two exams. The Fundamentals exam, given in Iowa to satisfy the requirements of section 542B.14(1)(b), is designed to test the examinee's understanding of general engineering principles. On the other hand, the Principles and Practice of Engineering exam, given in Iowa to satisfy the requirements of section 542B.14(1)(d), evaluates the thinking process utilized by the examinee in solving the engineering problems.

Dr. Al-Khattat also testified. He explained the United Kingdom's licensure process, and submitted a ninety-three-page report he prepared comparing the licensure processes of the United Kingdom and Iowa. Dr. Al-Khattat acknowledged the oral interview was essentially a "mini-defense" of his Ph.D. dissertation, and that it did not require him to solve any mechanical engineering problems. Instead, the United Kingdom licensure process was an individualized process, involving a summary of an individual's experience and an analysis of whether the particular individual should become a licensed engineer.

Following the hearing, the Board entered a written ruling denying Dr. Al-Khattat's application for a comity license. As in its earlier decisions, the Board relied on its conclusion that the evidence failed to demonstrate that Dr. Al-Khattat passed a professional examination in the United Kingdom equivalent to the NCEES Principles and Practice of Engineering examination required for initial licensure under section 542B.14.

Dr. Al-Khattat then petitioned for judicial review pursuant to section 17A.19. The district court denied the petition. It found the Board's decision was supported by substantial evidence.

Dr. Al-Khattat appeals. He contends the district court erred in upholding the Board's conclusion that he did not successfully pass an examination designed to determine an applicant's proficiency to practice engineering. Additionally, he contends the Board engaged in illegal informal rulemaking by requiring comity license applicants to pass the Principles and Practice of Engineering examination.²

II. Standard and Scope of Review.

We review the denial of a petition for judicial review for errors at law. Greenwood Manor v. Iowa Dep't of Pub. Health, 641 N.W.2d 823, 830 (Iowa 2002). When evaluating the validity of agency action, we consider the standards delineated in section 17A.19(8) to determine if our conclusions align with those of the district court. Id.; Wieslander v. Iowa Dep't of Transp., 596 N.W.2d 516, 520 (Iowa 1999). Thus, we confine our review to "whether the district court correctly applied the law." Id.

We will reverse the agency's action only if it is not supported by substantial evidence in the record, S.E. Iowa Coop. Elec. Ass'n v. Iowa Utils. Bd., 633 N.W.2d 814, 818 (Iowa 2001), or if the agency acted unreasonably, arbitrarily, or capriciously in rendering its decision. 53 C.J.S. Licenses § 43(c), at 389 (1987). An agency decision is supported by substantial evidence when a reasonable person could reach the same conclusions after considering the record in its entirety. S.E. Iowa Coop. Elec. Ass'n, 633 N.W.2d at 818; Madrid Home for the Aging v. Iowa Dep't of Human Servs., 557 N.W.2d 507, 510 (Iowa 1996). Consequently, even if we find the evidence capable of supporting a conclusion different from that reached by the agency, we must affirm if we can find substantial evidence in the record to support the agency's determination. Id. Moreover, we must seek to uphold the agency's decision by liberally construing its factual findings. Wieslander, 596 N.W.2d at 520.

Lastly, we defer to an agency's construction of statutes and rules within the agency's expertise, unless the interpretation is erroneous or unreasonable. Madrid Home for the Aging, 557 N.W.2d at 511; 53 C.J.S. Licenses § 43(c), at 389. This is particularly true in the case of statutes and regulations entrusted to agencies responsible for licensing professionals. See 53 C.J.S. Licenses § 43(c), at 389; see also S.E. Iowa Coop. Elec. Ass'n, 633 N.W.2d at 818 (...