The period of decertification will not exceed 3 years in duration and will be decided by the decertifying official, either the Deputy Chief for Programs or the Chief of NRCS, as applicable, based on their weighing of all relevant facts and the seriousness of the reasons for decertification, mitigating factors, if any, and the following general guidelines:

(a) For failures in the provision of technical service for which there are no mitigating factors, e.g., no remedial action by the technical service provider, a maximum period of three years decertification;

(b) For repeated failures in the provision of technical assistance for which there are mitigating factors, e.g., the technical service provider has taken remedial action to the satisfaction of NRCS, a maximum period of one to two years decertification; and

(c) For a violation of Certification Agreement terms, e.g., failure to possess technical competency for a listed practice, a period of one year or less, if the technical service provider can master such competency within a year period.

[75 FR 6845, Feb. 12, 2010, as amended at 79 FR 44640, Aug. 1, 2014]