State rules
Rhode Island
Rhode Island licenses well-drilling contractors and pump installers through the Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board. The short title in General Laws section 5-65.2-1 calls the chapter the Rhode Island Well-Drilling, Pump Installers, and Water-Filtration Contractors Licensing Law. Its stated purpose is a licensing program and minimum standards for installation, construction, repair, development, and abandonment of wells, well pumps, water-supply systems, and water-filtration systems, so that the work is done by competent people and the water supply is protected. Section 5-65.2-3 authorizes the board to license well-drilling contractors, pump installers, and residential water-filtration contractors and installers, and to set categories of work for different equipment and methods. The statute says this does not relieve a public water system from operator-certification rules.
Checked against official sources on October 11, 2026. Rules and links change; confirm with the office listed before you act.
- Licensing or permitting agency
- Rhode Island Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board
- Who must hold a credential
- Licensed well-drilling contractor and licensed pump installer, under the well-drilling and pump installers licensing law
- Official permit or license page
- Official page →
The licensing procedure says the board's program is in addition to the general contractor registration law in chapter 65. Regulations were to establish categories so that qualifications match the equipment and the work, including construction, installation, repair, alteration, or removal of wells, pumps, and water-supply systems. A property owner should ask which category the person holds: well-drilling contractor or pump installer. Those are named separately in the statute. A filtration contractor is a third category and is not a substitute for a well-drilling license when the work is drilling the well.
The board's public license pages describe the well-drilling contractor as a person who engages in well drilling, including installation, alteration, removal, or repair of water-supply systems, and describe a pump installer as a person who installs pumps and associated equipment. Those pages did not all return a normal status during this check, so the statute is the source relied on for the legal duty to be licensed. Readers should confirm the current application steps on the board's site. This record does not copy a fee and does not list licensees.
Abandonment is named in the purpose section alongside construction and repair, so closing a well is part of what the chapter says the standards cover. A customer should ask which license category will do the drilling, which will do the pump, and how abandonment of an old well will be handled if that is part of the job. Public water systems remain under their own operator rules. The two statute sections cited here are the official statement of who the board licenses and why.
Official resources in Rhode Island
Names the licensing law and its purpose, including well abandonment.
Authorizes the board to license well-drilling contractors and pump installers.
Federal context for private well households.
Key facts for Rhode Island
- The Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board licenses well-drilling contractors and pump installers.
- Water-filtration contractors are a separate category in the same chapter.
- The purpose section includes construction, repair, and abandonment of wells.
- The program is in addition to general contractor registration.
- Public water systems still follow operator-certification rules.
- The statute tells the board to set categories for different equipment and methods.
What to do next
- Ask whether the license is for well drilling, pump installation, or only filtration equipment.
- Confirm the credential with the Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board.
- Ask how an old well on the property will be abandoned.
- Do not treat a general contractor registration as a well-drilling license.
Looking for your city or county in Rhode Island?
We haven't found official program-level pages for Rhode Island we can verify yet, so we don't show local numbers here rather than guess. Here's what to use instead, in order:
- General Start with the statewide information above. It applies across Rhode Island, but cities and counties can add their own steps, fees or deadlines.
- Call to confirm Ask the official office. They have the current local rule, fee and form.Rhode Island
Website →Phone not shown: use the contact page on the official website above.Your city or county office: Local governments →Not sure who handles it locally? USAGov's free help line, 1-844-872-4681, or the Rhode Island page on USA.gov can point you to the right office. - Know the current info? Tell us and include a link to the official page. We check every tip before it goes up.
Helpful guides
- When you need a well permit
- Licensed driller versus pump installer
- How to check a well driller license
- Private well water testing after drilling