ARSC was chartered as a not-for-profit corporation on October 7, 1997 (Charter #1462953) and is funded by participating safety organizations each calendar year.

ARSC Historical Perspective: In June 1995 the National Petroleum Refiners Association (NPRA) ad-hoc committee on Contractor Safety Training and the Texas Chemical Council (TCC) Occupational Safety and Health committee delegated the task of developing reciprocity agreements with all Contractor Safety Councils to the Executive Directors of each of the councils involved.

Council representatives first met on June 28, 1995 in Houston, Texas. There have been many meetings since then with representatives working diligently to maintain reciprocity. The immediate focus was on the Gulf Coast area, the largest petrochemical industry concentration in the country. Many felt that if an agreement could be reached in the Gulf Coast area, other parts of the country would agree in time. Since the 1995 meeting, membership has expanded to many areas outside the Gulf Coast.

These efforts resulted in the development of a training program known today as Basic Orientation Plus and Basic Orientation Plus-Refresher. Other programs have been adopted and more will be implemented as we work together in the future.

The success of ARSC is determined by safety training organizations committed to sharing resources, expertise and best practices. Association members share the cost of maintaining and utilizing current, state-of-the-art training programs for a fraction of development costs while ensuring program integrity through audits and program reviews.

ARSC is committed to continuous improvement in all aspects of operation. This includes upgrades to the curriculum, audit process, test procedures including validation and security measures.