University of Illinois Extension and Illinois Department of Agriculture announced the 2024 Certified Livestock Manager Training Workshop (CLMT) schedule. The series of seven in-person workshops will kick off on January 30 in Springfield and conclude on February 8 in Pittsfield. These workshops meet the Illinois Livestock Management Facilities Act (LMFA) training requirements for Illinois livestock managers.

Pre-registration is required to attend an in-person workshop. To register for a workshop, visit go.illinois.edu/CLMT for a link to the registration page and additional information. Registration opens December 1, 2023. Class size is limited in some locations due to space constraints.

The 2024 workshop dates and locations are:
     • January 30, 2024 — Springfield, IL 
        Bank of Springfield (BOS) Center, 1 Convention Center Plaza, Springfield, IL
     • January 31, 2024 — Monmouth, IL
       U of I Extension office-Warren Co., Warren-Henderson Farm Bureau Bldg., 1000 N Main St., Monmouth, IL
     • February 1, 2024 — Morris, IL
       U of I Extension office-Grundy Co., Kendall- Grundy County Farm Bureau Bldg., 4000 N. Division St., Morris, IL
     • February 2, 2024 — Freeport, IL
       Stephenson County Farm Bureau Bldg., 210 W. Spring St, Freeport, IL
     • February 6, 2024 — Effingham, IL
       U of I Extension office-Effingham Co., 1209 North Wenthe Drive, Effingham, IL
     • February 7, 2024 — Breese, IL
       U of I Extension Office-Clinton Co., 1163 North 4th Street, Breese, IL
     • February 8, 2024 — Pittsfield, IL
       U of I Extension office-Pike Co., Pike County Farm Bureau Bldg., 1301 E Washington, Pittsfield, IL

Each workshop will begin at 9 a.m. The training lasts 3 ½ hours, and Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDoA) staff will administer the exam after the training. The U of I Extension training fee is $40, and IDOA’s certification fee is $30. The training manual used will be the “Livestock and Poultry Environmental Stewardship Curriculum.” It is available at go.illinois.edu/manual.

The LMFA requires facilities designed for 300 or more animal units to have at least one employee certified in environmentally aware manure management techniques. Facilities designed for 301 to 999 animal units must have at least one employee attend a workshop OR complete the online training. Facilities with more than 1,000 animal units must have a certified livestock manager attend a workshop and pass the IDOA exam OR complete the online training and pass the online test.

For the 2024 season, there will be 50 questions on both paper-based and online tests. The pass rate is 70% (35 questions). A Spanish version of the test is now available. Ahora ya está disponible una versión en español del examen para CLMT! Young family members (<18 years old) are welcome to take the training, but they cannot be the only certified managers at their facilities.

Cannot attend a workshop? Online training and testing are available year-round and follow the same format as the in-person workshops. Online training involves nine modules of 10- to 20-minute videos that can be viewed at an individual’s own pace. Those who have more than 1,000 animal units may take the test online. The online training can be accessed through the CLMT webpage at go.illinois.edu/CLMT

We kindly ask all participants to register online at go.illinois.edu/CLMT. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in or have questions about the CLMT program, please contact University of Illinois Extension at 815-235-4125 or Stanley Solomon at jssolomo@illinois.edu.