So I can be come certified in TN as a Beekeeper Inspector. This will allow me to inspect my bees when I want to move them, inspect someone else's who wants to move their bees, or inspect someone's bees because they just want them checked out. The only inspection that can't be done is for moving bees out of state.
Was surprised that this program even has a reimbursement plan for these inspections. While not a lot of money it makes it not a burden to do the job. $20 per Apiary and $5 per hive. THere is a specific number of frames that must be checked in each hive. (Can check more but statistcally it's not needed and you are just eating into your reimbursement fee.) After a certain number of hives are located in a apiary, you only check a specific percentage of the hives based on the total number of hives in the apiary and/or total hives in all apiaries.
Hope I passed and am looking forward to the chance of doing this. Makes it easier for me to when doing cutouts, trapouts, and swarms. I can legally move the colonies after getting the bees hives. Our association will be able to assist beeks in a 4 county area including our county. (Some counties don't have a beekeepers association or don't want to participate (limited membership/small county, etc).
The law reads that you can't move bees for any reason without an inspection. It's not being inforced but that would include, swarms, cutouts and trapouts. It also includes moving x number of colonies from spot A to spot B which is XX yards away on the same property.
I can't think of a better way to become more knowledgeable about the diseases, problems (queenless/laying worker), pests, and seeing "how not to do work an apiary" or seeing outstanding apiaries and learn from their knowledge.