BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1914|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 1914
Author: Senate Business and Professions Committee
Amended: As introduced
Vote: 21
SENATE BUSINESS & PROFESSIONS COMMITTEE : 5-0, 4/19/04
AYES: Aanestad, Cedillo, Machado, Murray, Figueroa
NO VOTE RECORDED: Brulte, Vincent
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Business and Professions: omnibus bill
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill makes several non-controversial,
minor, non-substantive or technical changes to various
miscellaneous provisions pertaining to regulatory boards of
the State Department of Consumer Affairs.
ANALYSIS :
Existing Law
1. Provides for the licensing and regulation of
contractors by the Contractors' State License Board
(CSLB).
2. Requires an unlicensed person engaging in a project
under $500 to give notice to the consumer regarding his
or her non-licensee status.
CONTINUED
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3. Prohibits contractors from engaging in
asbestos-related work without the required
certification.
4. Prohibits an applicant for licensure convicted of
certain acts from applying for licensure for a one-year
period following the conviction.
5. Specifies that a delinquency fee is 50 percent of the
renewal fee, if the license is renewed more than 30
days after its expiration.
6. Requires a copy of a complaint in a civil action
against a contractor's bond to be served on the
registrar of CSLB by the clerk of the court.
7. Prohibits CSLB from making public disclosure of
complaints against a licensee, except as specified.
8. Requires a contractor to file a bond in the amount of
$10,000. After January 1, 2007, the amount of the bond
is to be $12,500.
9. Requires a qualifying individual to file a bond in the
amount of $7,500.
10. Provides for a contractor's licensure examination, and
exempts certain persons from the examination.
11. Requires contractors changing certain information,
including business name or address, to notify the
registrar within 90 days of the change.
12. Makes employment of certain persons who have been
denied a license or had action taken against their
license, or the license of an entity that they were
associated with, grounds for disciplinary action.
13. Provides for the licensing and regulation of court
reports by the Court Reporters Board (CRB).
14. Requires the payment of an initial certification fee
prior to certification as a court reporter.
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15. Requires a licensee applying for a renewal to meet
requirements that include notifying the CRB if he or
she has been convicted of a misdemeanor substantially
related to the functions and duties of a court
reporter.
16. Requires private court reporting schools to disclose
specified information to prospective students.
This bill:
1.Makes the following changes pertaining to the licensing
of contractors by the CSLB:
A. Replaces the previously-used term "deputy
registrars" with the currently-used term "enforcement
representatives."
B. Specifies that unlicensed contractors may not
perform or engage in asbestos-related work without
the required certification.
C. Deletes the requirement that a person who performs
small contracting jobs (less than $500), which are
exempt from the state license requirement must
provide a notice to a consumer that he or she is not
licensed by the CSLB.
D. Deletes the prohibition that an applicant for
licensure who has been convicted of working as an
unlicensed contractor must wait at least one year
before he or she may apply for a contractor's
license.
E. Conforms the amount of the bond that is required
to obtain a license as a qualifying individual to the
amount of the contractors' license bond as of January
1, 2007.
F. Deletes the requirement that court clerks serve
the registrar of CSLB, by registered or certified
mail, with a copy of any complaint in any civil
action against a license bond.
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G. Specifies that the required change-of-address
notices licensees must provide to the board within 90
days must be on a form approved by CSLB.
H. Expands the definition of disciplinary cases that
are eligible for resolution through arbitration.
I. Shortens the time period, from one year to 90
days, in which a licensed contractor must reinstate
his or her license following its suspension for
failure to pay a civil penalty or comply with an
order of correction.
J. Exempts employment as a bona fide employee from
the prohibition against employing persons who have
been denied or had action taken against their license
or the license of an entity with which they were
associated.
K. Eliminates the 30-day grace period for delinquent
fees.
L. Deletes obsolete provisions and makes other
technical changes.
2.Makes the following changes pertaining to the licensing
of contractors by the CRB:
A. Requires a licensee to notify the CRB of any
misdemeanor conviction.
B. Authorizes the CRB to issue an interim permit to
successful applicants. Specifies that the interim
permit shall be valid for up to 45 days or until the
initial certificate fee is received and the permanent
certificate is issued, whichever comes first.
C. Requires public schools to disclose the same
information to prospective students that private
schools are required to disclose. Additionally,
specifies that court reporting schools must provide
the disclosure information to all students, both new
and existing, by June 30, 2005.
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Comments
Purpose . This bill is one of three "committee bills"
authored by the Senate Business and Professions Committee
that are intended to consolidate a number of
non-controversial provisions related to various regulatory
programs governed by the Business and Professions Code, and
generally located within the State Department of Consumer
Affairs (DCA). Consolidating the provisions in one bill is
designed to relieve the various licensing boards from the
necessity and burden of having separate measures for a
number of non-controversial revisions.
Many of the provisions make minor, technical and updating
changes, while other provisions are substantive changes
which are intended to improve the ability of the various
licensing programs to efficiently and effectively
administer their respective licensing laws. However, as a
"committee bill," if controversy or opposition should arise
regarding any provision that cannot be resolved, then that
provision will be removed from the bill. This will
eliminate the chance of placing any of the other provisions
in jeopardy.
Background . The following is some background and reasoning
for the provisions in this bill given by the CSLB and the
CRB:
CSLB Provisions : This bill contains 14 legislative changes
to Contractors' License Law proposed by CSLB. These
changes include the removal of several references to
completed studies, deletion of redundant notice
requirements, formalization of address change requests,
clarification of the term "associate", and correction of a
mistake in a bill chaptered last year (AB 1382, Chapter
363, Statutes of 2003). It also eliminates the provision
in current law that precludes an unlicensed contractor
convicted of a violation of Section 7028 (unlicensed
contractor) from applying for a license for one year,
giving CSLB more control, clarifies that a qualifying
individual's license bond amount is the same as the
contractor's license bond amount [revised in SB 1919,
Chapter 1123 (Statutes of 2002)], expands the definition of
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cases eligible to be sent to arbitration, and, eliminates
confusing "grace period" language for delinquent fees that
erroneously leads licensees to believe their license has
not expired when, if fact, it has. These proposals are
intended to be part of an ongoing process of continued
clarification, updating, and streamlining of CSLB licensing
law, as proposed by staff, industry, consumers, and the
Joint Legislative Sunset Review Committee.
CRB Provisions : Current licensing requirements specify
that applicants and licensees must notify CRB of any
misdemeanor conviction if the misdemeanor is substantially
related to the functions and duties of a court reporter.
That statutory language may be interpreted to mean that the
individual may determine whether an offense is related to
the functions of the court reporter. Consistent with other
statutory requirements, it is CRB's responsibility to
determine whether or not a conviction is related to the
functions of a court reporter.
The temporary permit provision will allow applicants who
have successfully completed the requirements, including
passage of the exam, to begin to practice immediately while
waiting for their permanent certificate (license) to be
sent to them by CRB.
Existing law only requires private schools to give
prospective students information and a disclosure
statement. Further, the law only applies to new or
prospective students, not to currently enrolled students.
CRB believes that this requirement should be extended to
public court reporting schools and that all students
currently enrolled in court reporting school should be
given this information.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/3/04)
Contractors State License Board
CP:cm 5/3/04 Senate Floor Analyses
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SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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