BILL ANALYSIS ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |Hearing Date:June 14, 2010 |Bill No:AB | | |1746 | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SENATE COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Senator Gloria Negrete McLeod, Chair Bill No: AB 1746Author:Emmerson As Introduced: February 8, 2010Fiscal: Yes SUBJECT: Architects: continuing education. SUMMARY: Revises and recasts existing requirements for the California Architects Board to accept self-certification of completed continuing education requirements for license renewals. Existing law: 1) Provides for the licensing and regulation of more than 22,000 architects by the California Architects Board (Board) within the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA.) 2) Provides that each architect license expires every odd-numbered year (every two years), and may be renewed by filing an application with the Board which contains a statement specifying whether the licensee has been convicted of a crime and by paying the renewal fee, as specified. 3) Mandates continuing education as a condition for license renewal, by requiring that an architect must complete coursework on disability access requirements, as specified, and must certify completion to the Board and provide documentation from the course provider that includes the course title, subjects covered, name of provider and trainer or educator, date of completion, number of hours completed, and a statement about the trainer or educator's knowledge and experience background. 4) Phases in the number of continuing education hours required on an incremental basis as follows: a) 1 hour for licenses renewed between July 1, 2009 and January AB 1746 Page 2 1, 2010. b) 2.5 hours for licenses renewed between January 1, 2010 and January 1, 2011. c) 5 hours for all licenses renewed after January 1, 2011. 5) Requires coursework regarding disability access to be presented by trainers and educators with knowledge and expertise and to include information and practical guidance regarding: a) The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. b) State laws that govern access to public facilities. c) Federal and state regulations adopted pursuant to a) and b). This bill: 1) Recasts the existing continuing education requirements described under Existing Law, Items 3), 4) and 5) above, and revises the manner in which completion of the continuing education in disability access is documented to the Board. 2) Beginning January 1, 2013, requires licensees to certify compliance with the continuing education requirements and provide documentation of the disabled access continuing education upon request by the Board in an audit. 3) Subjects a licensee who fails to complete the required coursework or provides false or misleading statements relating to the completion of required coursework to a civil penalty of up to $5,000 by the Board, or license suspension or revocation, or both civil penalty and suspension or revocation. 4) Authorizes the Board to audit the records of a licensee to verify completion of any of the continuing education requirements, and requires each licensee to maintain records of completion of the required coursework for two years from the date of license renewal and make the records available at the Board's request for auditing. 5) Until January 1, 2015, requires the Board to audit at least 3% of the license renewals each year to verify completion of the continuing education requirements. 6) Requires the Board to submit a letter to the Legislature by January AB 1746 Page 3 1, 2019, on the disability access continuing education provisions, including the level of licensee compliance with the requirements, actions taken by the Board for noncompliance, the findings of Board audits, and any recommendations for improving the process. FISCAL EFFECT: The Assembly Appropriations Committee analysis, dated April 14, 2010 indicates the following: 1) Savings in excess of $400,000 (California Architects Board Fund) per year due to the removal of the requirement that the Board certify the course work all of their licensees as a condition of licensure renewal. 2) On-going annual costs in excess of $100,000 (California Architects Board Fund) per year for auditing and enforcement activities. 3) Approximately $10,000 per year in increased fine revenue as a result of the three percent audit requirement. COMMENTS: 1. Purpose. This bill is sponsored by American Institute of Architects, California Council (AIACC, Sponsor) to change the existing continuing education reporting requirements for architects to a certify/audit model, which is widely used by regulatory boards with continuing education requirements, and to allow the Board to manage the continuing education requirement in a more effective and efficient manner. The Author states that in 2008, SB 1608 required California architects to take continuing education in disability access as a condition of license renewal. The bill further directed every architect to submit coursework documentation forms on the required courses to the Board. According to the Author, the reporting requirements have shown to be costly and burdensome for the Board to manage, and have delayed confirmation of license renewal for many architects renewing in 2009 who complied with the continuing education requirement. The Sponsor argues that the cost and delays are a result of how SB 1608 which requires the continuing education to be reported. 2. Background. In 2008, SB 1608 (Corbett, Chapter 549, Statutes of AB 1746 Page 4 2008) established a narrowly-focused continuing education requirement for architects. That bill was introduced to address a number of reforms intended to increase compliance with longstanding state and federal laws requiring access to persons with disabilities in places of public accommodation. The bill established the Construction-Related Accessibility Standards Compliance Act, and made a number of changes including: (1) established processes for businesses sued for violation of accessibility standards; (2) specified requirements for site certifications by a certified access specialists; (3) established a California Commission on Disability Access; (4) imposed continuing education requirements on local building officials relating to disability access requirements; and, (5) required as a condition of license renewal that an architect must complete coursework regarding disability access requirements as a condition of license renewal. The bill required each architect to certify completion of the continuing education hours and provide documentation to the Board from the course provider that includes the course title, subjects covered, name of provider and trainer or educator, date of completion, number of hours completed, and a statement about the trainer or educator's knowledge and experience background. While SB 1608's continuing education provisions dealt only with disability access, both AIACC and the Board expressed clear interest in establishing a broad-based comprehensive continuing education requirement for architects rather than the narrower, subject-specific requirement for disability access continuing education. Last year, AIACC sponsored AB 623 (Emmerson) which proposed to establish a comprehensive continuing education requirement if the Board determines that continuing education is in the interest of public health safety and welfare. The bill was further amended to additionally contain nearly identical provisions to those found in this measure to recast the disability access education requirements and to require an architect to provide documentation of the disabled access continuing education upon request by the Board. The AIACC worked with Senator Corbett's office and with the Judiciary Committee staff to streamline the licensees' reporting process and at that same time simplify the Board's processes of monitoring compliance with the requirements. AB 623 was ultimately vetoed by the Governor who stated: "I am supportive of the provisions that modify the documentation requirements for the existing [continuing education] requirements, but I believe this could be done administratively. However, I do AB 1746 Page 5 not believe we should be placing additional burdens on licensees by demanding they fulfill new continuing education requirements." It is significant to note that this bill's revision of the reporting process does not diminish the requirement for architects to complete 5 hours of continuing education in disability access, nor does it set aside any of the educational standards or course content requirements. This bill only changes the SB 1608 reporting requirement so that the architect certifies compliance, maintains the information on the course(s), and submits that information to the Board upon request. According to the Board, 16 DCA licensing boards use the certify/audit method to verify continuing education, while 7 boards require some information on the course to be submitted. AIACC states that the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards and the American Institute of Architects report that 26 state licensing boards follow the certify/audit model, and 12 require some information to be sent to the licensing board. Of those 12, most require minimal information on the course (course title, date taken, and hours) as a part of renewal application, with more specific information to be retained in case of an audit. 3. Previous Legislation. AB 623 (Emmerson, 2009) would have authorized the Board to establish comprehensive continuing education requirements and revised the existing disability access continuing education reporting requirements. That bill was vetoed by the Governor. SB 1608 (Corbett, Chapter 549, Statutes of 2008) requires, for license renewal, that an architect complete coursework regarding disability access requirements, and certify to the Board completion of the coursework. 4. Arguments in Support. The California Architects Board writes in support that the bill would streamline the Board's process for verifying compliance with the continuing education on disabled access provisions. Currently, the Board must review and process 22,000 records each renewal cycle. The bill would allow the Board to rely on licensees certifying compliance with and to audit the continuing education records of licensees. The revised process will remove a significant backlog that occurs under the current system that delays licenses being issued, according to the Board. In sponsoring the bill, the American Institute of Architects, California Council states that the bill removes the requirement AB 1746 Page 6 that architects submit the disability access coursework forms to the Board, and instead requires architects to certify they took the courses, retain the coursework forms for two years, and give them to the Board only upon an audit. The bill requires the Board to verify compliance with the continuing education law through random audits. AIACC ultimately states that the proposed changes would be more cost effective than the current law, and would result in cost savings to the Board. 5. Neutral if Amended. The Department of Consumer Affairs has taken a "neutral if amended" position on the bill, stating that it has no concern with granting the Board authorization to audit continuing education records of licensees, but objects to penalty for noncompliance by licensees, and the requirement for the Board to send a letter to the Legislature regarding continuing education compliance by licensees. DCA states that the Board already has authority to issue administrative fines for licensees who violate the law. DCA also believes the requirement for the Board to submit a letter to the Legislature by January 1, 2019 is also unnecessary. DCA has suggested deleting both of these provisions from the bill. Committee staff notes that while it is true that general authority under Section 125.9 of the general provisions of the Business and Professions Code authorizes boards to issue administrative citations and fines up to $5,000 for violations of the law, explicitly authorizing the Board to revoke or suspend a licensee who provides false or misleading statements relating to the completion of coursework more clearly delineates the authority and responsibility of the Board in this regard. Committee staff further notes that the requirement for the Board to submit a letter to the Legislature regarding compliance with the continuing education requirements by January 1, 2019 was one of the agreements with Senator Corbett in last year's AB 623 which would have similarly amended the provisions enacted by SB 1608 in 2008. SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION: Support: American Institute of Architects, California Council (Sponsor) California Architects Board AB 1746 Page 7 Opposition: None received as of June 9, 2010 Consultant:G. V. Ayers