BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 152
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 152 (Roth)
As Amended April 8, 2013
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :35-1
BUSINESS & PROFESSIONS 9-3 APPROPRIATIONS 13-4
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|Ayes:|Gordon, Bocanegra, |Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra, |
| |Campos, Dickinson, | |Bradford, |
| |Eggman, Hagman, Mullin, | |Ian Calderon, Campos, |
| |Skinner, Ting | |Eggman, Gomez, Hall, |
| | | |Holden, Linder, Pan, |
| | | |Quirk, Weber |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Jones, Maienschein, Wilk |Nays:|Harkey, Bigelow, |
| | | |Donnelly, Wagner |
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SUMMARY : Deletes the current provisions allowing a temporary
authorization to practice engineering, geology, and geophysics, and
requires the use of a written contract when contracting to provide
geological or geophysical services as specified. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Repeals the authority of the Board for Professional Engineers,
Land Surveyors and Geologists (Board) to issue a temporary
authorization to practice engineering, as specified.
2)Repeals the authority of the Board to issue a temporary
authorization to practice geology and geophysics, as specified.
3)Requires a geologist or geophysicist to use a written contract
when contracting for geological or geophysical services, and
requires the contract to be executed prior to the work commencing
unless the client states otherwise in writing.
4)Requires the written contract for geographical or geophysical
services to include:
a) A description of the services to be provided to the client
by the geologist or geophysicist;
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b) A description of any basis of compensation applicable to the
contract and the method of payment agreed upon by the parties;
c) The name, address and license or certificate number of the
geologist or geophysicist and the name and address of the
client;
d) A description of the procedure the geologist, geophysicist
and the client will use to accommodate additional services;
and,
e) A description of the procedure to be used by any party to
terminate the contract.
5)Provides an exemption to the written contract requirement for any
of the following circumstances:
a) Geologic or geophysical services rendered by a geologist or
geophysicist for which the client will not pay compensation;
b) A geologist or geophysicist who has a current or prior
contractual relationship with the client to provide geologic or
geophysical services and who has already been paid the fees
that are due under the contract by the client;
c) If the client executes a waiver in writing after full
disclosure as specified, that a contract is not required; or,
d) Geological or geophysical services rendered by a geologist
or geophysicist to any of the following: a licensed geologist
or geophysicist; a licensed engineer; a licensed land surveyor;
a licensed architect; a licensed contractor; or a public
agency.
6)Specifies that a "written contract" includes a contract in
electronic form.
7)Makes other technical and clarifying changes.
8)States that no reimbursement is required by this bill pursuant to
the California Constitution because the only costs that may be
incurred by a local agency or a school district will be incurred
because this bill creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a
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crime or infraction, changes the penalty for a crime or
infraction, or changes the definition of a crime.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee,
costs associated with this legislation should be minor and
absorbable within existing resources.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of this bill . This bill would repeal the Board's current
authority to issue a temporary authorization to out-of-state
licensees to practice geology, geophysics or engineering in the
state of California in order to ensure that those professionals
have sufficient knowledge of California's unique seismic issues.
In addition, this bill requires geologists and geophysicists to
execute a written contract, similar to that currently required of
engineers, prior to performing work in order to better protect
consumers from unfair contracting or billing practices. This bill
is sponsored by the Board.
2)Author's statement . According to the author, "Temporary
authorizations [for the practice of engineering, geology or
geophysics] can pose a risk to the health and safety of the
consumers of California because individuals [who] are not licensed
in California may not be familiar with the terrain, soils or
seismic [issues] that are specific to California. Currently,
there is no statutory requirement that professional geologists or
geophysicists execute written contracts with their clients [as do]
professional engineers and land surveyors [which] the board
believes that the written contracts are beneficial to both the
consumer and the licensee."
3)Temporary authorization . The Board does not currently issue
temporary licenses, but it does allow certain out-of-state
licensees to obtain a temporary authorization to practice in
California. The temporary authorization allows an engineer,
geologist, or geophysicists to work in California for a specified
amount of time, up to 180 days for an engineer and up to 60
consecutive days for a geologist or geophysicist, extendable to
120 days.
An applicant for a temporary authorization must submit an
application and supporting documents, and is required to appear
before the Board to demonstrate their competency and understanding
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of their specialty branch of engineering or geology and
geophysics. The Board members may question applicants about the
details of the specific project they will be working on or their
overall experience to date, but issues related to California's
unique seismic issues may be overlooked.
The situations that might lead to a temporary authorization
request include a case where a large, national engineering firm
may decide, on short notice, to use a particular out-of-state
licensee with specialized relevant experience. According to the
Board, since 1995 there have been 40 temporary authorizations
granted for engineers. Of those 40 temporary authorizations, 20
individuals became licensed in California and seven individuals
failed the California licensing examination. There has been only
one instance of the Board granting a temporary license to a
geologist in 2012.
The Board also has limited disciplinary recourse against a
temporary authorization. While current law provides the Board
with the authority to take administrative or disciplinary action
(revocation or suspension) against a temporary authorization, by
the time the Board is notified of a problem and goes through the
investigatory and disciplinary process, the temporary
authorization time period would likely have ended and the
out-of-state practitioner would have returned to his or her home
state, making it difficult and perhaps pointless to pursue
disciplinary action.
According to the sponsors, doing away with temporary authorization
in favor of requiring professionals to take and pass the
standardized exam necessary for licensure is a more appropriate
way of measuring a particular licensee's ability. It will also
ensure that engineering and geoscience professionals practicing in
this state have sufficient knowledge about California's unique
soil, terrain and seismic issues. In practice, it will also give
the Board greater disciplinary power over the licensee.
4)Professional Contracts . Under current law, professionals such as
engineers, land surveyors, contractors, and architects are
required to use written contracts when contracting to provide
professional services. A written contract can help protect the
consumer and the professional by ensuring that both parties have a
clear understanding of the services that will be provided, as well
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as clarifying the terms of the contract and helping to ensure fair
pricing.
This bill would put the geology and geophysics professions on par
with other Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) regulated
professions, and even some of those already regulated by the
Board. AB 20 X4 (Audra Strickland), Chapter 18, Statutes of
2009-10 Fourth Extraordinary Session, eliminated the Board for
Geologists and Geophysicists and transferred all of its duties,
powers, purposes, responsibilities, and jurisdiction to regulate
the practices of geology and geophysics to the Board for
Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors - but did not harmonize
all of the provisions for each profession. This bill would impose
uniform requirements for the contracts of all the professional
licensees regulated by the Board.
Analysis Prepared by : Elissa Silva / B.,P. & C.P. / (916)
319-3301
FN: 0001489