BILL NUMBER: SB 662 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Senator Galgiani
FEBRUARY 22, 2013
An act to amend Sections 8690, 8691, 8692, 8697, and 8697.3 of,
and to repeal Sections 8693 and 8697.5 of, the Business and
Professions Code, relating to structural pest control operators.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 662, as introduced, Galgiani. Structural pest control
operators: financial responsibility.
Existing law requires, in order to be allowed to do business in
this state, that structural pest control operators file with the
Structural Pest Control Board written evidence of an insurance policy
approved by the board or a bond, as specified, in effect at the time
of the issuance of the company's registration by the board. The
insurance policy is required to provide minimum limits of $25,000 for
any one loss due to bodily injury, sickness, or disease, including
death, sustained by a person, and $25,000 minimum for any one loss
due to injury or destruction of property, including loss of use. A
violation of the financial responsibility provisions for structural
pest control operators is a crime.
This bill would delete the option of obtaining a bond, in order to
be issued registration by the board, to do business as a structural
pest control operator. The bill would delete the requirement that
written evidence of an insurance policy be filed, and increase the
minimum limits for the insurance policy to $500,000. Because the bill
would expand the scope of a crime, it would create a state-mandated
local program.
Existing law requires structural pest control operators to
maintain a surety bond in the amount of $4,000 in order to maintain
its license or company registration. If a structural pest control
operator's license or company registration is suspended or revoked,
on specified grounds, the registrar of the board shall require the
applicant, licensee, or registered company, as a condition of the
issuance, reissuance, or restoration of the license or company
registration, to file a surety bond in a sum to be determined by the
registrar based upon the seriousness of the violation, but not less
than $1,000 nor more than $8,000.
This bill would raise the amount of the surety bond, needed to
maintain the license or company registration, from $4,000 to $12,500,
and would raise the upper limits of the amount of the surety bond
required for an issuance, reissuance, or restoration of the license
or company registration, after a suspension or revocation, from
$8,000 to $25,000.
This bill would also make conforming changes.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 8690 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
8690. The board shall not issue any company registration under
this chapter unless the applicant shall have filed with the board on
a form prescribed by the board written evidence of
an insurance policy approved by the board or a bond
as specified in this article, being in effect at the time
of the issuance of the company registration. This written
evidence shall include a provision that the board shall be
given a 10-day notice by the insurance company or bonding
company should the policy or bond be
canceled or changed during the policy or bond
period in a manner as to affect the written
evidence. Another method of deposit, including a certificate of
deposit, or other undertaking shall not satisfy this requirement.
SEC. 2. Section 8691 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
8691. No A registered company shall
not engage in any of the practices for
which it is required to be registered by this chapter unless it
maintains such an insurance policy
or bond as specified in this article.
SEC. 3. Section 8692 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
8692. (a) An "insurance policy" as used in
this article means a contract of liability insurance issued by an
insurance company authorized to transact business in this state or
one issued by a nonadmitted carrier whose activities in this state
are controlled by the Surplus Line Association, which insures the
policyholder against loss from legal liability for damages on
property upon which work is being performed or has been completed,
including third party losses, as a result of an accident or
occurrence due to participation in any control,
prevention, or repair activities which that
require a license under this chapter. The insurance policy
shall provide minimum limits of twenty-five thousand dollars
($25,000) five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000)
for any one loss due to bodily injury, sickness , or
disease, including death at any time resulting therefrom, sustained
by any person or persons , and
twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) five hundred
thousand dollars ($500,000) minimum for any one loss due to
injury or destruction of property, including the loss of use
thereof of the property .
This
(b) This section shall not be
construed to require errors and omissions insurance for all
activities relating to or during inspections, inspection reports,
recommendations, estimates, and bids, whether oral or written.
SEC. 4. Section 8693 of the Business and Professions Code is
repealed.
8693. In lieu of the insurance policy specified in this article
an applicant for a company registration may file with the board a
bond executed by an admitted surety insurer in the penalty of
twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) with the State of California
as obligee.
SEC. 5. Section 8697 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
8697. Each company registered under the provisions of this
chapter shall maintain a bond executed by an admitted surety insurer
in the amount of four thousand dollars ($4,000)
twelve thousand five hundred dollars ($12,500). Another method
of deposit, including a certificate of deposit, or other undertaking
shall not satisfy this requirement .
SEC. 6. Section 8697.3 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
8697.3. (a) If, after a hearing conducted
in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500) of Part
1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, a license or
company registration is suspended or revoked upon the grounds set
forth in Article 7 (commencing with Section 8620) of this
chapter , the registrar shall require the applicant,
licensee, or registered company, as a condition to the issuance,
reissuance, or restoration of the license or company registration, to
file a surety bond in the sum to be determined by the registrar
based upon the seriousness of the violation, but which
the sum shall not be less than one thousand
dollars ($1,000) nor more than eight thousand dollars
($8,000) twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000)
.
The
(b) The bond required by this
section shall be in addition to the bond required by Section 8697 of
this article.
Each
(c) Each applicant, licensee, or
registered company required to maintain a bond of the type provided
in this section shall post such the
bond with the registrar for a period of at least two years and during
such the additional time as there may
be unsatisfied claims outstanding against the same.
SEC. 7. Section 8697.5 of the Business and Professions Code is
repealed.
8697.5. Such bonds as are required by this article shall be in
addition to any bond which may be maintained pursuant to the
provisions of Article 9 (commencing with Section 8690) of this
chapter.
SEC. 8. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.