BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                             Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
                            2015 - 2016  Regular  Session

          AB 2486 (Baker) - Contractors' State License Board:  license  
          search by location
          
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          |Version: April 25, 2016         |Policy Vote: B., P. & E.D. 9 -  |
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          |Urgency: No                     |Mandate: No                     |
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          |Hearing Date: August 1, 2016    |Consultant: Brendan McCarthy    |
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          This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the  
          Suspense File.


          Bill  
          Summary:  AB 2486 would require the Contractors State License  
          Board to allow the public to search for a licensed contractor by  
          zip code or geographic indicator.


          Fiscal  
          Impact:  One-time costs of $90,000 to $100,000 to perform the  
          required upgrades to the Board's IT systems and website to allow  
          geographic searching for licensed contractors (Contractors  
          License Fund). Depending on the internal IT workload at the  
          Board, the Board would either use its existing staff or contract  
          out to make the necessary changes to meet the requirements of  
          the bill.


          Background:  Under current law, the Contractors State License Board  
          licenses and regulates contractors in the state, including both  







          AB 2486 (Baker)                                        Page 1 of  
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          individuals and businesses. Under current law, any construction  
          project that costs more than $500 must be performed by  a  
          licensed contractor. The Board currently licenses about 290,000  
          contractors.
          Currently, members of the public can use the Board's website to  
          search for a contractor by personal name, business name, or  
          license number - to ensure that a contractor is licensed and to  
          view any disciplinary actions against a licensed contractor.  
          Members of the public cannot search for licensed contractors in  
          their area, because the Board's website does not allow for  
          searches based on location. The Board's Strategic Plan includes  
          an goal to develop a feature to allow searches for a contractor  
          by geographic location, but the Board has not implemented that  
          goal.




          Proposed Law:  
            AB 2486 would require the Contractors State License Board to  
          allow the public to search for a licensed contractor by zip code  
          or geographic indicator.
          The Board would be required to comply with this requirement by  
          January 1, 2019.




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