BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON
BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Senator Jerry Hill, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 799 Hearing Date: April 27,
2015
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|Author: |Committee on Business, Professions and Economic |
| |Development |
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|Version: |April 20, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant|Mark Mendoza |
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Subject: Business and professions.
SUMMARY: Makes several non-controversial, minor, non-substantive or
technical changes to various provisions within the Business and
Professions Code relating to the non-health regulatory boards of
the Department of Consumer Affairs.
Existing law:
1) Provides for the licensing and regulation of various
professions and businesses by some 26 boards, 3 committees, 9
bureaus, 2 programs, and 1 commission within the Department
of Consumer Affairs (DCA) under various licensing acts within
the Business and Professions Code (BPC).
2) Contains the following provisions relating to the California
Board of Accountancy (CBA):
a) Allows an individual with a canceled license to apply to
have that license placed in a retired status. (BPC §
5070.1(d)(1))
b) Allows for the restoration of a license in a retired
status to an active status.
(BPC § 5070.1(g))
c) Allows CBA to issue a certified public accountant (CPA)
license to any applicant who is a holder of a valid and
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 2 of ?
unrevoked CPA license issued under the laws of any state.
(BPC § 5087)
1) Contains the following provisions relating to Cemetery and
Funeral Bureau:
a) Provides that each licensed funeral establishment that
maintains an Internet Web site post on its Internet Web
site the list of funeral goods and services that are
required to be included in the establishment's general
price list (GPL), pursuant to federal rule, and a statement
that the GPL is available upon request.
(BPC § 7685(b)(1))
b) Provides that if a funeral establishment elects to post
a link to its GPL, it must identify the link on its home
page with the words "price information" or a similar phrase
that includes the word price. (BPC § 7685(b)(3))
1) Contains the following provisions relating to the County
Clerks and Election Officials:
a) Requires out of state registrants applying for a
fictitious business name (FBN) in the State of California
provide documentation by the Secretary of State and, if
requested by the county clerk. (BPC § 17913(2)(e)(f))
1) Contains the following provisions relating to the Contractors
State License Board (CSLB):
a) Requires a licensee to notify the issuing board at its
principal office of any change in his or her mailing
address within 30 days after the change, unless the board
has specified by regulations a shorter time period. (BPC §
136)
b) Provides that all licensees shall notify the registrar,
on a form prescribed by the registrar, in writing within 90
days of any change to information recorded under Chapter 9,
Division 3 of the BPC. (BPC § 7083)
1) Contains the following provisions relating to the Governor's
Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz):
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 3 of ?
a) Requires that all meetings be located in California.
(Government Code (GOV) § 13995.40(m))
1) Contains the following provisions relating to the Board of
Guide Dogs for the Blind:
a) Provides that there is in the Department of Consumer
Affairs a State Board of Guide for the Blind and details
that Board's authority to issue and regulate licenses for
the instruction of a blind person in the use of guide dogs.
(BPC §§ 7200-7217)
1) Contains the following provisions relating to Board for
Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Geologists
(BPELSG):
a) Authorizes architects to prepare civil engineering
plans, calculations, specifications, and reports for the
construction of structures. (BPC § 6735)
1) Contains the following provisions relating to Structural Pest
Control Board (SPCB):
a) Defines "household" as any structure and its contents
which are used for man and his convenience. (BPC § 8508)
b) Limits the effect of the section to Branch 1 and Branch
3 registered companies. (BPC § 8513)
c) Requires any registered company that makes an inspection
of any property relating to the absence or presence of wood
destroying pests or organisms on such property and makes a
report of such inspection furnish a copy of the report
either to the owner of the property or to the agent of the
owner, within 10 working days after the date the inspection
is commenced, except an inspection report prepared for use
by an attorney for litigation is not required to be
furnished.
(BPC § 8516.5)
d) Provides that it is unlawful for any person to advertise
or represent in any manner that any pest control work, in
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 4 of ?
whole or in part, has been done upon any structure, unless
the work has been performed by a registered company. (BPC
§ 8552)
e) Requires that each branch office have a branch
supervisor designated by the registered company to
supervise and assist the company's employees who are
located at that branch. Requires the branch supervisor to
be an individual who is licensed by the SPCB as an operator
or a field representative and his or her license be
prominently displayed in the branch office. (BPC § 8611)
This bill:
1) Makes the following changes relating to the California Board
of Accountancy (CBA):
a) Clarifies that a canceled license placed into retired
status may not be renewed, restored, or reinstated.
b) Requires that such license holders reapply for licensure
if they wish to renew restore, or reinstate their license.
c) Recasts the requirements for an out-of-state license
from "valid and unrevoked" to "current, active, and
unrestricted".
1) Makes the following changes relating to the Cemetery and
Funeral Bureau:
a) Adds that a funeral establishment must use the words
"good," "merchandize," "products," or "services" on its
home page to identify a link to the list of goods and
services.
1) Makes the following changes relating to the County Clerks and
Election Officials:
a) Adds "California" prior to the two references of
"Secretary of State".
1) Makes the following changes relating to the Contractors State
License Board (CSLB):
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 5 of ?
a) Clarifies that contractor licensees are required to
notify the registrar 90 days after any change in
information.
1) Makes the following changes relating to the Governor's Office
of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz):
a) Allows members to participate in the California Travel
and Tourism Commission via teleconference and other
technology.
1) Makes the following changes relating to the Board of Guide
Dogs for the Blind:
a) Removes effective dates that have passed.
b) Removes specific gender from the Code.
c) Revises and updates the Code to use the correct person
first terminology when referring to persons who are blind
or visually impaired.
1) Makes the following changes relating to Board for
Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Geologists
(BPELSG):
a) Deletes the authorization for architects to prepare
civil engineering plans, calculations, specifications, and
reports for the construction of structures.
1) Makes the following changes relating to Structural Pest
Control Board (SPCB):
a) Replaces the word "man" with the word "persons" and
replacing the word "his" with the word "their".
b) Deletes language that limits the effect of the statute
to Branch 1 and Branch 3 registered companies.
c) Deletes repetitive provisions.
d) Adds language that allows a registered company to
represent work that has been completed by an unlicensed
company or individual only in cases where the Act
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 6 of ?
explicitly provides for an unlicensed company to complete
such work.
e) Adds language in order to clarify that branch office
supervisors must be field representatives or operators who
are licensed in the branch or branches of pest control that
is being conducted at that office.
FISCAL
EFFECT: Unknown. This bill has been keyed "fiscal" by
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose. This bill is one of two "committee bills" authored by
the Business, Professions, and Economic Development Committee
(Committee) and is intended to consolidate a number of
non-controversial provisions related to various regulatory
programs and professions governed by the BPC. Consolidating
the provisions in one bill is designed to relieve the various
licensing boards, bureaus, professions and other regulatory
agencies from the necessity and burden of having separate
measures for a number of non-controversial revisions.
Many of the provisions of this bill are minor, technical, and
updating changes, while other provisions are substantive
changes intended to improve the ability of various licensing
programs and other entities to efficiently and effectively
administer their respective 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.
2.Background. The following is background and reasons for the
more significant and substantive provisions in this measure:
a) Board of Accountancy. In 2011, the CBA sponsored
Assembly Bill 431 (Chapter 395, Statutes of 2011), which
contained language authorizing the CBA, at its discretion,
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 7 of ?
to create a retired status for CPA and public accountant
licenses. In 2012, the CBA supported Senate Bill 1576
(Chapter 661, Statutes of 2012) which included a provision
that allowed an individual who had a canceled license to
apply for and obtain a retired status license provided they
met the minimum requirements. The CBA adopted regulations
to implement the retired status, which were approved by the
Office of Administrative Law on October 16, 2013, with the
regulations taking effect on July 1, 2014.
The enabling legislation that created the retired status was
relatively permissive in nature and provided the CBA the
authority to establish minimum qualifications to have a license
placed in a retired status and minimum standards for restoring a
license from retired status to active status. The restoration
requirements established by the CBA include: paying a
restoration fee of $75 and completing 80 hours of qualifying
continuing education (with at least 20 hours, of which 12 must
be in technical subject areas, in the year immediately preceding
restoration).
The CBA did not intend to circumvent BPC § 5070.7 related to a
canceled license when it sponsored and supported legislation
authorizing the establishment of the retired status. Therefore,
to remove any possible ambiguity presently associated with this
issue, this bill proposes adding language clarifying that an
individual who has a canceled license placed in retired status
is not authorized to then have the license restored to an active
or inactive status, which would circumvent BPC § 5070.7.
Additionally, since as far back as 1945, the CBA has maintained
a statute that focuses on the topic of reciprocity. Over the
years the statute has been modified, with the last substantive
change occurring in 2001 (SB 133, Chapter 718, Statues of 2001)
when the Legislature took steps to remove a requirement that an
applicant for licensure be over the age of 18.
Presently, BPC § 5087 provides the CBA with the authority to
issue a CPA license to applicants who hold a valid and unrevoked
license under the laws of any state, if the CBA determines that
the standards under which the applicant received the license are
substantially equivalent to the standards of education,
examination, and experience in California.
This bill recasts and strengthens the phrase "valid and
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 8 of ?
unrevoked" to "current, active, and unrestricted". This change
will assist the CBA in its mission to protect consumers through
its licensing program.
b) Cemetery and Funeral Bureau. Funeral establishments are
closely regulated in California for a reason. The web site
of the Department of Consumer Affairs' Cemetery and Funeral
Bureau explains why:
"The death of a loved one is one of the most traumatic
experiences any of us will ever have?. By asking the right
questions, comparing prices and services, and making informed
decisions, you can make arrangements that are meaningful to your
family and control the costs for yourself and your survivors."
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) also explains the public
interest at-stake:
"When a loved one dies, grieving family members and friends
often are
confronted with dozens of decisions about the funeral - all
of which must be
made quickly and often under great emotional duress."
To ensure fairness and accuracy in shopping for what is
often an expensive service during a time of great emotional
difficulty, the GPL required by FTC Funeral Rule since 1984
requires a detailed, written price list be given to anyone
who asks for the list in person. Likewise, prices must be
quoted over the phone. In general, California law
parallels the FTC requirement in BPC § 7658.
SB 658 (Negrete-McLeod, Chapter 386, Statutes of 2011)
enhanced California's disclosure requirements by
specifically requiring, beginning January 1, 2013, that all
funeral establishments which maintain a website, post their
list of funeral goods and services. As drafted, this
requirement does not require any specific identification to
the Web site link where this information is posted.
However, if a funeral establishment elects to post a link
to its GPL, it must identify the link on its home page with
the words "price information" or a similar phrase that
includes the word "price". (BPC § 7685 (b) (3))
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 9 of ?
The Center for Public Interest Law's experience and the
experience of the Funeral Consumers Alliance (affirmed by
2013 report by the Orange County Register) revealed that
the ability of consumers to obtain consistent and reliable
funeral establishment product and pricing information over
the Internet is oddly difficult.
In the absence of such information over the Internet,
consumers cannot ask about products or services over the
phone and get comparison quotes because they may not in the
first place know what products or services funeral
establishments offer generally, or which services are
offered by a particular facility.
This, in turn, leads to a lengthy process whereby anguished
consumers trying to price such products or services must
stagger through a difficult process of trying to comparison
shop over the phone without first knowing what options are
actually available for comparison.
This bill would require that a funeral establishment must
use the words "goods", "merchandise", "products", or
"services" on its home page to identify a link to the list
of goods and services to enable consumers to find this
important information.
c) County Clerks and Election Officials. The current law
is unclear for out-of-state registrants for a FBN as to
whether the documentation required by the county clerk
needs to be from the California Secretary of State (SOS) or
any SOS.
This bill clarifies that the applicant for a FBN in the State of
California provide required documentation from the California
Secretary of State, if requested by the county clerk.
d) Contractors State License Board. BPC § 136 and 7083
conflict as to the required timeframe for a licensee to
report an address change.
BPC § 136 requires a licensee to notify the issuing board at its
principal office of any change in his or her mailing address
within 30 days after the change, unless the board has specified
by regulations a shorter time period. This is the usual timeline
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 10 of ?
for all DCA licensees.
However, BPC § 7083 provides that all licensees shall notify the
registrar, on a form prescribed by the registrar, in writing
within 90 days of any change to information recorded under
Chapter 9, Division 3 of the BPC.
This bill addresses a conflict in the timeframe for reporting
information to the Board and underscores that contractor
licensees are required to notify the registrar 90 days after any
change in information.
e) Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development.
This bill makes a technical change to the Government Code
that allows members to participate in the California Travel
and Tourism Commission via teleconference and other
technology. This bill continues to ensure that the
teleconference is still subject to the requirements of the
Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act and all other requirements
that allow for accessibility.
f) Board of Guide Dogs for the Blind. Referring to persons
who are blind or visually impaired as "blind person" is
considered offensive to many members of the community. The
accepted terminology is to identify the individual as a
person who has a specific medical condition. This is
called "person first terminology".
This bill will change the language to reflect the accepted
terminology to identify a person who is blind. With this
wording, the person is not defined by their condition.
Additionally, members of the public and the Board have noted the
outdated language referring to the use of the masculine gender
in the code. The bill would remove specific gender from the
code.
Moreover, there are outdated dates located throughout this
chapter. This bill would delete those dates.
g) Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and
Geologists. Currently, BPC § 6735 allows architects to
sign off on civil engineering plans, calculations,
specifications, and reports for the construction of
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 11 of ?
reports. Since the level of education and expertise are
dramatically different between the two groups, this bill
simply reverts the Code section back to its 2014 format
where only civil engineers may sign off on civil
engineering plans, calculations, specifications, and
reports for the construction of reports.
h) Structural Pest Control Board. For BPC § 8508, this
bill replaces the word "man" with the word "persons" and
replacing the word "his" with the word "their". This
clarifying change more accurately conveys the intent of the
statute.
For BPC § 8513, this bill deletes the language that limits the
effect of the statute to Branch 1 and Branch 3 registered
companies in order to correct statutory inconsistencies. Branch
2 registered companies routinely contract directly with
consumers therefore, Branch 2 registered companies are subject
to the provisions of BPC § 8513 and the mechanic's lien laws.
This bill also deletes repetitive language, BPC § 8516.5, as its
provisions have been incorporated into BPC § 8516.
For BPC § 8552, this bill adds language that allows a registered
company to represent work that has been completed by an
unlicensed company or individual only in cases where the Act
explicitly provides for an unlicensed company to complete such
work. Currently, BPC § 8552 makes no such allowance even though
there are instances where repair work may be performed by
unlicensed companies or individuals.
For BPC § 8611, this bill adds language in order to clarify
that branch office supervisors must be field
representatives or operators who are licensed in the
branch, or branches of pest control that is being conducted
at that office.
1. Arguments in Support. The California Board of Accountancy
writes, "SB 799 would clarify the restoration requirements of
a license placed in retired status and would also recast and
strengthen the requirements for an out-of-state licensee
applicant by changing the requirement from holds a 'valid and
unrevoked' license to mean 'current, active, and
unrestricted' license."
SB 799 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development) Page 12 of ?
The Center for Public Interest Law writes that "the
amendments clarify that when a funeral establishment posts
its list of funeral goods and services it must use a word or
combination of words including but not limited to "goods",
"merchandise", "products", or "services" to identify the
link. Clarifying these provisions, will better enable
consumers to find this important information at what is often
a difficult and stressful time."
The Board of Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and
Geologists underscores that "concerns have been expressed by
several parties over the new wording of Section 6735 and the
potential misinterpretation that could result for this new
wording. It was decided that the best course of action would
be to remove that language and return Section 6735 to its
prior state."
SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION:
Support:
Board of Accountancy
Board of Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists
Center for Public Interest Law
Opposition:
None on file as of April 21, 2015.
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