BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                    SB 1085  


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          Date of Hearing:  August 3, 2016


                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS


                               Lorena Gonzalez, Chair


          SB 1085  
          (Roth) - As Amended June 28, 2016


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          Urgency:  No  State Mandated Local Program:  NoReimbursable:  No


          SUMMARY:


          This bill requires the Board for Professional Engineers, Land  
          Surveyors, and Geologists (Board) to administer an assessment to  
          a certificate holder covering relevant state laws and  
          regulations, as specified, upon renewal. The bill limits the  
          scope of the assessment to the Board's top five types of  
          violations related to the administration and procedural aspects  
          of the profession, and prohibits the Board from charging the  
          certificate holder a fee for the assessment. The bill also  
          redefines the examination for licensure as a geophysicist as a  
          two-part test with a separate state law and regulation  
          component. 









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          FISCAL EFFECT:


          Minor and absorbable costs to the Board.


          COMMENTS:


          1)Purpose. According to the Board, the bill's sponsors, "these  
            legislative changes will allow the renewal candidate to renew  
            their license in much the same manner as it is currently  
            processed with the additional requirement that the laws and  
            regulations examination must be completed and passed within a  
            reasonable timeframe of the licensee's scheduled renewal date.



            "The primary intent behind this requirement is to provide an  
            environment in which the Board can efficiently increase  
            awareness of the laws and regulations directly affecting the  
            licensee's practice while providing an effective and more  
            instantaneous communication model for educating the licensees  
            in addition to typical outreach efforts."





          2)Background.  The Board, under the Department of Consumer  
            Affairs, is responsible for licensing and regulating  
            professional engineers, land surveyors, and geologists.  As of  
            November 17, 2015, the Board licenses 93,654 professional  
            engineers, 4,202 land surveyors, 7,534 geologists, and 165  
            geophysicists.  











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            Currently, licensees in California are not required to  
            complete any continuing education. However, during the Board's  
            2014 Sunset Review, the Board reported that it receives a high  
            number of non-practice-related infractions.  Specifically, of  
            the violations rising to the level of formal disciplinary  
            action, the Board found that approximately 45% related to  
            non-practice-related issues.  Examples include, "failing to  
            include all of the required elements in a written contract,  
            failing to execute a written contract, failing to sign and  
            seal professional documents in the manner required by law,  
            failing to submit reports of civil judgments or settlements,  
            and failing to file Organization Record forms." 





            In addition to protecting both the licensees and the  
            consumers, the Board believes the proposal will cut  
            enforcement costs and timelines.  By keeping licensees  
            apprised of the relevant non-practice related laws, the BPELSG  
            anticipates spending fewer resources on investigations for  
            these types of cases. 





          3)Arguments in Support.  The Board writes in support, "Based on  
            the Board's experience, licensees fail to adequately and  
            independently stay up-to-date with critical legal and  
            regulatory changes that directly affect the manner in which  
            they provide services to and for the general public.



            "This bill would NOT put a hold on the renewal of the license  
            or impact the status of the license. Instead, this bill would  
            give the Board the authority to pursue disciplinary action  








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            against a licensee who fails to complete the assessment.   
            However, such action would be pursued under the provisions of  
            the Administrative Procedure Act to ensure the licensee's due  
            process rights."





          4)Arguments in Opposition. The Professional Engineers in  
            California Government (PECG) writes in opposition, "PECG does  
            not believe the Board has demonstrated a need for the bill.  
            The Board licenses over 100,000 Engineers, Land Surveyors, and  
            Geologists, yet by its own admission the Baord processes only  
            50 violations each year of its rules and regulations.  
            Nevertheless, it proposes to test all of its licensees upon  
            their renewal every two years.  That constitutes an  
            unjustified waste of time and Baord resources and  
            unnecessarily burdens the 99.9% of licensees who are in  
            compliance with the rules."






          Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Swenson / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081



















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