BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2523
Page A
Date of Hearing: April 21, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT
Sandre Swanson, Chair
AB 2523 (Eng) - As Amended: April 14, 2010
SUBJECT : Apprenticeship: electricians.
SUMMARY : Makes various changes related to the certification of
electricians. Specifically, this bill :
1 Deletes the requirement that the curriculum of classroom
instruction for trainees be provided under the jurisdiction of
the State Department of Education, the Board of Governors of
the California Community Colleges, or the Bureau for Private
Postsecondary Education.
2)Instead specifies that the curriculum of classroom instruction
must be provided by one of the following:
a) A community college.
b) A state or federal apprenticeship program approved to
provide electrical training.
c) A public school district or public educational
institution.
d) A state-licensed private postsecondary institution that
is either under contract with a public educational
institution or approved and registered with the Bureau for
Private Postsecondary Education.
3)Provides that continuing education instruction by an entity
that is not approved by Chief of the Division of
Apprenticeship Standards (DAS) shall be provided under the
jurisdiction of the State Department of Education or the Board
of Governors of the California Community Colleges.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires the DAS within the Department of Industrial Relations
(DIR) to establish and validate minimum standards for the
competency and training of electricians through a system of
testing and certification.
AB 2523
Page B
2)Requires persons who perform work as electricians to become
certified by January 1, 2005, and prohibits uncertified
persons from performing electrical work for which
certification is required after that date.
3)Requires uncertified persons to perform electrical work if
certain requirements are met, including that the person has
completed or is enrolled in a curriculum of classroom
instruction that meets certain requirements.
4)Contains various exemptions from the certification
requirements.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : This bill is sponsored by the Western Electrical
Contractors Association (WECA-IEC) and seeks to make several
changes related to the certification of electricians under
current law. The sponsor indicates that this bill is intended
to be a consensus product, and that they are working closely and
in collaboration with organized labor on this proposal.
Brief History of Electrician Certification
The certification requirement for electricians has a lengthy
legislative and administrative history. AB 931 (Calderon),
Chapter # 781, Statutes of 1999, established a certification
program for electricians to be implemented by July 1, 2001.
Proponents of the original legislation stated that it was
designed to address electrician competency, as well as safety.
Proponents argued that, prior to the enactment of AB 931 no
state law required testing and certification of electricians who
performed the actual wiring and connection of electrical
devices.
The actual deadline for electrician certification has been
adjusted a number of times in recent years, both by statute and
by administrative action. The deadline for general electricians
and fire/life safety technicians was January 1, 2006. The
deadline for residential electricians was January 1, 2007. The
deadline for voice data video technicians and non-residential
lighting technicians was December 31, 2008.
Legislative Changes Proposed by This Bill
AB 2523
Page C
This bill proposes to make several changes to current law, most
involving requirements related to classroom curriculum and
continuing education.
Under current law, in order to perform work as an electrician a
person must (1) have taken and passed the electrician
certification examination, (2) be a registered apprentice in a
state-approved apprenticeship program, or (3) be an electrician
trainee.
With respect to latter category (trainees) currently if a person
wants to perform electrical work and does not yet qualify to
take the certification examination due to lock of work
experience or related instruction, they can do so legally by
registering as an electrician trainee. Under current law, such
training programs must be approved by a state certification
curriculum committee, which consists of a representative from
the State Department of Education, the Board of Governors of the
California Community Colleges, and the DAS. In addition to the
curriculum approval process, before a program is allowed to
offer certification training, the training is required to be
supervised by the State Department of Education, the Board of
Governors of the California Community Colleges, or the Bureau
for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education<1>.
This bill would delete this latter requirement and would instead
specify that the curriculum of classroom instruction must be
provided by one of the following:
A community college.
A state or federal apprenticeship program approved to
provide electrical training.
--------------------------
<1> Current law refers to the "Bureau for Private Postsecondary
and Vocational Education" (BPPVE), which was a unit of the
Department of Consumer Affairs. However, the BPPVE ceased
operations on July 1, 2007 when the legislative authority for
the agency expired. In 2007, Governor Schwarzenegger signed
into law a bill to extend student protections at private
postsecondary vocational education institutions through 2008.
On October 11, 2009, the Governor signed AB 48 (Portantino)
which established the "Bureau for Private Postsecondary
Education" within the Department of Consumer Affairs effective
January 1, 2010. This bill correctly refers to the "Bureau for
Private Postsecondary Education."
AB 2523
Page D
A public school district or public educational
institution.
A state-licensed private postsecondary institution that
is either under contract with a public educational
institution or approved and registered with the Bureau for
Private Postsecondary Education.
In essence, this bill would permit state-approved apprenticeship
programs to offer certification training under their own general
control - without the requirement that the training be under the
jurisdiction of the entities mentioned above.
In addition, the current certification framework also sets forth
continuing education requirements for certified electricians.
This bill provides that continuing education instruction by an
entity that is not approved by DAS shall be provided under the
jurisdiction of the State Department of Education or the Board
of Governors of the California Community Colleges.
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT :
The sponsor argues that the additional supervision of the
state-approved apprenticeship training programs is unnecessary
and increases the costs of operation as the programs have
already been reviewed and approved as providing quality
training.
Moreover, representatives of state-approved apprenticeship
programs indicate that due to budget cuts and other fiscal
constraints, some community colleges have eliminated their
electrician certification programs altogether or don't offer
courses on a year-round basis. Therefore, in certain geographic
areas an individual's only option may be to take certification
training with a state-approved apprenticeship program. They
argue that state-approved apprenticeship programs already offer
high-quality classroom instruction (or contract with an approved
entity to do so) and that therefore the supervision required by
current law is duplicative and unnecessary.
The sponsor also points out that two important quality assurance
measures are kept intact. First, the apprenticeship curriculum
must still be submitted to the state certification curriculum
committee, as required under current law. Second, education
providers who do not operate a state-approved apprenticeship
program are required to offer their training through or under
AB 2523
Page E
the jurisdiction of a community college, a public school
district or public educational institution, or the Bureau for
Private Postsecondary Education.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION :
Opponents argue that current law creates two pathways to
electrician certification - one through apprenticeship training
offered through approved apprenticeship programs and the other
through trainee training offered through educational entities
under the Department of Education, Board of Governors of the
California Community Colleges, or the Bureau for Private
Postsecondary Education. Each path provides for oversight and
accountability of the programs as well as for protections to the
apprentices or trainees seeking certification.
Opponents contend that this bill would provide an alternative
path void of any oversight other than curricular approval
through a state committee. They argue that the bill would
circumvent important institutional mechanisms that provide for
accountability and state oversight. The oversight provided by
the state and accrediting bodies that monitor institutions such
as local community colleges ensures that the instruction and
training maintains its quality, that student outcomes are
measured, and that the institution maintains eligibility
requirements and standards. Opponents argue that these
requirements differ from the proscribed curriculum approval
process and provide a level of protection to students ensuring
they receive credit for the work they have completed and that
the training provided meets a certain level of quality. They
state that while the curriculum committee approval provides one
level of oversight in this area, removing provisions that
certification training take place either under apprenticeship
training or the jurisdiction of the Department of Education,
community colleges, or the Bureau of Private Postsecondary
Education removes important protections for trainees.
PRIOR LEGISLATION
SB 1362 (Margett), Chapter # 59, Statutes of 2008, authorized
specified disciplinary action for failure to comply with the
certification requirement. SB 1362 was supported by industry
and labor.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
AB 2523
Page F
Support
Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) of California
California State Association of Electrical Workers
Western Electrical Contractors Association (WECA-IEC)
Opposition
Los Angeles College Faculty Guild
Los Angeles Community College District
Los Rios Community College District
Analysis Prepared by : Ben Ebbink / L. & E. / (916) 319-2091