BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1091|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1091
Author: Morrell (R)
Amended: 6/8/11 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE BUSINESS, PROF. & ECON. DEV. COMM. : 8-0, 6/6/11
AYES: Price, Emmerson, Corbett, Correa, Hernandez, Negrete
McLeod, Vargas, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Walters
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 70-0, 5/12/11 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Contractors
SOURCE : Contractors State License Board
DIGEST : This bill revises and recasts requirements for a
licensed contractor to notify the Contractors State License
Board when a licensed qualifier disassociates from a
contractors license.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law :
1. Licenses and regulates more than 300,000 contractors
under the Contractors State License Law by the
Contractors State License Board (CSLB) within the
Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA). The CSLB is under
the direction of the registrar of contractors
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(Registrar).
2. Provides that a person may qualify on behalf of an
individual or firm as a partner, responsible managing
officer or responsible managing employee (qualifier). A
qualifier is a person who meets the experience
requirement and the requirement of passing the licensing
examination, thereby meeting the "qualification" for a
license to be issued. A qualifier is responsible for
exercising direct supervision and control of the
licensee's construction operation to secure full
compliance with the CSLB law.
3. Requires a licensee or qualifier to notify CSLB in
writing and replace the disassociating qualifier within
90 days from the date of disassociation. Upon failure
to replace the qualifier within 90 days, the license
shall be automatically suspended or the classification
removed at the end of those 90 days.
4. Authorizes the Registrar to review and accept the
petition of one 90-day extension of a licensee who
disputes the date of disassociation or who has failed to
notify and replace the qualifier within 90 days, upon a
showing of good cause by the contractor. Requires that
this petition be received within 90 days from CSLB's
notice that the license will be suspended if the
qualifier is not replaced. The Registrar may grant only
one 90-day extension to replace the qualifier.
This bill:
1. Revises and recasts provisions requiring a licensed
contractor to notify the CSLB and replace a qualifier
within 90 days after a qualifier disassociates from a
contractor's license.
2. Specifies that the disassociating qualifier is
responsible for the licensee's construction operations
until the date of disassociation or the date the CSLB
receives the written notification of disassociation,
whichever is later.
3. Authorizes the CSLB registrar, upon a showing of good
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cause by the licensee, to review and accept a petition
for one 90-day extension to replace the qualifier
immediately following the initial 90-day period only
under the following circumstances:
A. If the licensee is disputing the date of
disassociation.
B. If the responsible managing officer, employee,
member, or manager has died.
C. If there has been delay in processing the
application to replace the qualifier that is out of
the applicant's control and CSLB or another state
or federal agency is responsible.
4. Requires the petition for one 90-day extension to be
received within 90 days after the date of disassociation
or death or delay, and requires the petition to be
considered only if an application to replace the
qualifier is on file with CSLB.
5. Clarifies that the licensee shall have no more than a
total of 180 days after the date of disassociation or
death in which to replace the qualifier.
Background
When a qualifier (the qualifying individual(s), or
qualifier, is the person listed in the CSLB records who
meets the experience and examination requirements for the
license) disassociates from a contractor's license, the
qualifier or the licensee is required to notify CSLB within
90 days after the disassociation date. The licensee then
has 90 days after the disassociation date in which to
replace the qualifier or the license is suspended by
operation of law. If the qualifier and licensee fail to
notify CSLB of the disassociation within the 90-day
deadline, the license will be suspended upon written
notification of the disassociation.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
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SUPPORT : (Verified 6/28/11)
Contractors State License Board (source)
California Chapter of the American Fence Association
California Fence Contractors Association
Engineering Contractors Association
Flasher Barricade Association
Marin Builders Association
Southern California Contractor's Association
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : This bill is sponsored by the
Contractors State License Board to modify and clarify the
requirements for licensees to notify the CSLB when a
qualifier disassociates from a license.
According to the CSLB, "Existing law creates an inequity
between the treatment of licensees who comply with and
those who do not comply with the 90-day notification
requirement inadvertently providing more time for those who
do not comply. For example, if a licensee notifies CSLB
that their qualifier disassociated one year prior, their
license is suspended immediately upon that notification,
but they would have already had one year of active license
status without the qualifier in place and they would have
had one year of opportunity to replace that qualifier.
"There is little to discourage a licensee from failing to
notify the CSLB in a timely manner when the qualifier
disassociates, and it has the potential to cause consumer
harm. If the license is suspended for lack of a qualifier
and the licensee has a project in the works a consumer
could be harmed; i.e. the project would have to stop or if
work continued it would technically be by an unlicensed
contractor. Further, if the license was suspended while a
project was underway and a consumer had a problem and made
a claim against the bond, the bonding company may reject
the claim since the contractor was not properly licensed."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Achadjian, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Carter, Chesbro, Cook, Davis, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eng,
Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Beth Gaines,
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Galgiani, Gatto, Gordon, Grove, Hagman, Halderman, Hall,
Harkey, Hayashi, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries,
Jones, Knight, Lara, Logue, Ma, Mansoor, Mendoza, Miller,
Monning, Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Pan,
Perea, V. Manuel P�rez, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio,
Swanson, Valadao, Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada,
John A. P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Alejo, Cedillo, Conway, Garrick, Gorell,
Roger Hern�ndez, Bonnie Lowenthal, Mitchell, Portantino,
Torres
JJA:do 6/29/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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