SB 315, as amended, Lieu. Contractors.
(1) The Contractors’ State License Law provides for the licensure and regulation of contractors by the Contractors’ State License Board within the Department of Consumer Affairs. The act establishes an enforcement division within the board that is required to enforce prohibitions againstbegin insert all forms ofend insert unlicensed activity, as specified. The act authorizes persons employed as enforcement representatives in the divisionbegin insert and designated by the Director of Consumer Affairsend insert to issue written notices to appear in court, as specified.
This bill would additionally require that the enforcement division, when participating in the activities of the Joint Enforcement Strike Force on the Underground Economy, be granted free access to all places of labor.begin insert The bill would make other technical, nonsubstantive changes to these provisions.end insert
(2) The act makes it a misdemeanor for a person to engage in the business of, or act in the capacity of, a contractor within this state without having a license, unless particularly exempted.
This bill would instead provide that, unless exempted, it is a misdemeanor for a person to engage in the business of, or act in the capacity of, a contractor within this state if the person is not licensed in accordance with the act, or if the person performs acts covered by the act under a license that is under suspension for specified violations.
(3) The act provides that it is a misdemeanor for any person to advertise for construction or work of improvement unless that person holds a valid license in the classification so advertised, except as specified. However, the act authorizes a person who is not licensed as a contractor to advertise for construction work or work of improvement if he or she states in the advertisement that he or she is not licensed, as specified. The act also exempts from its application any work or operation on one undertaking or project by one or more contracts if the aggregate contract price for labor, materials, and all other items is less than $500, and the work or operations are casual, minor, or inconsequential.
This bill would authorize a person who is not licensed as a contractor to advertise for construction work or a work of improvement only if the aggregate contract price is less than $500 and the person states in the advertisement that he or she is not licensed. By expanding the scope of an existing crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(4) The act authorizes the board to appoint a registrar of contractors. Existing law requires the registrar to initiate disciplinary action against a licensee within 30 days of notification by the Labor Commissioner of a finding of a willful or deliberate violation of the Labor Code.
This bill would instead require the registrar to initiate disciplinary action against a licensee within 180 days of notification by the Labor Commissioner.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 7011.4 of the Business and Professions
2Code is amended to read:
(a) Notwithstanding Section 7011, there is in the
4Contractors’ State License Board, a separate enforcement division
5begin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert shall rigorously enforce this chapter prohibiting all
6forms of unlicensed activity.
7(b) Persons employed as enforcement representativesbegin delete in this begin insert of the Contractors’ State License Boardend insert and designated
8divisionend delete
9by the
Director of Consumer Affairsbegin delete are not peace officers and are begin insert shall have the
10not entitled to safety member retirement benefits. They do not
11have the power of arrest. However, they mayend delete
12authority toend insert issue a written notice to appear in court pursuant to
13Chapter 5c (commencing with Section 853.5) of Title 3 of Part 2
14of the Penal Code.begin insert An employee so designated is not a peace officer
15and is not entitled to safety member retirement benefits as a result
16of that designation. He or she does not have the power of arrest.end insert
17(c) When participating in the activities of the Joint Enforcement
18Strike
Force on the Underground Economy pursuant to Section
19329 of the Unemployment Insurance Code, the enforcement
20division shall have free access to all places of labor.
Section 7027.2 of the Business and Professions Code
22 is amended to read:
Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter,
24a person who is not licensed pursuant to this chapter may advertise
25for construction work or a work of improvement covered by this
26chapter only if the aggregate contract price for labor, material, and
27all other items on a project or undertaking is less than five hundred
28dollars ($500), and he or she states in the advertisement that he or
29she is not licensed under this chapter.
Section 7028 of the Business and Professions Code is
31amended to read:
(a) Unless exempted from this chapter, it is a
33misdemeanor for a person to engage in the business of, or act in
34the capacity of, a contractor within this state under either of the
35following conditions:
36(1) The person is not licensed in accordance with this chapter.
37(2) The person performs acts covered by this chapter under a
38license that is under suspension for failure to pay a civil penalty
P4 1or to comply with an order of correction, pursuant to Section
27090.1, or for failure to resolve all outstanding final liabilities,
3pursuant to Section 7145.5.
4(b) A first
conviction for the offense described in this section
5is punishable by a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000)
6or by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding six months, or
7by both that fine and imprisonment.
8(c) If a person has been previously convicted of the offense
9described in this section, unless the provisions of subdivision (d)
10are applicable, the court shall impose a fine of 20 percent of the
11contract price, or 20 percent of the aggregate payments made to,
12or at the direction of, the unlicensed person, or five thousand
13dollars ($5,000), whichever is greater, and, unless the sentence
14prescribed in subdivision (d) is imposed, the person shall be
15confined in a county jail for not less than 90 days, except in an
16unusual case where the interests of justice would be served by
17imposition of a lesser sentence or a fine. If the
court imposes only
18a fine or a jail sentence of less than 90 days for second or
19subsequent convictions under this section, the court shall state the
20reasons for its sentencing choice on the record.
21(d) A third or subsequent conviction for the offense described
22in this section is punishable by a fine of not less than five thousand
23dollars ($5,000) nor more than the greater amount of ten thousand
24dollars ($10,000) or 20 percent of the contract price, or 20 percent
25of the aggregate payments made to, or at the direction of, the
26unlicensed person, and by imprisonment in a county jail for not
27more than one year or less than 90 days. The penalty provided by
28this subdivision is cumulative to the penalties available under all
29other laws of this state.
30(e) A person who violates this
section is subject to the penalties
31prescribed in subdivision (d) if the person was named on a license
32that was previously revoked and, either in fact or under law, was
33held responsible for any act or omission resulting in the revocation.
34(f) If the unlicensed person engaging in the business of or acting
35in the capacity of a contractor has agreed to furnish materials and
36labor on an hourly basis, “the contract price” for the purposes of
37this section means the aggregate sum of the cost of materials and
38labor furnished and the cost of completing the work to be
39performed.
P5 1(g) Notwithstanding any other law, an indictment for any
2violation of this section by an unlicensed person shall be found,
3or information or a complaint shall be filed, within four years from
4the date of the
contract proposal, contract, completion, or
5abandonment of the work, whichever occurs last.
6(h) For any conviction under this section, a person who utilized
7the services of the unlicensed person is a victim of crime and is
8eligible, pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 1202.4 of the Penal
9Code, for restitution for economic losses, regardless of whether
10he or she had knowledge that the person was unlicensed.
11(i) The changes made to this section by the act adding this
12subdivision are declaratory of existing law.
Section 7110.5 of the Business and Professions Code
14 is amended to read:
Upon receipt of a certified copy of the Labor
16Commissioner’s finding of a willful or deliberate violation of the
17Labor Code by a licensee, pursuant to Section 98.9 of the Labor
18Code, the registrar shall initiate disciplinary action against the
19licensee within 180 days of notification.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
21Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
22the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
23district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
24infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
25for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
26the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
27the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
28Constitution.
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