What work, outside your specialty, can you do? Our first contractor finds himself‘fenced out’ on a job he can rightly do. A demolition contractor helps us‘break down’ the new ‘asbestos licensing’, and we must ‘demolish’ the ideas of a partnership hoping to maintain the ‘status quo’ in their current license…
Q: We currently have a “C-27” (Landscaping) license. We gave a bid to an insurance company for fencing but they said that we could not do the job since we are not a ‘C-13’ (fencing) contractor. Aren’t we permitted to perform fence installation if it’s part of a landscape?
A: The key to your question is “if it’s part of a landscape”. Board Rule 832.27 states that a landscaping contractor may undertake any single trade contract as long as the work is a part of “…landscape systems and facilities…which are designed to aesthetically, architecturally, horticulturally, or functionally improve the grounds within or surrounding a structure or a tract or plot of land…”
You may want to refer the Insurance Company to the CSLB web site, which has a “Building Official Information Guide”. One FAQ is “Can a landscaping contractor build a perimeter wall? The answer is they may, “only if the perimeter wall is part of a total landscaping project.”
Further, in the Board’s publication, “Hiring the Right Landscaper”, one of the listed “Common Landscape Projects requiring a contractor’s license” is fencing. Of course, a “C-13” contractor can perform this work; however, as in your case, this is one instance when more than one classification can be suitable for a particular project.
Q: We are a demolition contractor and we frequently do asbestos abatement. We have the asbestos certification on our license and we are also registered with DOSH. I see that the CSLB now has a “C-22” Asbestos Abatement classification. Are we required to add that to our license in order to continue providing the asbestos abatement services? Will I need to take an exam?
A: The “C-22” classification is not a replacement for the asbestos certification, which still continues to exist. The asbestos certification that you currently have allows you to perform asbestos abatement work in the trade(s) in which you are licensed and as allowed by your DOSH registration. The “C-22” is required if you plan to expand the scope of your asbestos abatement beyond work associated with your demolition classification.
As with all other classifications, the “C-22” requires that you document at least four years of full time journeymen (or above) experience, within the last ten, performing asbestos abatement work. A trade exam is also required. You may be granted a Waiver of the exam if you have held the asbestos certification, active and in good standing, for at least four years within the last ten. In order to qualify for the waiver you must have also been registered with DOSH for that period of time.
Q: I currently have a construction company with two other Partners, one of them being my husband. The third Partner is retiring. My husband and I would like to keep the business and the license in place but just re-structure the Partnership and change the business name. How do I go about notifying the CSLB of the change?
A: Unfortunately when a General Partner leaves the Partnership, the license must be canceled. You will be required to apply for a new license for the new structure of your entity. If you use the same Qualifier, he/she would not be required to re-take the exams. Please contact us if you’d like assistance with the process.