Renewal Rules, Adding HAZ, CA, AZ & NV Licensing Experience Rules

When four is two in Arizona. A good example of the ‘variance’ from state to state license requirements. When can a contractor aid in the recovery and clean-up of property destroyed in our tragic wildfires? The CSLB is doing a fantastic job despite the pandemic delays, but now being ahead of the curve on paperwork is more important than ever…

Q:  You are helping us obtain a Plastering license in Arizona.  We have an employee who is moving there, and so our company offered to obtain a license with him as the Qualifier so he can run operations for us in Arizona.  In looking through previous articles you’ve written, it seems to indicate many times that a Qualifying Individual is required to have four years of full-time work experience in the trade being applied for.  Our employee who is moving over there was under the impression he only needed two years of experience for the Plastering license.  Can you confirm whether he needs a full four years in order to qualify?

A:  We handle licensing for California, Nevada and Arizona.  California and Nevada both require a full four years of experience in each classification being applied for, so it’s just standard that I refer to that, however the experience requirement actually varies for Arizona. Some classifications require one year of experience, some two years, some four years, and there’s even one classification which doesn’t require any experience at all!  For plastering, the AZ Registrar of Contractors requires 2 years of experience if your Qualifier is going to take the Trade exam, and then if he/she has at least 3 years of experience, no Trade exam is required.

Q:  We currently have a “C-16” (Fire Protection) license in California.  With all of the recent fires, we are wanting to add the Hazardous Substance Removal certification to our license.  How would we go about doing that?

A:  Actually, in order to be eligible to add the HAZ certification to a license, the licensee must hold one of the following classifications: “A” – General Engineering, “B” – General Building, “C-12” – Earthwork and Paving, “C-36” – Plumbing, “C-57” – Well Drilling, or “C-61”/”D-40” – Limited Specialty category for Service Station Equipment and Maintenance.  Therefore, if your licensee holds only the single “C16” classification, your company wouldn’t be eligible to add the HAZ.

Q:  We just received our renewal in the mail.  As I’m sure you are aware, the signature page of the renewal application lists all of the personnel associated with the license.  Our Qualifier is still with the company but plans to retire at the end of next month.  Also, there is a “Member” listed who is not only no longer with the Company, he was never a Member in the first place, so I’m not sure how he was put on the license.  How do we address these issues and how do we complete the renewal application?

A:  For the renewal application, the Qualifying Individual needs to sign along with someone listed on the license with signing authority.  As long as your Qualifier is not an RME (Responsible Managing Employee), he/she likely fills both roles and can be the only signer.  Obviously, you’ll want to have your Qualifier sign the renewal prior to retiring so as not to run in to any timing emergencies renewing the license.  In addition, whenever you are ready, you’ll want to submit an application for Replacing the Qualifying Individual.  You have 90 days from the time he leaves the company to replace him, but you can technically file that at any time.  For the individual who is listed as a Member and shouldn’t be, you’ll want to file a Disassociation notice to remove him.  Keep in mind the CSLB will always verify that the personnel you have listed on your license matches the personnel you have on record with the CA Secretary of State.