There’s been an unprecedented level of activity on licensure bills so far this year. Many of these bills are the result of adjacent industries that use legislative influence, lobbying, and regulatory efforts to capture and control trade jurisdiction.
Integrators have always relied on training, safety, performance, skills, and expertise to move this industry forward, which has served us very well so far. But legislation on the horizon could change our approach.
For this reason, when this industry goes up against powerful lobbying groups, we can look very “slim” if we aren’t unified. Because our industry is made up of AV, security/life safety, alarm and detection, low-voltage lighting, control and command, healthcare communication, and other technology solution providers as defined in CSI MasterFormat Divisions 27 and 28, we need to band together as a cohesive industry. When we do, we win almost every time.
For example, in Utah, there was a proposed rule change to building code that would amend the use of the National Electrical Code to lower Class 2 wiring voltage from 100v to 50v – which would prevent integrators from being able to install distributed audio systems.
A grassroots action alert let NSCA members in Utah know what was going on; several NSCA members then quickly reached out to their legislators and code officials to request a reconsideration. The reasoning: We cited that this rule change was a possible attempt to capture work via unnecessary regulation rather than a safety or training issue (which is how it was posed).
Shortly after, we received news from the Utah Department of Commerce that the amendment was being removed from the pending rule hearing. This was a huge win for NSCA members in Utah (and just one small example of how NSCA serves as the voice of the systems integrator).
If you do business in Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, and/or Utah, there are licensure bills that need your immediate attention.
There are pressing issues in other states as well regarding code changes, legislation governing connected devices, cybersecurity laws, intellectual property rights, school safety regulations, payment and obligations, apprenticeships, and a host of other bills of interest.
Below are just a few examples of these proposed bills. There are 70+ bills that NSCA is tracking and monitoring so far in 2019.
Arizona | HB 2181 | Registrar of contractors; licensing; exemption. |
Florida | SB 604 | A bill to be entitled an act relating to registered contractor licensing; amending S 489.514, FS; extending the date by which an applicant must apply for a license to be grandfathered; providing an effective date. |
Hawaii | SB 423 | Clarifies that a specialty contractor, acting as subcontractor, isn’t prohibited from taking and executing a construction contract involving two or more crafts or trades if the performance of the work is incidental and supplemental. |
Idaho | SB 1009 | Electrical contractors and journeymen – amends existing law to provide for licensure of electrical installers. |
Maryland | HB 702 and HB 905 | Altering the purpose, composition, powers, and duties of the State Board of Master Electricians; authorizing the Board to issue apprentice licenses and journeyperson licenses under certain circumstances. |
North Dakota | SB 2359 | North Dakota Century Code, relating to the regulation of electricians and power limited technicians. |
New York | A3748 | Establishes voluntary licensure of master electricians by Department of State. |
Oklahoma | SB 175 | Electrical License Act; modifying definition for certain class electrical circuits. |
Oklahoma | SB 653 | Electrical Licensing Act; allowing credit for in-plant experience for contractor license. |
Texas | HB 1141 | Relating to an exemption from licensing requirements for certain electrical work. |
The annual NSCA Member Meeting is slated for March 1, 2019, in Tampa, FL. It’s extremely important for a representative from your company to be present to weigh in and vote on a series of resolutions that will decide NSCA’s direction and course of action for many of these bills. Want more information? Send us a note.
And make sure to visit our online Legislative Tracking Tool where you can track state and federal legislative activity by issue (school safety, labor laws, cybersecurity, etc.).