HOUSE BILL No. 4844

 

May 24, 2007, Introduced by Rep. Meadows and referred to the Committee on Appropriations.

 

      A bill to amend 1956 PA 217, entitled

 

"Electrical administrative act,"

 

by amending section 3 (MCL 338.883), as amended by 2004 PA 275.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

 1        Sec. 3. (1) The department of labor and economic growth

 

 2  shall grant licenses and certificates to qualified applicants,

 

 3  issue orders and promulgate rules necessary for the enforcement

 

 4  and administration of this act, and enforce and administer this

 

 5  act. The rules shall be promulgated pursuant to the

 

 6  administrative procedures act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201 to

 

 7  24.328.

 

 8        (2) The examination fee for licensure of the following is

 

 9  $25.00 $100.00:


 

 1        (a) Master electrician.

 

 2        (b) Electrical contractor.

 

 3        (c) Electrical journeyman.

 

 4        (d) Fire alarm contractor.

 

 5        (e) Fire alarm specialty technician.

 

 6        (f) Sign specialty contractor.

 

 7        (g) Sign specialist.

 

 8        (3) The fee for initial licensure, apprentice electrician

 

 9  registration, or renewal of a license relating to electricians is

 

10  as follows:

 

 

11      (a) Master electrician....................$  25.00 50.00

12      (b) Electrical journeyman.................   20.00 40.00

13      (c) Apprentice electrician................    5.00 15.00

 

 

14        (4) The fee for initial fire alarm specialty technician

 

15  licensure, fire alarm specialty apprentice technician

 

16  registration, or renewal of a license or registration is as

 

17  follows:

 

 

18      (a) Fire alarm specialty technician....... $ 25.00 50.00

19      (b) Fire alarm specialty apprentice

20 technician.....................................    5.00 15.00

 

 

21        (5) The fee for initial sign specialist licensure or renewal

 

22  of a sign specialist license is $20.00 $40.00.

 

23        (6) An apprentice electrician or specialty apprentice

 

24  technician registration expires on August 31 of each year and is

 


 1  renewable within 30 days after that date upon payment of a $10.00

 

 2  $15.00 renewal fee. An applicant shall submit proof of a

 

 3  sponsoring employer for initial or renewal registration.

 

 4        (7) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (8), a

 

 5  license issued under this act expires on December 31 of each year

 

 6  and is renewable not more than 60 days after that date upon

 

 7  application and payment of the appropriate fee. After March 1 of

 

 8  each year or after March 1 of the renewal year in the case of

 

 9  electrical contractors, fire alarm contractors, and sign

 

10  specialty contractors, a license not renewed is void and may be

 

11  reinstated only upon application for reinstatement and payment of

 

12  the appropriate license fee for the appropriate class.

 

13        (8) The license for an electrical contractor, fire alarm

 

14  contractor, and sign specialty contractor expires December 31 of

 

15  every third year. The license for an electrical contractor, fire

 

16  alarm contractor, and sign specialty contractor is renewable not

 

17  later than on March 1 every third year upon application and

 

18  payment of $200.00 $300.00 by electrical contractors and fire

 

19  alarm contractors and application and payment of $120.00 $200.00

 

20  by sign specialty contractors. In the case of a person applying

 

21  for an initial or reinstatement contractor's license at a time

 

22  other than between December 31 and March 1 of the year in which

 

23  the department issues renewal licenses, the department shall

 

24  compute and charge the 3-year license fee described in this

 

25  subsection on a yearly pro rata basis beginning in the year of

 

26  the application until the last year of the 3-year license cycle.

 

27        (9) Beginning the effective date of the amendatory act that

 


 1  added this subsection July 23, 2004, the department of labor and

 

 2  economic growth shall issue an initial or renewal license for

 

 3  electrical contractors, fire alarm contractors, and sign

 

 4  specialty contractors not later than 90 days after the applicant

 

 5  files a completed application. Receipt of the application is

 

 6  considered the date the application is received by any agency or

 

 7  department of the state of Michigan. If the application is

 

 8  considered incomplete by the department of labor and economic

 

 9  growth, the department of labor and economic growth shall notify

 

10  the applicant in writing, or make the information electronically

 

11  available, within 30 days after receipt of the incomplete

 

12  application, describing the deficiency and requesting the

 

13  additional information. The 90-day period is tolled upon

 

14  notification by the department of labor and economic growth of a

 

15  deficiency until the date the requested information is received

 

16  by the department of labor and economic growth. The determination

 

17  of the completeness of an application does not operate as an

 

18  approval of the application for the license and does not confer

 

19  eligibility of an applicant determined otherwise ineligible for

 

20  issuance of a license.

 

21        (10) If the department of labor and economic growth fails to

 

22  issue or deny a license within the time required by this section,

 

23  the department of labor and economic growth shall return the

 

24  license fee and shall reduce the license fee for the applicant's

 

25  next renewal application, if any, by 15%. The failure to issue a

 

26  license within the time required under this section does not

 

27  allow the department to otherwise delay the processing of the

 


 1  application, and that application, upon completion, shall be

 

 2  placed in sequence with other completed applications received at

 

 3  that same time. The department shall not discriminate against an

 

 4  applicant in the processing of the application based upon the

 

 5  fact that the license fee was refunded or discounted under this

 

 6  subsection.

 

 7        (11) Beginning October 1, 2005, the director of the

 

 8  department of labor and economic growth shall submit a report by

 

 9  December 1 of each year to the standing committees and

 

10  appropriations subcommittees of the senate and house of

 

11  representatives concerned with occupational issues. The director

 

12  shall include all of the following information in the report

 

13  concerning the preceding fiscal year:

 

14        (a) The number of initial and renewal applications the

 

15  department received and completed within the 90-day time period

 

16  described in subsection (9).

 

17        (b) The number of applications denied.

 

18        (c) The number of applicants not issued a license within the

 

19  90-day time period and the amount of money returned to licensees

 

20  under subsection (10).

 

21        (12) The board shall provide for an examination to be given

 

22  to an applicant seeking licensure under this act for a specific

 

23  class of license. The board and department of labor and economic

 

24  growth, acting jointly, may develop an examination or contract

 

25  for the use of an examination developed by another governmental

 

26  subdivision or any other entity including, but not limited to,

 

27  the national assessment institute, which the department of labor

 


 1  and economic growth and the board, acting jointly, review and

 

 2  determine is designed to test the qualifications and competency

 

 3  of applicants seeking licensure under this act.

 

 4        (13) The examination for electrical journeymen and master

 

 5  electricians shall include, but not be limited to, questions

 

 6  designed to test an individual's knowledge of this act, any rules

 

 7  promulgated under this act, the Stille-DeRossett-Hale single

 

 8  state construction code act, and any code adopted pursuant to

 

 9  section 4 of that act and any code adopted pursuant to section 8

 

10  of that act as well as the theory relative to those codes. In the

 

11  case of the examination for an electrical contractor's license,

 

12  the examination shall include, but not be limited to, questions

 

13  designed to test an individual's knowledge of this act, any rules

 

14  promulgated under this act, the Stille-DeRossett-Hale single

 

15  state construction code act, and the administration and

 

16  enforcement procedures of any code adopted pursuant to section 8

 

17  or 9 of that act.

 

18        (14) The board shall provide for an examination to be given

 

19  to an applicant seeking fire alarm specialty licensure under this

 

20  act. The examinations for fire alarm specialty licensure shall

 

21  include questions designed to test an individual's knowledge of

 

22  this act, any rules promulgated under this act, and the Stille-

 

23  DeRossett-Hale single state construction code act, as relating to

 

24  fire alarm systems. The board and department of labor and

 

25  economic growth, acting jointly, may require, as a condition for

 

26  licensure, certification of the applicant in the field of fire

 

27  alarm systems technology by the national institution for

 


 1  certification in engineering technology or equivalent as

 

 2  determined by the board.

 

 3        (15) The board shall provide for an examination to be given

 

 4  to an applicant seeking sign specialty licensure under this act.

 

 5  The examinations for sign specialty licensure shall include, but

 

 6  not be limited to, questions designed to test an individual's

 

 7  knowledge of this act and any rules promulgated under this act

 

 8  relating to electric signs and applicable sections of the code.

 

 9        (16) Examinations shall be offered at locations throughout

 

10  the state as determined by the board. The department of labor and

 

11  economic growth in consultation with the board may designate a

 

12  person to give the examination at any location. Copies of

 

13  examinations developed by a governmental subdivision shall be

 

14  presented for board approval and shall remain the property of the

 

15  governmental subdivision and shall be returned to that

 

16  governmental subdivision without having been copied or reproduced

 

17  in any manner.

 

18        (17) The department of labor and economic growth shall

 

19  annually submit to the members of the legislature a comprehensive

 

20  report detailing the expenditure of the additional money

 

21  resulting from the 1989 amendatory act that increased the fees

 

22  contained in this section.

 

23        (18) The director of the department of labor and economic

 

24  growth may change the amount of any fees described in this

 

25  section by rule promulgated under the administrative procedures

 

26  act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201 to 24.328. Any fee changes

 

27  made by the director of the department of labor and economic

 


 1  growth under this subsection shall take effect on the effective

 

 2  date of the rule.

 

 3        (19) (18) As used in this section, "completed application"

 

 4  means an application complete on its face and submitted with any

 

 5  applicable licensing fees as well as any other information,

 

 6  records, approval, security, or similar item required by law or

 

 7  rule from a local unit of government, a federal agency, or a

 

 8  private entity but not from another department or agency of the

 

 9  state of Michigan.