Florida Electrical Contracting Law

The Business exam gives 5–7 questions to "Complying with Contracting Laws and Rules". The law is Chapter 489, Part II, Florida Statutes (electrical and alarm system contracting) and the board's rules in Chapter 61G6, Florida Administrative Code. The Florida Contractors Manual reprints them; the statute itself is free on Online Sunshine and is what this lesson is written from. Learn the players, the two kinds of license, the qualifying-agent rules, the prohibited acts, and the numbers (18, 75 percent, 60 days, 30 days, 90 days, $10,000, $5,000, $2,000, 5 years).

1. The players and the two licenses (489.505, 489.516)

• Department = the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR). Board = the Electrical Contractors' Licensing Board (ECLB). A local construction regulation board has not fewer than three residents of the county or municipality.
• Certificate = a geographically unlimited certificate of competency — a certified contractor works statewide after passing the department's examination.
• Registration = a license limited to the jurisdiction whose local competency card the contractor holds — a registered contractor may contract only in the area and for the type of work covered by the registration (489.513(5)).
• Nobody contracts without one or the other (489.516(2)); the department and local governments can issue cease and desist orders and the department can issue stop-work orders for unlicensed work (489.531(8)).
• Licensure means any certification or registration. Contracting includes bidding, negotiating or attempting to sell contracting services — the offer itself requires the license.
• Electrical contractor / unlimited electrical contractor: installs, repairs, alters, adds to or designs wiring, fixtures, appliances, apparatus, raceways and conduit that generate, transmit, transform or utilize electrical energy, including plants and substations. The unlimited scope includes the work of a certified alarm system contractor (489.537(7)).
• Alarm system contractor I covers all alarm systems including fire