AN ACT Relating to electric signs; and amending RCW 19.28.120 and 19.28.510.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. Section 1, chapter 30, Laws of 1969 as last amended by section 5, chapter 156, Laws of 1986 and RCW 19.28.120 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) It is unlawful for any person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity to engage in, conduct, or carry on the business of installing or maintaining wires or equipment to convey electric current, or installing or maintaining equipment to be operated by electric current as it pertains to the electrical industry, without having an unrevoked, unsuspended, and unexpired electrical contractor license, issued by the department in accordance with this chapter. An electrical sign specialty license or general electrical contractor license is not required to install the poles, structures, or equipment, other than wiring, used in electric signs.

All electrical contractor licenses expire twenty-four calendar months following the day of their issue. The department may issue an electrical contractors license for a period of less than twenty-four months only for the purpose of equalizing the number of electrical contractor licenses which expire each month. Application for an electrical contractor license shall be made in writing to the department, accompanied by the required fee. The application shall state the name and address of the applicant; in case of firms or partnerships, the names of the individuals composing the firm or partnership; in case of corporations, the names of the managing officials thereof; the location of the place of business of the applicant and the name under which the business is conducted; and whether a general or specialty electrical contractor license is sought and, if the latter, the type of specialty.

Electrical contractor specialties include, but are not limited to: Residential, domestic appliances, pump and irrigation, limited energy system, signs, nonresidential maintenance, and a combination specialty. A general electrical contractor license shall grant to the holder the right to engage in, conduct, or carry on the business of installing or maintaining wires or equipment to carry electric current, and installing or maintaining equipment, or installing or maintaining material to fasten or insulate such wires or equipment to be operated by electric current, in the state of Washington. A specialty electrical contractor license shall grant to the holder a limited right to engage in, conduct, or carry on the business of installing or maintaining wires or equipment to carry electrical current, and installing or maintaining equipment; or installing or maintaining material to fasten or insulate such wires or equipment to be operated by electric current in the state of Washington as expressly allowed by the license.

(2) The application for a contractor license shall be accompanied by a bond in the sum of four thousand dollars with the state of Washington named as obligee in the bond, with good and sufficient surety, to be approved by the department. The bond shall at all times be kept in full force and effect, and any cancellation or revocation thereof, or withdrawal of the surety therefrom, suspends the license issued to the principal until a new bond has been filed and approved as provided in this section. Upon approval of a bond, the department shall on the next business day deposit the fee accompanying the application in the electrical license fund and shall file the bond in the office. The department shall upon request furnish to any person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity a certified copy of the bond upon the payment of a fee that the department shall set by rule. The fee shall cover but not exceed the cost of furnishing the certified copy.

The bond shall be conditioned that in any installation or maintenance of wires or equipment to convey electrical current, and equipment to be operated by electrical current, the principal will comply with the provisions of this chapter and with any electrical ordinance, building code, or regulation of a city or town adopted pursuant to RCW 19.28.010(2) that is in effect at the time of entering into a contract. The bond shall be conditioned further that the principal will pay for all labor, including employee benefits, and material furnished or used upon the work, taxes and contributions to the state of Washington, and all damages that may be sustained by any person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity due to a failure of the principal to make the installation or maintenance in accordance with this chapter or any applicable ordinance, building code, or regulation of a city or town adopted pursuant to RCW 19.28.010(2).

In lieu of the surety bond required by this section the license applicant may file with the department a cash deposit or other negotiable security acceptable to the department. If the license applicant has filed a cash deposit, the department shall deposit the funds in a special trust savings account in a commercial bank, mutual savings bank, or savings and loan association and shall pay annually to the depositor the interest derived from the account.

(3) The department shall issue general or specialty electrical contractor licenses to applicants meeting all of the requirements of this chapter. The provisions of this chapter relating to the licensing of any person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity including the requirement of a bond with the state of Washington named as obligee therein and the collection of a fee therefor, are exclusive, and no political subdivision of the state of Washington may require or issue any licenses or bonds or charge any fee for the same or a similar purpose. No person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity holding more than one specialty contractor license under this chapter may be required to pay an annual fee for more than one such license or to post more than one four thousand dollar bond, equivalent cash deposit, or other negotiable security.

(4) To obtain a general or specialty electrical contractor license the applicant must designate an individual who currently possesses an administrator's certificate as a general electrical contractor administrator or as a specialty electrical contractor administrator in the specialty for which application has been made. Administrator certificate specialties include but are not limited to: Residential, domestic, appliance, pump and irrigation, limited energy system, signs, nonresidential maintenance, and combination specialty. To obtain an administrator's certificate an individual must pass an examination as set forth in RCW 19.28.123 unless the applicant was a licensed electrical contractor at any time during 1974. Applicants who were electrical contractors licensed by the state of Washington at any time during 1974 are entitled to receive a general electrical contractor administrator's certificate without examination if the applicants apply prior to January 1, 1984. The board of electrical examiners shall certify to the department the names of all persons who are entitled to either a general or specialty electrical contractor administrator's certificate.

Sec. 2. Section 2, chapter 30, Laws of 1980 as amended by section 13, chapter 206, Laws of 1983 and RCW 19.28.510 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) No person may engage in the electrical construction trade without having a current journeyman electrician certificate of competency or a current specialty electrician certificate of competency issued by the department in accordance with this chapter. Electrician certificate of competency specialties include, but are not limited to: Residential, domestic appliances, pump and irrigation, limited energy system, signs, and nonresidential maintenance. A current journeyman electrician or sign specialty electrician certificate of competency is not required to install the poles, structures, or equipment, other than wiring, used in electric signs.

(2) A person who is indentured in an apprenticeship program approved under chapter 49.04 RCW for the electrical construction trade or who is learning the electrical construction trade may work in the electrical construction trade if supervised by a certified journeyman electrician or a certified specialty electrician in that electrician's specialty. All apprentices and individuals learning the electrical construction trade shall obtain an electrical training certificate from the department. The certificate shall authorize the holder to learn the electrical construction trade while under the direct supervision of a journeyman electrician or a specialty electrician working in his or her specialty. The holder of the electrical training certificate shall renew the certificate annually. At the time of renewal, the holder shall provide the department with an accurate list of the holder's employers in the electrical construction industry for the previous year and the number of hours worked for each employer. An annual fee shall be charged for the issuance or renewal of the certificate. The department shall set the fee by rule. The fee shall cover but not exceed the cost of administering and enforcing the trainee certification and supervision requirements of this chapter. Apprentices and individuals learning the electrical construction trade shall have their electrical training certificates in their possession at all times that they are performing electrical work. They shall show their certificates to an authorized representative of the department at the representative's request.

(3) Any person who has been issued an electrical training certificate under this chapter may work if that person is under supervision. Supervision shall consist of a person being on the same job site and under the control of either a journeyman electrician or an appropriate specialty electrician who has an applicable certificate of competency issued under this chapter. Either a journeyman electrician or an appropriate specialty electrician shall be on the same job site as the noncertified individual for a minimum of seventy-five percent of each working day unless otherwise provided in this chapter. The ratio of noncertified individuals to certified journeymen or specialty electricians working on a job site shall be:

(a) From September 1, 1979, through December 31, 1982, not more than three noncertified electricians working on any one job site for every certified journeyman or specialty electrician;

(b) Effective January 1, 1983, not more than two noncertified individuals working on any one job site for every specialty electrician or journeyman electrician working as a specialty electrician;

(c) Effective January 1, 1983, not more than than one noncertified individual working on any one job site for every certified journeyman electrician.

The ratio requirements do not apply to a trade school program in the electrical construction trade established during 1946.

An individual who has a current training certificate and who has successfully completed or is currently enrolled in an approved apprenticeship program or in a technical school program in the electrical construction trade in a school approved by the commission for vocational education, may work without direct on-site supervision during the last six months of meeting the practical experience requirements of this chapter.