BILL REQ. #:  S-4434.1 

READ FIRST TIME 02/05/10.   

     AN ACT Relating to home inspector licensing requirements; amending RCW 18.280.020, 18.280.110, and 18.280.060; and declaring an emergency.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 18.280.020 and 2008 c 119 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Beginning September 1, 2009, a person shall not engage in or conduct, or advertise or hold himself or herself out as engaging in or conducting, the business of or acting in the capacity of a home inspector within this state without first obtaining a license as provided in this chapter.
     (2)(a) Any person performing the duties of a home inspector on June 12, 2008, has until July 1, 2010, to meet the licensing requirements of this chapter.
     (b) However, if a person performing the duties of a home inspector on June 12, 2008, has proof that he or she has worked as a home inspector for at least two years and has conducted at least one hundred home inspections, he or she may apply to the board before ((September 1, 2009)) July 1, 2010, for licensure without meeting the instruction and training requirements of this chapter.
     (3) The director may begin issuing licenses under this section beginning on July 1, 2009.

Sec. 2   RCW 18.280.110 and 2008 c 119 s 11 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) As a condition of renewing a license under this chapter, a licensed home inspector shall present satisfactory evidence to the board of having completed the continuing education requirements provided for in this section.
     (2)(a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, each applicant for license renewal shall complete at least twenty-four hours of instruction in courses approved by the board every two years.
     (b) An applicant for license renewal who applied for a license under RCW 18.280.020(2)(b) and has enrolled in and paid for classes to meet the instruction requirements of RCW 18.280.070(2) before the effective date of this section, is not required to meet continuing education requirements until the applicant renews his or her license in 2016 or thereafter.

Sec. 3   RCW 18.280.060 and 2008 c 119 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:
     The board has the following authority in administering this chapter:
     (1) To establish rules, including board organization and assignment of terms, and meeting frequency and timing, for adoption by the director;
     (2) To establish the minimum qualifications for licensing applicants as provided in this chapter;
     (3) To approve programs of classroom instruction that may be taken by applicants to meet their qualifications of licensure. In approving programs of classroom instruction, the board must consult with community and technical colleges in eastern Washington in order to develop qualified classroom instruction programs in that area. If the board has not approved programs of classroom instruction in eastern Washington by December 1, 2010, it must report to the appropriate committees of the legislature why it has not done so and identify barriers to providing classroom instruction in eastern Washington;
     (4) To approve the method of administration of examinations required by this chapter or by rule as established by the director;
     (((4))) (5) To approve the content of or recognition of examinations prepared by other entities for adoption by the director;
     (((5))) (6) To set the time and place of examinations with the approval of the director; and
     (((6))) (7) To establish and review standards of professional conduct, practice, and ethics for adoption by the director. These standards must address what constitutes certain fire and safety hazards as used in RCW 18.280.030.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect immediately.