AN ACT Relating to premanufactured electric power generation equipment assemblies; and amending RCW 19.28.200 and 19.28.610.

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

Sec. 1. RCW 19.28.200 and 1992 c 240 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) No license under the provision of this chapter shall be required from any utility or any person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity employed by a utility because of work in connection with the installation, repair, or maintenance of lines, wires, apparatus, or equipment owned by or under the control of a utility and used for transmission or distribution of electricity from the source of supply to the point of contact at the premises and/or property to be supplied and service connections and meters and other apparatus or appliances used in the measurement of the consumption of electricity by the customer.

(2) No license under the provisions of this chapter shall be required from any utility because of work in connection with the installation, repair, or maintenance of the following:

(a) Lines, wires, apparatus, or equipment used in the lighting of streets, alleys, ways, or public areas or squares;

(b) Lines, wires, apparatus, or equipment owned by a commercial, industrial, or public institution customer that are an integral part of a transmission or distribution system, either overhead or underground, providing service to such customer and located outside the building or structure: PROVIDED, That a utility does not initiate the sale of services to perform such work;

(c) Lines and wires, together with ancillary apparatus, and equipment, owned by a customer that is an independent power producer who has entered into an agreement for the sale of electricity to a utility and that are used in transmitting electricity from an electrical generating unit located on premises used by such customer to the point of interconnection with the utility's system.

(3) Any person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity licensed under RCW 19.28.120 may enter into a contract with a utility for the performance of work under subsection (2) of this section.

(4) No license under the provisions of this chapter shall be required from any manufacturer or any person, firm, partnership, or other entity employed by a manufacturer of power generation equipment because of work in the connection with the installation, testing, repair, modification, or maintenance of premanufactured assemblies of electric power generation equipment and control gear.

Premanufactured electric power generation equipment assemblies are made up of reciprocating internal combustion engines and the associated control gear equipment. Control gear equipment includes control logic, metering, and annunciation for the operation and the quality of power being generated by the reciprocating internal combustion engine and does not have the function of distribution of power. For the purposes of this subsection, temporary test connections and installation or connection of components internal to the transfer switch, control gear, or the power generation unit shall be included as part of work on premanufactured electric power generation equipment assemblies.

(5) No license under the provisions of this chapter shall be required from any person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity because of the work of installing and repairing ignition or lighting systems for motor vehicles.

((~~(5)~~)) (6) No license under the provisions of this chapter shall be required from any person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other entity because of work in connection with the installation, repair, or maintenance of wires and equipment, and installations thereof, exempted in RCW 19.28.010.

Sec. 2. RCW 19.28.610 and 1994 c 157 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

Nothing in RCW 19.28.510 through 19.28.620 shall be construed to require that a person obtain a license or a certified electrician in order to do electrical work at his or her residence or farm or place of business or on other property owned by him or her unless the electrical work is on the construction of a new building intended for rent, sale, or lease. However, if the construction is of a new residential building with up to four units intended for rent, sale, or lease, the owner may receive an exemption from the requirement to obtain a license or use a certified electrician if he or she provides a signed affidavit to the department stating that he or she will be performing the work and will occupy one of the units as his or her principal residence. The owner shall apply to the department for this exemption and may only receive an exemption once every twenty-four months. It is intended that the owner receiving this exemption shall occupy the unit as his or her principal residence for twenty-four months after completion of the units. Nothing in RCW 19.28.510 through 19.28.620 shall be intended to derogate from or dispense with the requirements of any valid electrical code enacted by a city or town pursuant to RCW 19.28.010(3), except that no code shall require the holder of a certificate of competency to demonstrate any additional proof of competency or obtain any other license or pay any fee in order to engage in the electrical construction trade. RCW 19.28.510 through 19.28.620 shall not apply to common carriers subject to Part I of the Interstate Commerce Act, nor to their officers and employees. Nothing in RCW 19.28.510 through 19.28.620 shall be deemed to apply to the installation or maintenance of telephone, telegraph, radio, or television wires and equipment; nor to any electrical utility or its employees in the installation, repair, and maintenance of electrical wiring, circuits, and equipment by or for the utility, or comprising a part of its plants, lines or systems. Nothing in RCW 19.28.510 through 19.28.620 shall be deemed to apply to the installation, maintenance, or modification of premanufactured electric power generation equipment assemblies and control gear equipment by a manufacturer or authorized manufacturer's representative. The licensing provisions of RCW 19.28.510 through 19.28.620 shall not apply to:

(1) Persons making electrical installations on their own property or to regularly employed employees working on the premises of their employer, unless the electrical work is on the construction of a new building intended for rent, sale, or lease; ((or))

(2) Employees of an employer while the employer is performing utility type work of the nature described in RCW 19.28.200 so long as such employees have registered in the state of Washington with or graduated from a state-approved outside lineman apprenticeship course that is recognized by the department and that qualifies a person to perform such work; or

(3) Employees of any manufacturer or employees of any person, firm, partnership, or other entity employed by a manufacturer while the employer is performing installation, maintenance, or modification work on a premanufactured power generation assembly and controls for that assembly of the nature described in RCW 19.28.200.

Nothing in RCW 19.28.510 through 19.28.620 shall be construed to restrict the right of any householder to assist or receive assistance from a friend, neighbor, relative or other person when none of the individuals doing the electrical installation hold themselves out as engaged in the trade or business of electrical installations. Nothing precludes any person who is exempt from the licensing requirements of this chapter under this section from obtaining a journeyman or specialty certificate of competency if they otherwise meet the requirements of this chapter.