FINAL BILL REPORT

ESSB 5713

PARTIAL VETO

C 399 L 03

Synopsis as Enacted

Brief Description: Concerning electrical work.

Sponsors: Senate Committee on Commerce & Trade (originally sponsored by Senators Honeyford, Prentice, Hewitt, Rasmussen, Mulliken, Sheahan and Oke).

Senate Committee on Commerce & Trade

House Committee on Commerce & Labor

House Committee on Appropriations

Background: The Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) issues licenses to electrical contractors, certificates to electricians, and requires permitting and inspection of electrical work.

There are several exemptions to electrical permitting and inspections in the department's rules. These exemptions include: like-in-kind replacement of heating elements, small motors, and luminaire ballasts of the same ballast.

Unless electrical work is specifically exempt from regulation, all electrical work must be conducted by certified electricians. Unless plumbing work is specifically exempt from regulation, all plumbing work must be conducted by certified plumbers.

Summary: Certain appliance repair work in residential occupancies, when performed by manufacturer-authorized dealers, is exempt from electrical licensing and certification requirements. A joint legislative task force is created to review requirements relating to this work and report to the Legislature by December 1, 2003.

L&I is authorized to create an equipment repair specialty classification, which requires an applicant to have worked at least 2,000 hours in the equipment repair field before becoming eligible to be certified.

Certain classes of "basic electrical work" are defined and exempt from permitting requirements and some are subject to random inspections. Certain electrical and plumbing work that is incidental to other plumbing and electrical work is exempt from electrical and plumbing certification and licensing requirements, if performed by certain electricians and plumbers.

Training requirements for certified plumbers include 16 hours of classroom training on electrical topics. All persons certified as plumbers before January 1, 2003, are not required to complete this training. There is a continuing education requirement for certified plumbers: 16 hours are required every two years, and four of these hours must cover electrical safety topics.

Certain electrical regulations on maintenance work on electrical controls of boilers, when such work is performed by an employee of a service company, are suspended until July 1, 2004. The electrical board and the board of boiler rules must jointly evaluate whether those regulations should apply to such work and report to the Legislature by December 1, 2003.

Votes on Final Passage:

Senate       38  10

House       97   1  (House amended)

Senate       48   0  (Senate concurred)

Effective: May 20, 2003 (Sections 601 and 701)

July 27, 2003

Partial Veto Summary: The exemption from licensing and certification requirements for repair, maintenance and replacement of electrical appliances in residential settings is eliminated. Authority creating a joint legislative task force is also removed.