HB 368 West, Richard
HB 368 -- STATEWIDE MECHANICAL CONTRACTOR LICENSING ACT
SPONSOR: West
This bill establishes the "Missouri Statewide Mechanical Contractor Licensing Act".
As specified in the bill, the Statewide Mechanical License for mechanical contractors will be regulated by the Division of Professional Registration within the Department of Commerce and Insurance. The bill creates the "Office of Mechanical Contractors" within the Division, to carry out the provisions of the bill.
Applicants for a statewide mechanical license must be 21 years old, provide proof of liability insurance in the amount of $1 million, pass certain standardized mechanical assessment tests, and have completed 7,500 hours of field experience or at least a Bachelor's degree with a minimum of three years of experience supervising a field employee.
A company that wants to engage in mechanical contracting is required to employ at least one statewide license-holder, and if the company loses their license-holder, they have six months to register a new license-holder before being declared inactive. A Statewide Licensed Mechanical Contractor may represent only one company at a time. A company must have at least one license-holder give eight hours of training each year.
Political subdivisions may establish their own local mechanical contractor's license, but shall recognize a statewide license in lieu of a local license. A political subdivision cannot require the employees of a statewide licensed mechanical contractor or its subcontractors or manufacturers' representatives to obtain journeymen licenses, apprenticeship licenses, or occupational licenses that require passing any examination or any special requirements to assess mechanical proficiency. The Statewide Mechanical Contractor License can be used to perform work in any political subdivision.
If a political subdivision does not recognize a statewide license, a Statewide Mechanical Contractor Licensee may file a complaint with the Division, which must investigate the complaint. If the Division finds that the political subdivision failed to recognize a statewide license, the Division shall notify the political subdivision of the violation and grant them 30 days to comply. If after 30 days the political subdivision does not comply, the Division shall notify the Director of the Department of Revenue, who shall withhold any moneys the political subdivision would otherwise be entitled to from local sales tax until the political subdivision is in compliance.
This bill establishes the "Missouri Mechanical Contractor Licensing Fund" in the State Treasury, which shall be expended for the administration of the statewide mechanical contractor licensure. Statewide mechanical contractor licenses shall expire after 24 months. Failure to renewal the license will result in the license being declared inactive and the licensee cannot practice until the license is renewed. A licensee must also have at last 16 hours of training to renew the license.
Any person operating as a mechanical contractor in a political subdivision that does not require a local license or who operates in a political subdivision with a local license is not required to possess a statewide license to operate as a mechanical contractor in such political subdivision.
The Division may refuse to issue the license and may cause a complaint to be filed with the Administrative Hearing Commission against any holder of a license for reasons outlined in the bill. Upon a finding by the Administrative Hearing Commission that grounds for disciplinary action are met, the Division may censure, place on probation, suspend, or revoke any license. Upon a judicial or administrative finding of a violation of this act, the Division may assess fines up to $5,000.
Any person who knowingly violates the provisions of this act is guilty of a class B misdemeanor.
This bill is similar to HB 2050 (2022) and HB 500 and SB 11 (2021).