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Sponsors
1 Co-sponsor
History
- Referred to cities
- Referred to cities
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the general city law, in relation to the regulation of contractors in a city with a population of more than two hundred eighty-nine thousand but less than three hundred five thousand
Purpose
Authorizes the Mayor of the city of Buffalo to create a thirteen member contractors Licensing Board. Provides that the board have: ten members who are contractors, in business for period of not less than five years, of which five will be engineering or building contractors, five specialty Contractors, and three non contractors. Each borough will be represented on the Board. No non-licensed member will be eligible for appointment to the Board, except for the three non contractor members.
Summary of provisions
Authorizes the Mayor of the City of Buffalo to create a thirteen member Contractors Licensing Board. Provides that the board have: ten members who are contractors, in business for period of not less than five years, of which five will be engineering or building contractors, five specialty Contractors, and three non contractors. No non-licensed member will be eligible for appointment to the Board, except for the three non contractor members.
Read the full memo (837 words)
POWERS AND DUTIES OF LICENSING BOARD The Contractors Licensing Board is authorized to:
* Grant licenses and investigate applicants; * suspend, revoke or refuse to renew, restore, reinstate licenses; * Adopt, amend, or appeal rules and regulations deemed necessary to carry out the purpose of the Board, upon the approval of the mayor and the Executive Director of the Office of strategic Planning of the city of Buffalo; * Adopt and enforce rules and regulations governing the use of "Chlorofluorocarbon" (CFC) and "Hydrochorofluorocarbon" (HCFC), including the disposal of air conditioning units utilizing such chemicals; * Collect fines and penalties; * Conduct hearings; * Contract for professional testing services, as may be required; * Impose up to $5,000 surety bonding; * Administer examinations;
Exemptions
Exempts: * officers and employees of any government entity, when in the performance of their official duties; * any person acting as a receiver, trustee in bankruptcy, or acting under a court order; * any person who sells or installs any finished products, materials, or articles of merchandise which do not become a permanent fixed part of a construction project; * any completed job where contract price is under $1,000; * any wage employee; * a registered architect or professional engineer acting solely in their professional capacity; * owners or lessees who build or improve their property for their own use or that of a close relative; * any joint venture where all members are licensed; * any project or operation where it is determined that 10 persons are qualified to perform the work, and such work does not pose a potential danger to public health, safety and welfare; or, * a public works project deemed necessary ad in the public interest. * Requires exempt contractors to sign a statement of disclosure, which imposes a fine for violation of the city of Buffalo laws, ordinances, building codes, and zoning regulations - first offense, a fine of $5,000 or forty percent of the appraised value of the building, whichever is greater; and, $10,000 or fifty percent of the appraised value of the building, whichever is greater for a subsequent offense.
CONTRACTOR CLASSIFICATIONS Establishes the following classifications for contractors: * General Engineering contractor - a contractor whose principal contracting business is in connection with fixed works requiring specialized engineering knowledge and skill; * General Building Contractor - a contractor whose principal contracting business is in connection with any structure built, being built, or to be built; and, * specialty Contractor - a contractor whose operations as such are the performance of construction work requiring special skills such as drywall, painting an decorating, landscaping, flooring, carpet installation, roofing, and other businesses which involve the use of specialized building trades or crafts. * Creates offenses and establishes violations and penalties for unlicensed, as well as, licensed contractors. * Allows for the automatic forfeiture of a contractor's license for failure to maintain bonding and insurance requirements. * Establishes the criteria for maintaining a license. * Allows the Board, in cases where a license was previously forfeited, to assess a fee of up to $1,000, impose a bond, or restrict a license as a condition of restoration. * Establishes license requirements for issuance of building permits. * Establishes the criteria and procedure for granting exemptions. * Establishes the procedures for processing violations, issuing notices of violation, cease and desist orders, and hearings.
Legislative history
JUSTIFICATION : General contracting is a business that affects the public health, safety and welfare of the people it employs and those who live in the vicinity of the work it performs. It is important that there be laws to protect the neighbors surrounding any construction or excavation projects especially in cities undertaking several reconstruction initiatives, such as Buffalo.
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Local fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
January 1, 2011
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.