CSHB 207(FIN): "An Act relating to the licensure and registration of individuals who perform home inspections; relating to home inspection requirements for residential loans purchased or approved by the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation; relating to civil actions by and against home inspectors; and providing for an effective date."
00CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 207(FIN) 01 "An Act relating to the licensure and registration of individuals who perform 02 home inspections; relating to home inspection requirements for residential loans 03 purchased or approved by the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation; relating to 04 civil actions by and against home inspectors; and providing for an effective date." 05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 * Section 1. AS 08 is amended by adding a new chapter to read: 07 Chapter 57. Home Inspectors. 08 Article 1. Board of Home Inspectors. 09 Sec. 08.57.010. Creation and membership of board. There is created the 10 Board of Home Inspectors consisting of five members. Three members shall be 11 licensed under this chapter and shall have been engaged in the practice of home 12 inspection in the state for three years immediately preceding appointment, one member 13 shall be a licensed real estate broker or certified real estate appraiser, and one member 14 shall be a public member.
01 Sec. 08.57.020. General duties. The board shall 02 (1) administer and enforce this chapter; 03 (2) regulate the practice of home inspection; 04 (3) establish education and experience requirements that must be met 05 for licensure under this chapter; the requirements established by the board must include 06 Alaska or northern education or experience in Arctic construction or building; 07 (4) establish standards for continuing education of licensed home 08 inspectors; 09 (5) adopt a code of ethics for home inspectors; and 10 (6) in addition to the meeting required under AS 08.01.070(2), meet 11 when requested by a majority of the members of the board. 12 Sec. 08.57.030. Meetings. The board may meet by teleconference. 13 Article 2. Licensure. 14 Sec. 08.57.050. Licensure required. (a) Unless exempt under AS 08.57.900 15 or serving lawfully as an associate home inspector under (b) of this section, an 16 individual may not perform a home inspection 17 (1) for new construction unless that individual is licensed as a home 18 inspector for new construction under this chapter; 19 (2) for previously occupied construction unless that individual is 20 licensed as a home inspector for previously occupied construction under this chapter. 21 (b) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, an individual who is not licensed under 22 this chapter may perform a home inspection as an associate home inspector if the 23 individual 24 (1) is employed by a licensed home inspector who supervises the 25 associate's work and the inspection is of the type that the supervising individual is 26 authorized to perform; and 27 (2) is registered with the board as an associate home inspector. 28 (c) A home inspector who employs an associate home inspector under (b) of 29 this section is liable for the work done by the associate home inspector. 30 (d) An individual who holds a joint license is considered to be licensed as both 31 a home inspector for new construction and a home inspector for previously occupied
01 construction. 02 Sec. 08.57.060. Qualifications. The board shall authorize the department to 03 issue a home inspector license for new construction, previously occupied construction, 04 or both, as appropriate, to an individual who 05 (1) passes the appropriate home inspection examination; the 06 examination, which must include a written portion and other test methodologies as 07 determined by the board, must test competence in relation to Alaska construction 08 techniques and other matters as determined by the board; the examination may be 09 based on a recognized national examination or other methodology; 10 (2) meets the educational and experience requirements adopted by the 11 board in regulations for the type of license applied for; 12 (3) submits a complete application for licensure within one year after 13 passing the examination required under (1) of this section; 14 (4) within the seven years preceding the date of application, has not 15 been under a sentence for an offense related to forgery, theft in the first or second 16 degree, extortion, or conspiracy to defraud creditors or for a felony involving 17 dishonesty; and 18 (5) pays the appropriate fees. 19 Sec. 08.57.070. License renewal; continued competency. (a) A license 20 issued under this chapter may not be renewed unless the applicant submits proof of 21 continued competency relating to home inspecting that satisfies the board. 22 (b) A lapsed license may be reinstated within two years after the lapse upon 23 proof of continued competency, payment of a renewal fee for the intervening time 24 period, and payment of any penalty fee established under AS 08.01.100(b). If the 25 license has been lapsed for more than two years, the license may not be reinstated until 26 the individual also passes the appropriate home inspection examination described in 27 AS 08.57.060. A license may not be reinstated if the license has been lapsed for more 28 than five years. 29 (c) The license of an applicant whose license has been suspended or against 30 whom a fine has been imposed under this chapter may not be renewed until the period 31 of suspension has expired and any fine has been paid.
01 Sec. 08.57.080. Fees. (a) The department shall set fees under AS 08.01.065 02 for 03 (1) licensure and renewal of licensure for a home inspector qualified 04 to inspect new construction; 05 (2) licensure and renewal of licensure for a home inspector qualified 06 to inspect previously occupied construction; 07 (3) joint licenses and renewal of joint licenses; 08 (4) registration and renewal of registration as an associate home 09 inspector; 10 (5) examinations; and 11 (6) board and departmental publications and seminars related to this 12 chapter. 13 (b) An individual who fails a home inspector examination shall pay the 14 examination fee set by the department if the individual applies to retake an 15 examination. 16 Sec. 08.57.090. Identification requirements. (a) Except as provided 17 otherwise by law, an individual who is licensed or registered under this chapter by one 18 name may not act in the capacity of a home inspector under any other name unless the 19 individual is also licensed or registered under that name. 20 (b) All advertising and business cards prepared by a licensed home inspector 21 or associate home inspector for the home inspection business must show the home 22 inspector's name, mailing address, and license or registration number. 23 (c) Individual licensed home inspectors and partners, associates, agents, 24 salespeople, solicitors, officers, and employees of licensed home inspectors shall use 25 their true names and addresses and the true name of the home inspecting firm at all 26 times while acting in the capacity of a licensed home inspector or performing related 27 activities. 28 (d) Regardless of whether they are exempt from licensure and registration 29 under AS 08.57.900, persons who perform home inspections may not hold themselves 30 out to be licensed home inspectors or use words or titles that may reasonably be 31 confused with the title of "licensed home inspector" unless they are licensed under this
01 chapter. 02 Article 3. Insurance Requirement. 03 Sec. 08.57.200. Types of insurance. Each applicant for licensure, at the time 04 of applying for licensure or for renewal of licensure, shall file with the board 05 satisfactory evidence that there is in effect for the applicant public liability and 06 property damage insurance covering the applicant's home inspecting operations in this 07 state in the sum of not less than $20,000 for damage to property, $50,000 for injury, 08 including death, to any one person, and $100,000 for injury, including death, to more 09 than one person. 10 Sec. 08.57.210. Suspension of license. If the insurance required in 11 AS 08.57.200 ceases to be in effect, the license of the home inspector shall 12 immediately be suspended until the insurance has been reinstated. 13 Article 4. Disciplinary Actions; Other Enforcement Mechanisms. 14 Sec. 08.57.300. Grounds for disciplinary sanctions or other license 15 decisions. The board may take disciplinary action authorized under AS 08.01.075 or 16 refuse to grant or renew a license or registration under this chapter on a finding that 17 (1) the application is fraudulent or misleading; 18 (2) the individual has knowingly violated this chapter or a lawful order 19 or regulation of the department or the board; 20 (3) the individual is incompetent or has engaged in fraudulent practices 21 relating to home inspection. 22 Sec. 08.57.310. Administrative Procedure Act applicable. Proceedings for 23 the denial, suspension, or revocation of a license or registration under this chapter are 24 governed by AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act). 25 Sec. 08.57.320. Injunction. In an action instituted in the superior court by the 26 board or the department, the court may enjoin an individual from performing a home 27 inspection in violation of this chapter. In addition to other relief, the court may 28 impose a civil penalty of not more than $500 for each violation. Each day that an 29 unlawful act continues constitutes a separate violation. 30 Sec. 08.57.330. Violations. (a) An individual who knowingly violates 31 AS 08.57.050 is guilty of a class B misdemeanor. A person who violates another
01 provision of this chapter is guilty of a violation punishable under AS 12. 02 (b) Criminal prosecution for a violation of this chapter does not preclude the 03 board or the department from seeking available civil remedies. 04 Article 5. Miscellaneous Provisions. 05 Sec. 08.57.800. Legal actions by home inspector. An individual may not 06 bring an action in a court of this state for the collection of compensation for the 07 performance of a home inspection or for breach of a contract for which a license or 08 registration is required under this chapter without proving that the individual was a 09 licensed home inspector or registered associate home inspector at the time of 10 contracting for the performance of the work. 11 Sec. 08.57.810. Legal actions against home inspector. A person may not 12 bring an action against an individual licensed or registered under this chapter based on 13 a written home inspection report prepared by the inspector if the report is more than 14 one year old or was unlawfully disclosed to the person bringing the action. 15 Sec. 08.57.820. Inspection report required. (a) Before performing a home 16 inspection, a licensee or an associate home inspector shall provide to the person on 17 whose behalf a home is inspected a written document specifying 18 (1) the scope of intended inspection, including the structural elements, 19 systems, and subsystems that will be inspected; and 20 (2) that the inspector will notify in writing the person on whose behalf 21 the inspection is being made of defects noted during the inspection along with a 22 recommendation, if any, that experts be retained to determine the extent of defects and 23 corrective action necessary to address the defects. 24 (b) After performing a home inspection, a licensee or associate home inspector 25 shall provide to the person on whose behalf the inspection was performed a written 26 description of defects noted during the inspection along with a recommendation, if any, 27 that experts be retained to determine the extent and corrective action necessary to 28 address the defects. 29 Sec. 08.57.830. Prohibited acts. (a) An individual licensed or registered 30 under this chapter, a company that employs an individual licensed or registered under 31 this chapter, or a company that is controlled by a company that also has a financial
01 interest in a company employing an individual licensed or registered under this chapter 02 may not 03 (1) perform or offer to perform, for an additional fee, repairs to a 04 structure on which the home inspector or the home inspector's company has prepared 05 a home inspection report in the past 12 months; 06 (2) inspect for a fee any property in which the home inspector or the 07 home inspector's company has a financial interest or an interest in the transfer of the 08 property; 09 (3) offer or deliver compensation, an inducement, or a reward to the 10 owner of the inspected property, the broker, or the agent, for the referral of business 11 to the home inspector or the home inspector's company; 12 (4) without the written consent of the home inspection client or the 13 client's legal representative, disclose information from a home inspection report 14 prepared by the home inspector or the home inspector's company unless the disclosure 15 is made 16 (A) more than one year after the date of the report; 17 (B) to a subsequent client who requests a home inspection of 18 the same premises; or 19 (C) by the home inspector in an administrative or judicial 20 proceeding in which disclosure of the home inspection report is relevant to 21 resolution of the legal issues in the proceeding; 22 (5) without the written consent of all interested parties, accept 23 compensation from more than one interested party for the same services; 24 (6) accept from a person who has other dealings with a home 25 inspection client a commission or allowance, directly or indirectly, for work for which 26 the home inspector or the home inspector's company is responsible; 27 (7) accept an engagement to make an inspection or to prepare a report 28 in which the employment itself or the fee payable for the inspection is contingent upon 29 the conclusions in the report, preestablished findings, or the close of escrow. 30 (b) Contractual provisions that purport to limit the liability of a home inspector 31 to the cost of the home inspection report are contrary to public policy and void.
01 Sec. 08.57.840. Limitation on activities. A license or registration issued 02 under this chapter does not authorize the holder to perform an activity for which a 03 license is required under provisions of this title that are outside of this chapter. 04 Article 6. General Provisions. 05 Sec. 08.57.900. Exemptions. Notwithstanding other provisions of this chapter, 06 an individual who performs a home inspection is not required to be licensed or 07 registered under this chapter if the individual is 08 (1) employed by the federal or state government, a political subdivision 09 of the state, or a municipality or unincorporated community and the employee is 10 performing only duties that are within the employee's official duties; 11 (2) performing a home inspection only with respect to property that is 12 the individual's residence or in which the individual has a financial interest; 13 (3) registered as a civil engineer or architect under AS 08.48 and the 14 individual either 15 (A) affixes the individual's seal to the home inspection report; 16 or 17 (B) signs the report and puts the individual's registration number 18 on the report; 19 (4) engaged as an engineer in training or architect in training who 20 works for and is supervised by a person described in (3) of this section and the person 21 described in (3) of this section affixes the person's seal to the home inspection report 22 or signs and puts the person's registration number on the report; 23 (5) licensed as a pesticide applicator by the Department of 24 Environmental Conservation and is performing only activities within the scope of that 25 license; 26 (6) registered as an engineer or architect under AS 08.48 and is 27 performing only activities that are authorized by the Board of Registration for 28 Architects, Engineers and Land Surveyors under that registration; 29 (7) certified as any type of real estate appraiser under AS 08.87 and is 30 performing only activities that are authorized under that certification; or 31 (8) certified to demonstrate that a building complies with the thermal
01 and lighting energy standards required by AS 46.11.040 and is performing only 02 activities authorized under that certification. 03 Sec. 08.57.990. Definitions. In this chapter, 04 (1) "board" means the Board of Home Inspectors; 05 (2) "department" means the Department of Community and Economic 06 Development; 07 (3) "home inspection" means an inspection of the condition of a 08 residence or intended residence performed for compensation on behalf of a prospective 09 buyer, seller, or lender in a real estate transaction or on behalf of the owner of the 10 residence; 11 (4) "joint license" means a license that authorizes an individual to 12 inspect both new construction and previously occupied residences; 13 (5) "real estate transaction" means the transfer or attempted transfer of 14 an interest in a unit of real property or an act conducted as a result of or in pursuit of 15 a contract to transfer an interest in a unit of real property; 16 (6) "residence" means 17 (A) a single-family home; 18 (B) a duplex, triplex, or four-plex; or 19 (C) a residential townhouse or residential condominium unit. 20 * Sec. 2. AS 08.01.010 is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 21 (3) Board of Home Inspectors (AS 08.57.010). 22 * Sec. 3. AS 08.03.010(c) is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 23 (22) Board of Home Inspectors (AS 08.57.010) -- June 30, 2003. 24 * Sec. 4. AS 18.56.300(b) is amended to read: 25 (b) As a condition of a commitment to purchase or approve a loan under this 26 section for residential housing the construction of which begins after June 30, 1992, 27 the corporation shall require inspection of the unit of residential housing that is the 28 subject of the loan. The inspection must be performed by a municipal building 29 inspector, by a person who is approved or certified to perform residential inspections 30 by the International Conference of Building Officials or the International Association 31 of Electrical Inspectors, by an individual who is licensed or registered under
01 AS 08.57.050 to perform home inspections [OR, WHEN THE UNIT OF 02 RESIDENTIAL HOUSING IS LOCATED IN A RURAL AREA], by an architect 03 licensed under AS 08.48, by an engineer licensed under AS 08.48, or by another 04 person approved by the corporation. When the unit of residential housing is located 05 in a rural area, the person who makes the inspection may use methods other than a 06 personal physical inspection to make the inspection if the method is approved by the 07 corporation, and variations from the applicable code may be accepted at the 08 corporation's discretion, if the person authorized to inspect the unit under this 09 subsection satisfies the corporation that the variation does not adversely affect the 10 structural integrity of the unit or the health and safety of the residents. The person 11 who makes the inspection shall determine whether the construction conforms to 12 relevant provisions of the construction codes of the municipality or of the state 13 building code, as applicable, at each of the following stages of construction: 14 (1) plan approval; 15 (2) completion of footings and foundations; 16 (3) completion of electrical installation, plumbing, and framing; 17 (4) completion of installation of insulation; 18 (5) final approval. 19 * Sec. 5. AS 18.56.300(b) is amended to read: 20 (b) As a condition of a commitment to purchase or approve a loan under this 21 section for residential housing the construction of which begins after June 30, 1992, 22 the corporation shall require inspection of the unit of residential housing that is the 23 subject of the loan. The inspection must be performed by a municipal building 24 inspector, [BY A PERSON WHO IS APPROVED OR CERTIFIED TO PERFORM 25 RESIDENTIAL INSPECTIONS BY THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF 26 BUILDING OFFICIALS OR THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF 27 ELECTRICAL INSPECTORS,] by an individual who is licensed or registered under 28 AS 08.57.050 to perform home inspections, by an architect licensed under AS 08.48, 29 by an engineer licensed under AS 08.48, or by another person approved by the 30 corporation. When the unit of residential housing is located in a rural area, the person 31 who makes the inspection may use methods other than a personal physical inspection
01 to make the inspection if the method is approved by the corporation, and variations 02 from the applicable code may be accepted at the corporation's discretion, if the person 03 authorized to inspect the unit under this subsection satisfies the corporation that the 04 variation does not adversely affect the structural integrity of the unit or the health and 05 safety of the residents. The person who makes the inspection shall determine whether 06 the construction conforms to relevant provisions of the construction codes of the 07 municipality or of the state building code, as applicable, at each of the following stages 08 of construction: 09 (1) plan approval; 10 (2) completion of footings and foundations; 11 (3) completion of electrical installation, plumbing, and framing; 12 (4) completion of installation of insulation; 13 (5) final approval. 14 * Sec. 6. AS 44.62.330(a) is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 15 (60) Board of Home Inspectors. 16 * Sec. 7. AS 45.50.471(b) is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 17 (43) violating AS 08.57.830. 18 * Sec. 8. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 19 to read: 20 REGULATIONS. The Board of Home Inspectors may proceed to adopt regulations 21 to implement this Act. A regulation adopted under this section takes effect under AS 44.62 22 (Administrative Procedure Act) but not before the effective date of the law implemented by 23 the regulation. 24 * Sec. 9. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 25 to read: 26 INITIAL BOARD MEMBERS. Notwithstanding AS 08.57.010, added by sec. 1 of this 27 Act, the three home inspectors appointed to the initial Board of Home Inspectors are not 28 required to be licensed as home inspectors before appointment but must be licensed as home 29 inspectors in order to be appointed or reappointed after expiration of their first term in office. 30 * Sec. 10. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 31 to read:
01 TRANSITIONAL LICENSING PROVISIONS. (a) Notwithstanding AS 08.57, added 02 by sec. 1 of this Act, the Board of Home Inspectors shall issue a joint license that is valid 03 until January 1, 2002, to an individual who submits to the board satisfactory evidence of being 04 in the business of home inspection in the state at the time of application for a license under 05 this subsection and of having 06 (1) been in the business of home inspection in the state on October 1, 1999; 07 or 08 (2) passed the building inspector examination or property maintenance and 09 housing inspector examination given by the International Conference of Building Officials. 10 (b) Notwithstanding AS 08.57, added by sec. 1 of this Act, the Board of Home 11 Inspectors shall issue a license to practice home inspection of previously occupied residences 12 that is valid until January 1, 2002, to an individual who submits to the board satisfactory 13 evidence of being in the business of home inspection in the state at the time of application for 14 a license under this subsection and of having passed 15 (1) the national home inspector examination given by the American Society 16 of Home Inspectors; or 17 (2) the examination of the Examination Board of Professional Home Inspectors. 18 (c) Notwithstanding AS 08.57, added by sec. 1 of this Act, the Board of Home 19 Inspectors shall issue a license to practice home inspection of new construction that is valid 20 until January 1, 2002, to an individual who submits to the board satisfactory evidence of being 21 in the business of home inspection in the state at the time of application for a license under 22 this subsection and of having passed the combination inspector examination or the 23 combination dwelling inspector examination given by the International Conference of Building 24 Officials. 25 (d) Notwithstanding AS 08.57, added by sec. 1 of this Act, the Board of Home 26 Inspectors shall grant registration as an associate home inspector that is valid until January 1, 27 2002, to an individual who submits to the board satisfactory evidence of being employed by 28 an individual who is in the business of home inspection and is licensed under this section or 29 under AS 08.57. 30 (e) A license or registration issued under this section may not be renewed or extended. 31 (f) Except as provided in (e) of this section, a license or registration issued under this
01 section is considered to be a license or registration issued under AS 08.57, added by sec. 1 02 of this Act. 03 (g) In this section, "joint license" has the meaning given in AS 08.57.990, added by 04 sec. 1 of this Act. 05 * Sec. 11. AS 08.57.050, 08.57.090, 08.57.330(a), 08.57.800 - 08.57.820, enacted by sec. 1 06 of this Act, and the amendment of AS 18.56.300(b), made by sec. 4 of this Act, take effect 07 July 1, 2001. 08 * Sec. 12. Section 5 of this Act takes effect January 1, 2002. 09 * Sec. 13. Except as provided in secs. 11 - 12 of this Act, this Act takes effect immediately 10 under AS 01.10.070(c).