Legislature(2001 - 2002)
05/10/2002 05:26 PM Senate JUD
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HB 27-HOME INSPECTORS/CONTRACTORS
MS. JANET SEITZ, Staff to Representative Norman Rokeberg, sponsor
of HB 27, said HB 27 would require registration for home
inspectors along with certain educational and practice
requirements.
SENATOR THERRIAULT moved the work draft (Version V) as the
working document before the committee.
There being no objection, Version V was adopted as the working
document before the committee.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR asked Ms. Seitz to explain the changes made in
Version V.
MS. SEITZ said Version V does not contain the section that dealt
with legal actions against home inspectors and associated
language requiring a report to be filed on an existing home
within two years and a new home within one year. She said there
would be no contractual limitation of liability of home
inspectors according to Sec. 17.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR asked Ms. Seitz for the location of the
provisions that would allow only two certifying entities.
MS. SEITZ said those provisions were in Sections 7 and 43. She
said Sec. 7 would require passage of appropriate examination to
get a home inspector's license and Sec. 43 would provide for
transitional licensing.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR said those two entities were the American Society
of Home Inspectors (ASHI) and the International Conference of
Building Officials (ICBO).
MS. SEITZ said that was correct.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR asked if that would include the National
Association of Home Inspectors (NAHI).
MS. SEITZ said no.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR asked if the American Home Inspector Training
Institute (AHITI) was a different school.
MS. SEITZ said it was. She said ASHI had an Alaska chapter and
the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation (AHFC) required ICBO
certification for new construction.
5:37 p.m.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG, sponsor of HB 27, said he reviewed a
number of other entities offering training and testing services
that expressed interest in being included. He said ASHI and ICBO
were well respected throughout the country. He didn't want to
list every particular entity and would not object to the
committee adding a provision that would allow inclusion of other
entities by regulation. He didn't want to exclude any entities
but wanted to be sure they were reviewed before they were
approved. He said the legislature didn't have the capacity to
review each of the entities.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR said HB 27 limits certification to just two
entities. He received correspondence from someone who suggested
also including NAHI and AHITI because those entities offered
training and testing services. He didn't want to pass HB 27 only
to discover that a good portion of the home inspectors in Alaska
could no longer practice because they got their certification
from some other entity.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said he had been working on the issue for
four years and that work spawned the Alaskan ASHI chapter. He
said there was some competition between ASHI and one of the
entities Chairman Taylor mentioned but he didn't believe that
affected Alaska. He felt comfortable including only ASHI and
ICBO.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR moved conceptual Amendment 1 to change the
semicolon on page 4, line 24 to a comma and add AHITI and NAHI to
the list of eligible entities offering examination and courses
for inspecting existing homes.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG was not sure of the quality or competency
of AHITI and NAHI.
SENATOR THERRIAULT asked why it would be preferable to specify
certain entities when there could be other qualified entities.
He said they could delete all of the language from line 20 to
line 27 on page 4.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said there must be basic standards. He
said AHFC required ICBO certification for inspecting new
construction. He said Senator Therriault's suggestion would
lower requirements and he didn't think they wanted to do that.
He said existing home inspection certification was what was at
issue and ASHI was the normally accepted standard.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR said members of the committee had received
correspondence from people who wouldn't be able to get a license
unless they went back through the educational process.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG had reviewed some of the entities. He
read the complete curriculum from one of the entities mentioned
that was in a one-room second-floor walk-up in Connecticut and he
didn't believe they had sufficiently demonstrated their
qualifications to be included in HB 27. He said entities that
could show sufficient qualifications should be included.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR said he wasn't concerned with where the
inspectors got their certification because they would be liable
if they did anything wrong.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said the same change should be made on
page 22, line 6 to be consistent.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR said they could change the "or" on page 22, line
6 to an "and." He said that would require all inspectors to take
an examination by the board.
REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said there wasn't a board.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR said the language on page 22, lines 7-8 referred
to, "the Examination Board of Professional Home Inspectors." He
asked if HB 27 created that board.
MS. SEITZ said that examination was already given by a group
called Professional Home Inspectors and some people in the state
had already taken that examination.
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR reiterated that conceptual Amendment 1 would
include AHITI and NAHI on page 4, line 24 and page 22, line 6.
He asked if there was any objection to Amendment 1.
There being no objection, Amendment 1 was adopted.
SENATOR COWDERY moved SCS CSHB 27(JUD) out of committee with
attached fiscal notes and individual recommendations.
There being no objection, SCS CSHB 27(JUD) moved out of committee
with attached fiscal notes and individual recommendations.
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