NOTICE REGARDING SB 30 AND YOUR
HOME IMPROVEMENT CONTRACT
by Sam K. Abdulaziz
You have probably all heard about last year's Senate Bill 30 dealing with
major changes to Home Improvement Contracts. It became law January 1, 2005 but it was designed so that it would not be implemented until July 1, 2005. Unfortunately, there was very little input to SB 30 by people in the construction industry. Instead, people who had never handled a construction dispute, or maybe never even saw a hammer, wrote the legislation. Not surprisingly, the legislation is something less than nonsensical. It is internally inconsistent and very hard to understand. As an example, it would have you give a notice that does not exist. That is just one mere example.
We have been very active with the Contractors' State License Board to try
and clean up the mess. There presently is a bill (SB 1113) that is in the
legislature that would put off implementation of the new requirements until
January 1, 2006. If that happens, your present contract, if it is correctly
written, is appropriate. That bill has passed the Senate and is on consent
in the Assembly. It is urgency legislation, which means that it becomes law once the Governor signs it, rather than January 1, as does non-urgency legislation. That means that today, you are operating illegally with respect to your
contract if it is a Home Improvement or Swimming Pool Contract. However, the Contractors' State License Board has stated that it is not going to enforce the language within SB 30 in 2005, pending the outcome of legislative action. I guess it is now up to the Governor to sign it quickly. I urge each and every one of you to write to your legislator and the
Governor asking for a speedy resolution of this issue so that you can
operate legally and not be at risk. However, that is not the end of the problem. If nothing more is done, all
that will happen is that on January 1, 2006, you will have to use contracts
that are internally inconsistent and still very, very poorly written. Accordingly, the Contractors' State License Board has another piece of
legislation (AB 316), which would clean up the language. Hopefully, that
will pass by both houses and the Governor will make it law. This too will depend on your political activism. I would urge you to stay
on top of this matter and make your elected officials do that which you
elected them to do. Law Offices of Abdulaziz & Grossbart
P.O. Box 15458
North Hollywood, CA 91615-5458
(818)760-2000 FAX (818)760-3908
Please visit our website at http://www.aglaw.net
Emphasizing Construction Law
|
