Craigslist in Greenville, SC...rant time....

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Minuteman said:
Some how, in this thread, it's been implied that those of us with a State license have Drank the Koolaid and sold our soul to the devil, giving up our rights and accepting the oppression of big brother.
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I hold electrical licenses in MA RI and CT, I must be entirely 'soulless'. :D
 
c2500 said:
I actually looked on craigslist tonight, and could not believe the number of unlicensed people offering work. Not just handyman stuff, but additions, etc. I have been reading things on here about it in other areas, but had no idea that there was this much junk being done locally. I cannot see how this service continues when they knowing allow posts that are a violation of state law. Or, why do they not a least post a warning about what the law is, and how there will be no recourse when Bob the handyman builder burns your house down because he mis-wired a ceiling fan.

In SC, you have to be a licensed specialty contractor to engage in repairs over $200. Work over $5000, you need a bond. While the license is a joke, (send the money, get the card) at least there is a bit of accountability.

I know see what all of you guys have been griping so much about.

I think it is time for the state or local guys to conduct a "Dateline NBC" type sting and get rid of some of these bozos.

c2500
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Call all of them up and schedule an appointment at the same time with them, keep doing it, send them all over town. Better yet, send half them to your building officials house at 800am the other half at 700PM.
 
SC rant time

SC rant time

emahler said:
exactly....Marc you are off base on this one...the minimum requirements to attain a license are in no way a barrier to anyone competent....to argue that licensing is irrelevant is to argue for anarchy....while anarchy in theory is awesome, so is communism....in reality neither work.

I am however in favor of national licensing (i.e. pass the test in one state, be legal in all) and I am not in favor of the current licensing and fee structure (as the cow pointed out)

but none of that negates the fact that a license is simply designed to hold someone accountable for their actions...it's a shame that too many states and municipalities don't understand this....
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I'm for national licensing
SC seems to be lax-ed in there inspections but you have to have at least an Intermediate Licenses to do work there
I just live a few miles from there and my Limited Licenses are no good there
NC has some of the best testing and inspections I know of but I still can't do work anywhere but in NC
I am really proud of NC when it comes to electrical testing and licensing
That's a bunch of CRAP
Marc I usually agree with you but I personally think everyone should have a license if any of us do
It's not fare for those of us that have a license and insurance to compete with no license persons in all trades
Although my business is well established and I have no competition because of my experience and good name
License people have to keep up on the local and state codes and non license people don't seem to care
Well that's my take on this, have a GREAT day all and Semper Fi Buddy
 
Minuteman said:
Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, New York, and Pennsylvania are, far as I know, the only ones not having electrical licensing at the State level.
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I have noticed that all the negative comments about state license requirements have come from people living in states that don't have a state license requirement.

The system works, the people have spoken.
 
LawnGuyLandSparky said:
I'm sorry, but being fined $250.00...
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What part of 'revoked license' don't you understand?

LawnGuyLandSparky said:
Most of the instances listed were not for shoddy work...
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You asked for 'any instances'. There are many instances. That news letter comes out 4 times a year.

It shouldn't surprise anybody that shoddy work isn't the one and only reason for a license revocation. There's fraud, misappropriation of funds, failure to perform or complete a contract, etc...
 
growler said:
I have noticed that all the negative comments about state license requirements have come from people living in states that don't have a state license requirement.

The system works, the people have spoken.
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LOL the system works? I guess so if you want to keep pumping money to the local governments. Again governments are more concerned with revenues other than protecting the people. I agree there should be a licensing system. The one we have is far far from working to protect civilians. However it could be a lot worse.
 
growler said:
I have noticed that all the negative comments about state license requirements have come from people living in states that don't have a state license requirement.

The system works, the people have spoken.
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I take it you agree with me since our system in Indiana works and we have spoken here as well. If you can show one example where your overburdened system works better than ours and saves more lives then you can get loud till then please talk softer.
 
bikeindy said:
If you can show one example where your overburdened system
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How do you know another states system is overburdened?

Just because your state can't handle any added tasks doesn't mean others (the majority) have a hard time doing so.

Roger
 
I'm probably going to get scolded......

I'm probably going to get scolded......

I don't have a dog in this fight, since I am Industrial, and have no plans to do side jobs. I have a master electrician "Trades Certification" from MASC not a license, but I can pull a permit on a job up to $5000. I don't have a contractors license. SC doesn't require a contractors license up to $5000 according to the information I have received. Unless I am getting wrong information the OP's original post about people working illegally is not correct.

From the SC state licensing board:


http://www.llr.state.sc.us/pol/Contractors/PDF files/BUILDINGOFFICIALTRAININGPACKAGE.pdf

TO: Whom It May Concern
FROM: South Carolina Contractors? Licensing Board
SUBJECT: Contracting Work Not Requiring Licensure
DATE: August 17, 2004
EXEMPT WORK NOT REQUIRING A CONTRACTOR LICENSE
There are several classifications of work that are exempt from requiring a general or mechanical
contractor license. Among these are: fencing, landscaping, clearing, grubbing, debris removal,
hauling, irrigation, exterior recreational surfaces, golf course construction, signs or billboards,
carpet, non-permanent scaffolding, demolition, fiberglass work, and kitchen equipment, and
installation of commercial exhaust hoods. Fire suppression work related to exhaust hood work
should be inspected by the appropriate local authority having jurisdiction.
Furnishing and installing most equipment and machinery, regardless of the cost, no longer
requires a general or mechanical contractors? license. However, licensed contractors must be
utilized for any electrical, steam, gas, oil or water connections (essential to the operation of the
equipment or machinery), which exceed $5,000.
 
roger said:
How do you know another states system is overburdened?

Just because your state can't handle any added tasks doesn't mean others (the majority) have a hard time doing so.

Roger
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I meant to say overburdening, sorry, I can't seem to edit it.

I don't want my state to handle any other tasks, I don't want them doing 60% of what they are doing now. It isin't their job.
 
bikeindy said:
I meant to say overburdening, sorry, I can't seem to edit it.
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bikeindy are you sure that you are not part of the problem? In another post you stated that " Terra Haute, In has there own license but I can go there from Indy, show them my test results and license, pay the fee , get the bond and good to go".

That sounds like a lot of trouble for nothing. No wonder you are overburdened.

I can drive anywhere in the state and get a permit for a job with just my state license and local business license ( some areas require an additional bond ). Can even get a license in a few other states without to much trouble.

If you already have a license why would it be a great burden for it to cover a larger area ? Why woud anyone want to go giving money to every little town for a license? This all very perplexing.

Marc I can understand he's just mule headed and has all kinds of money to throw away. Just a joke Marc.:grin: :grin:
 
growler said:
bikeindy are you sure that you are not part of the problem? In another post you stated that " Terra Haute, In has there own license but I can go there from Indy, show them my test results and license, pay the fee , get the bond and good to go".

That sounds like a lot of trouble for nothing. No wonder you are overburdened.

I can drive anywhere in the state and get a permit for a job with just my state license and local business license ( some areas require an additional bond ). Can even get a license in a few other states without to much trouble.

If you already have a license why would it be a great burden for it to cover a larger area ? Why woud anyone want to go giving money to every little town for a license? This all very perplexing.

Marc I can understand he's just mule headed and has all kinds of money to throw away. Just a joke Marc.:grin: :grin:
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Like others have said here its the law and I have to follow it. Indianapolis has a License requirement and so do about 7 other cities in Indiana. As far as I know they all recepricate and you just need to pay the fee for the license in each city that requires it you can do it while pulling the permit.. I have been hesitent in stating I don't like permits either. do I pull them when required yes. It does nothing to protect the consumer any more than a license does. In all of the counties and cities surounding Indianapolis that are outside Marion county there is not one that requires a license and most have few requirements for permits for work that only involves electrical. two cities that I can think of require a permit for a service change.

I had to start my business doing work outside of marion county because i didn't fit the criteria to get a License when i started. you needed 6 years field experience and i only had three. They wouldn't count all the years i had repairing photo optical sensor systems and LASER targeting systems, and all the electrical knowledge i had didn't matter to them. So what if I took a bunch of code classes and could pass their test. I hadn't worked in the construction field long enough. So I couldn't work on my neighbors garage, i had to drive outside my own county to find my work even though I had to pay income tax to them. How sad. There is a burden for you.
 
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bikeindy said:
They wouldn't count all the years I had repairing photo optical sensor systems and LASER targeting systems, and all the electrical knowledge i had didn't matter to them. So what if I took a bunch of code classes and could pass their test.
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I understand that it can suck for certain people to get turned down when they think they are qualified. But most states don't count military electronics it has to be construction specific.

The real problem that most people fail to see is that when you set a certain standard there must be a cut off point. If 75 is passing why not let the people that make 74 go through also it's only one point. When you do that 74 becomes the new passing grade so why not let the people that make 73 go on through anyway it's only one point. Before long the cut off point is zero and there is no point to giving the test.

This goes for experience also, I think one state only requires one year for a residential license. They have dropped it about as far as they can go.

Most things worth having don't come easy and many states have lowered the bar for a license until it's almost meaningless but it's still better than nothing.
 
Hired a guy last year who was in electronics in the Navy. He had a Virgina Electrical Journeyman's licence and was sure it would reciprocate with ours. He was wrong. He also thought that he should be able to bypass the 4 year apprenticeship process and just take the test. He was wrong again. Sad to say, he also had very little experience or knowledge that was useful for electrical construction. He finally quit.
 
Minuteman said:
Sad to say, he also had very little experience or knowledge that was useful for electrical construction. He finally quit.
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That wouldn't keep him from moving to a state that doesn't require a license and going into business for himself.

It's almost as bad is letting a drunk decide if he is sober enough to drive. They all are. :) :)
 
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