Who has the strictest licensing requirements

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I was just wondering who you all think has the strictest or hardest licensing requirements for Journeyman Electricians.

So far, it appears that Alaska has the strictest to me as I look at their list, unless Im missing something, they also require good exstensive NEC code review which is good. I checked out Washington's and they would be 2nd in my opinion. Even though its funny that they don't require anything to take the test for an Administrator who supervises and responsible for the code compliance and installations of the journeyman but they do require 8000 hours for a journeyman license .

What do you think? What state is strictest?
 
I think Michigan is pretty strict.

800 hours school from one accredited by the state to teach during the apprenticeship.

8000 documented hours as a registered apprentice.

Proof of the above needed to sit for the exam.

Since I paid attention in school, passing the exam was easy for me. MANY in my session failed and I know of people that have, even after the 800 hours of school, had to make 5 or more tries to pass the state exam. There is a required waiting period between tests. Tests are only given a few times a year and only in a few places. Typically, an apprentice will have to drive a couple hundred miles (uphill both ways) to get to a test.

All we can take into the exam room is a calculator and a code book, and neither can have any marks on them. They are checked as you go into the door, and also during the exam. If you get caught during the exam with marks in a book, you are failed on the spot. If they find them at the door, you just have to leave your book outside and use one of theirs.

They even check the calculators. None that can store formulas are allowed.

No electrical work can be done by a person without a license or registration, with the exception of the HO. All electrical work must be billed by a licensed contractor, which has to have in it's employ a licensed master (4000 more documented hours and another, harder test). No 1099 electrical work is allowed in Michigan.

There is an apprentice to journeyman ratio of 1 to 1, or 2 to 1, depending on the type of work. No more crews of 15 apprentii and one journeyman.

Apprentii cannot work alone, they must be under the direct supervision of a journeyman or a master that is physically on the site. If the crew is one J-man and one apprentice and the J-man leaves to go get parts or something, the apprentice has to stop doing electrical work. Clean up is OK.

Helpers are not allowed.

As of last year, ALL jurisdictions must follow state law, they can't make up their own rules. I like that. There is a downside, though. 'State Law' is following the Michigan Residential Building Code and the Michigan Electrical Code, which both are about 80 percent NEC references and about 20 percent addendum that the state wants us to do in excess of, or in exception to, the NEC.

Each year, my Michigan Journeyman license costs $40.00 and every three years I have to go through a code upgrade class (over $100) and send in proof of passing in order to get my license.

Is that strict enough?

:D
 
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Don't know what it is know but NYC, when my dad got his license, required 13 years experience. Somehow he convinced them to give him a license with less years and was the youngest person in NY to get a license- at that time.

I think NYC Requirementshas Michigan beat-- I just read 10,500 hours of journeyman experience and 10 years
 
I could be wrong but I believe Michigan also requires the Master Electrician to be a resident of that State. ? So I read that as ?no out a State?rs allowed? ( without the obvious alternatives ) I like Michigan, however,
I have no idea how that could be Legal ? and certainly is just not right. To implement a resident only law restricts other Americans and Nationals from the right to work and free enterprise. I say then ? if you?re from Michigan.. You?re not allowed in our State then period. I think the clear lines of Strict and Restrict have been lost in Michigan. Oh and by the way ? restrictions on ratios anywhere should be challenged in court and should be repelled.

cordially,
 
California's journeyman electrician and contractors test is a joke.
 
edward said:
California's journeyman electrician and contractors test is a joke.
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Why do you say that? I have heard (notverified) that since they updated the test that the pass rate is less than 50%. My feeling is that with such a high failure rate what kind of work is being done out there?
 
Fishspark said:
I could be wrong but I believe Michigan also requires the Master Electrician to be a resident of that State. ? So I read that as ?no out a State?rs allowed? ( without the obvious alternatives ) I like Michigan, however,
I have no idea how that could be Legal ? and certainly is just not right. To implement a resident only law restricts other Americans and Nationals from the right to work and free enterprise. I say then ? if you?re from Michigan.. You?re not allowed in our State then period. I think the clear lines of Strict and Restrict have been lost in Michigan. Oh and by the way ? restrictions on ratios anywhere should be challenged in court and should be repelled.

cordially,
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From MSU:

Master Electrician: A person having the qualifications, training, experience, and technical knowledge to supervise the installation of electrical wiring and equipment. A master electrician is expected to have a working knowledge of the current edition of the National Electrical Code, the Part 8 rules of the Construction Code Act No. 230 of 1972, and of the act itself. Also the master electrician must have an understanding of the Electrical Administrative Act No. 217 of 1956 and the current general rules to the Act. A person holding a master electrician license in Michigan is eligible to apply for a Michigan electrical contractor license. To obtain a Michigan master electrician license, a person must meet the requirements and pass the master electrician license examination. To apply to take the examination a person must be 22 years of age, and have 12,000 hours of electrical wiring experience obtained over a period of not less than 6 years under the supervision of a master electrician. The person must have held a journey electricians license for not less than 2 years. Letters verifying hours of experience must be on employer letter head, and must be notarized.
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And I see nothing on the app that requires the applicant to be a state resident:

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&...d5S-Fx&sig=AHIEtbRjkD-DRNoX9HirVqkwN34u3O8btA
 
Is the topic Jman or EC licensing?


Roger
 
Dennis Alwon said:
Oops, I think he meant journeyman license.
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In CA you only need 4800 hours to be a residential electrician. A general needs 8000. In Michigan, it doesn't matter, you still need 8000 to do residential work.

http://www.dir.ca.gov/t8/291_1.html

Also, CA allows on the job experience as an exemption from going to school, Michigan does not.

And technically, CA doesn't even have a journeyman's license. General electrician is the top of the licensing scale. Also, CA allows for reciprocal licensing and we don't.
 
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K8MHZ said:
From Line #1, Post #1
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Yeah, I saw that but I just wanted to be sure, I hear some states allow Jmen to actually contract work up to a certain contract amount.

NC requires 14,000 hrs to sit for the unlimited EC

Roger
 
roger said:
Yeah, I saw that but I just wanted to be sure, I hear some states allow Jmen to actually contract work up to a certain contract amount.

NC requires 14,000 hrs to sit for the unlimited EC

Roger
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Oddly enough, no test is required to be a licensed electrical contractor in Michigan. All you have to do is pay the fee and give the state the name of the person that will be holding the required master's license for the company. But, the only thing a contractor's license in Michigan provides is the ability to bill for work and pull permits. The work still has to be done by people that have an hourly work requirement (or are working on one).

So, if I decided to, I could get some more hours documented, go take (and pass) the Master's exam and once I get my Master's ticket I could then send in a copy of that ticket along with a few hundred dollars and I would become a one man show with 12,000 hours of work and 800 hours of school, three applications and two tests.
 
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Sierrasparky said:
Why do you say that? I have heard (notverified) that since they updated the test that the pass rate is less than 50%. My feeling is that with such a high failure rate what kind of work is being done out there?
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I believe the reason that people fail is because the testing agency has changed the way they score the test and 2nd the test takers don't know how to use the code book.

The reason i say it is a joke, because they gave a set of plans for my EC test and some of questions were like: "how many 3 way switches are on the plans" "in which room is the sub panel located" "what is the purpose of transformer"

IMHO, the test should be hard enough that not any clown can pass it and call themselves electricians. And there should be a limit on how many times you can take the test. One of the guys that i know took the EC test 5 or 6 times and finally passed it and he calls himself a master electrician. I know electricians who do not know what a MWBC is and yet they are a licensed journeyman electrician.
 
K8MHZ said:
Oddly enough, no test is required to be a licensed electrical contractor in Michigan. All you have to do is pay the fee and give the state the name of the person that will be holding the required master's license for the company. But, the only thing a contractor's license in Michigan provides is the ability to bill for work and pull permits. The work still has to be done by people that have an hourly work requirement (or are working on one).

So, if I decided to, I could get some more hours documented, go take (and pass) the Master's exam and once I get my Master's ticket I could then send in a copy of that ticket along with a few hundred dollars and I would become a one man show with 12,000 hours of work and 800 hours of school, three applications and two tests.
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This was true in the past but today even if a master you will have to take an electrical contractors exam. I remember when the new licensing requirements were being talked about there was a sudden rush of masters becoming contractors to avoid the exam. Take a look at Rogers post he has a link included for state licensing requirements.
 
SEO said:
This was true in the past but today even if a master you will have to take an electrical contractors exam. I remember when the new licensing requirements were being talked about there was a sudden rush of masters becoming contractors to avoid the exam. Take a look at Rogers post he has a link included for state licensing requirements.
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I see that now. I also found out the deal about being a resident of the state. If the EC is from out of state, the master must be a state resident.
 
Oregon and Arkansas seem to have the strictest requirements, IMO.

A 'national' card is very possible. Places that adopt ICC building codes are ideally positioned to also implement the ICC trade licenses. In theory, any place that uses the ICC card will accept yours- no matter where you were when you got it.

To give credit where it is due, the IBEW has succeeded in having their certifications recognized .... well, if there's a place that doesn't accept them, I haven't seen it.
 
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