§ 22-75. Prerequisites to issuance.

No certificate of competency shall be issued until the following prerequisites have been met to the satisfaction of the board or the director, as appropriate:

(1)

Application for certificate. The applicant shall complete and submit an application form to be supplied by the department of planning and development for review and action by the director. All applications submitted to the director for examination and approval shall contain an acknowledgement that will be accompanied by an affidavit stating that the applicant will not undertake any work which is not within the scope of the certificate of competency for which the applicant is applying. Where the director does not approve an application for a certificate of competency, the application shall be forwarded to the board for review and action.

(2)

Minimum experience. The applicant shall submit satisfactory evidence of experience in the trade for which the applicant desires a certificate. Experience shall be as described in Ordinance Number 93-3, appendix B for each trade category which is on file in the county offices.

(3)

Insurance. The applicant shall submit satisfactory evidence that he has obtained public liability and property damage insurance including product/completed operations coverage in an amount and manner as follows:

a.

Minimum insurance for all contractors, excluding specialty contractors, identified in appendix B of this division, shall be $100,000.00/$300,000.00 public liability and $25,000.00 property damage liability or $300,000.00 combined single limit for any occurrence.

b.

Minimum insurance for specialty contractors, identified in appendix B of this article shall be $25,000.00/$50,000.00 public liability and $10,000.00 property damage or $50,000.00 combined single limit for any occurrence.

c.

A certificate of insurance shall be issued showing the planning and development department as the certificate holder and as stated in the certificate, a notice of cancellation before the expiration date of any of the policies listed on the certificate shall be mailed ten days prior to the cancellation date to the planning and development department as a certificate holder.

(4)

Examination. If there is a state or H. H. Block exam for any contractor, including a specialty contractor or license/certificate, proof of having taken and passed the exam will be required for licensure. The passing grade shall be 70 percent correct for any local or testing agency exam. The administration of the examining procedures is to be under the jurisdiction of the board of county commissioners through the director. With the exception of the examination to be given owner/builders under section 22-73, the approved county exam shall be that given by H. H. Block Inc. unless the state administers an equivalent exam. The approved H. H. Block exam shall include the construction and trade examination and the business and law examination. For each examination not given for a trade, the general specialty or administrative test will be given by H. H. Block. The passing grade for a local or testing agency exam described in this subsection may be amended from time to time by resolution to maintain consistency with the passing grade of similar examinations given by the state or pursuant to state statute. As the passing grade described in this subsection reflects an attempt to become consistent with state standards, this change in the passing grade shall be effective retroactive to September 1, 1996. Any trade classified as a limited specialty contractor shall be exempt from the examination requirements of this subsection.

(5)

Payment of application and examination fee. The fee for taking the examination described in subsection (4) of this section, shall be the fee required by the examining organization approved by the county commission as established by this article. The fee for the application for a new certificate of competency shall be as provided for in the fee schedule which is on file in the county offices.

(6)

State certification/registration. Any applicant shall be registered, when required, with the state, in the proper classification, unless the applicant is certified. Any contractor who is certified by the state or who is registered with the state shall register with the county department of planning and development prior to commencing work in the county.

(Ord. No. 93-3, § 2.01, 5-6-93; Ord. No. 97-05, § 2, 9-25-97; Ord. No. 98-02, § 2, 4-2-98)