House Bill hb1381
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Florida House of Representatives - 2001 HB 1381
By Representative Green
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to engaging in contracting as a
3 business organization; amending s. 489.119,
4 F.S.; deleting provisions relating to obtaining
5 a certificate of authority to engage in
6 contracting as a business organization through
7 a qualifying agent; amending ss. 287.055 and
8 489.127, F.S., to conform; providing an
9 effective date.
10
11 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
12
13 Section 1. Section 489.119, Florida Statutes, is
14 amended to read:
15 489.119 Sole proprietorships; certification Business
16 organizations; qualifying agents.--
17 (1) If an individual proposes to engage in contracting
18 in the individual's own name, or a fictitious name where the
19 individual is doing business as a sole proprietorship,
20 registration or certification may be issued only to that
21 individual.
22 (2) If the applicant proposes to engage in contracting
23 as a business organization, including any partnership,
24 corporation, business trust, or other legal entity, or in any
25 name other than the applicant's legal name or a fictitious
26 name where the applicant is doing business as a sole
27 proprietorship, the business organization must apply for a
28 certificate of authority through a qualifying agent and under
29 the fictitious name, if any.
30 (a) The application for a certificate of authority
31 must state the name of the partnership and of its partners;
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1 the name of the corporation and of its officers and directors
2 and the name of each of its stockholders who is also an
3 officer or director; the name of the business trust and its
4 trustees; or the name of such other legal entity and its
5 members; and must state the fictitious name, if any, under
6 which the business organization is doing business.
7 1. The application for primary qualifying agent must
8 include an affidavit on a form provided by the board attesting
9 that the applicant has final approval authority for all
10 construction work performed by the entity and that the
11 applicant has final approval authority on all business
12 matters, including contracts, specifications, checks, drafts,
13 or payments, regardless of the form of payment, made by the
14 entity, except where a financially responsible officer is
15 approved.
16 2. The application for financially responsible officer
17 must include an affidavit on a form provided by the board
18 attesting that the applicant's approval is required for all
19 checks, drafts, or payments, regardless of the form of
20 payment, made by the entity and that the applicant has
21 authority to act for the business organization in all
22 financial matters.
23 3. The application for secondary qualifying agent must
24 include an affidavit on a form provided by the board attesting
25 that the applicant has authority to supervise all construction
26 work performed by the entity as provided in s. 489.1195(2).
27 (b) The applicant must furnish evidence of statutory
28 compliance if a fictitious name is used, the provisions of s.
29 865.09(7) notwithstanding.
30 (c) A joint venture, including a joint venture
31 composed of qualified business organizations, is itself a
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1 separate and distinct organization that must be qualified and
2 obtain a certificate of authority in accordance with board
3 rules.
4 (d) A certificate of authority must be renewed every 2
5 years. If there is a change in any information that is
6 required to be stated on the application, the business
7 organization shall, within 45 days after such change occurs,
8 mail the correct information to the department.
9 (3)(a) The qualifying agent shall be certified or
10 registered under this part in order for the business
11 organization to be issued a certificate of authority in the
12 category of the business conducted for which the qualifying
13 agent is certified or registered. If any qualifying agent
14 ceases to be affiliated with such business organization, he or
15 she shall so inform the department. In addition, if such
16 qualifying agent is the only certified or registered
17 contractor affiliated with the business organization, the
18 business organization shall notify the department of the
19 termination of the qualifying agent and shall have 60 days
20 from the termination of the qualifying agent's affiliation
21 with the business organization in which to employ another
22 qualifying agent. The business organization may not engage in
23 contracting until a qualifying agent is employed, unless the
24 executive director or chair of the board has granted a
25 temporary nonrenewable certificate or registration to the
26 financially responsible officer, the president, a partner, or,
27 in the case of a limited partnership, the general partner, who
28 assumes all responsibilities of a primary qualifying agent for
29 the entity. This temporary certificate or registration shall
30 only allow the entity to proceed with incomplete contracts.
31 For the purposes of this paragraph, an incomplete contract is
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1 one which has been awarded to, or entered into by, the
2 business organization prior to the cessation of affiliation of
3 the qualifying agent with the business organization or one on
4 which the business organization was the low bidder and the
5 contract is subsequently awarded, regardless of whether any
6 actual work has commenced under the contract prior to the
7 qualifying agent ceasing to be affiliated with the business
8 organization.
9 (b) The qualifying agent shall inform the department
10 in writing when he or she proposes to engage in contracting in
11 his or her own name or in affiliation with another business
12 organization, and he or she or such new business organization
13 shall supply the same information to the department as
14 required of applicants under this part.
15 (c) Upon a favorable determination by the board, after
16 investigation of the financial responsibility, credit, and
17 business reputation of the qualifying agent and the new
18 business organization, the department shall issue, without an
19 examination, a new certificate of authority in the business
20 organization's name.
21 (4) Disciplinary action against a business
22 organization holding a certificate of authority shall be
23 administered in the same manner and on the same grounds as
24 disciplinary action against a contractor. The board may deny
25 the certification of any person cited in subsection (2) if the
26 person has been involved in past disciplinary actions or on
27 any grounds for which individual certification can be denied.
28 (5) When a certified qualifying agent, on behalf of a
29 business organization, makes application for an occupational
30 license in any municipality or county of this state, the
31 application shall be made with the tax collector in the name
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1 of the business organization and the qualifying agent; and the
2 license, when issued, shall be issued to the business
3 organization, upon payment of the appropriate licensing fee
4 and exhibition to the tax collector of a valid certificate for
5 the qualifying agent and a valid certificate of authority for
6 the business organization issued by the department, and the
7 state license numbers shall be noted thereon.
8 (6)(a) Each registered or certified contractor shall
9 affix the number of his or her registration or certification
10 to each application for a building permit and on each building
11 permit issued and recorded. Each city or county building
12 department shall require, as a precondition for the issuance
13 of the building permit, that the contractor taking out the
14 permit must provide verification giving his or her
15 Construction Industry Licensing Board registration or
16 certification number.
17 (b) The registration or certification number of each
18 contractor or certificate of authority number for each
19 business organization shall appear in each offer of services,
20 business proposal, bid, contract, or advertisement, regardless
21 of medium, as defined by board rule, used by that contractor
22 or business organization in the practice of contracting.
23 (c) If a vehicle bears the name of a contractor or
24 business organization, or any text or artwork which would lead
25 a reasonable person to believe that the vehicle is used for
26 contracting, the registration or certification number of the
27 contractor or certificate of authority number of the business
28 organization must be conspicuously and legibly displayed with
29 the name, text, or artwork. Local governments may also
30 require that locally licensed contractors must also display
31 their certificate of competency or license numbers. Nothing
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1 in this paragraph shall be construed to create a mandatory
2 vehicle signage requirement.
3 (d) For the purposes of this part, the term
4 "advertisement" does not include business stationery or any
5 promotional novelties such as balloons, pencils, trinkets, or
6 articles of clothing.
7 (e) The board shall issue a notice of noncompliance
8 for the first offense, and may assess a fine or issue a
9 citation for failure to correct the offense within 30 days or
10 for any subsequent offense, to any contractor or business
11 organization that fails to include the certification,
12 registration, or certificate of authority number as required
13 by this part when submitting an advertisement for publication,
14 broadcast, or printing or fails to display the certification,
15 registration, or certificate of authority number as required
16 by this part.
17 (7) Each qualifying agent shall pay the department an
18 amount equal to the original fee for a certificate of
19 authority of a new business organization. If the qualifying
20 agent for a business organization desires to qualify
21 additional business organizations, the board shall require him
22 or her to present evidence of ability and financial
23 responsibility of each such organization. The issuance of
24 such certificate of authority is discretionary with the board.
25 Section 2. Paragraph (h) of subsection (2) of section
26 287.055, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
27 287.055 Acquisition of professional architectural,
28 engineering, landscape architectural, or surveying and mapping
29 services; definitions; procedures; contingent fees prohibited;
30 penalties.--
31 (2) DEFINITIONS.--For purposes of this section:
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1 (h) A "design-build firm" means a partnership,
2 corporation, or other legal entity that:
3 1. Is certified under s. 489.119 to engage in
4 contracting through a certified or registered general
5 contractor or a certified or registered building contractor as
6 the qualifying agent; or
7 2. is certified under s. 471.023 to practice or to
8 offer to practice engineering; certified under s. 481.219 to
9 practice or to offer to practice architecture; or certified
10 under s. 481.319 to practice or to offer to practice landscape
11 architecture.
12 Section 3. Paragraph (g) of subsection (1) of section
13 489.127, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
14 489.127 Prohibitions; penalties.--
15 (1) No person shall:
16 (g) Operate a business organization engaged in
17 contracting after 60 days following the termination of its
18 only qualifying agent without designating another primary
19 qualifying agent, except as provided in s. ss. 489.119 and
20 489.1195;
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22 For purposes of this subsection, a person or business
23 organization operating on an inactive or suspended
24 certificate, registration, or certificate of authority is not
25 duly certified or registered and is considered unlicensed. An
26 occupational license certificate issued under the authority of
27 chapter 205 is not a license for purposes of this part.
28 Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
29 law.
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2 HOUSE SUMMARY
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Deletes provisions relating to obtaining a certificate of
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organization through a qualifying agent.
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