68th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--1995 Regular Session
NOTE: Matter within { + braces and plus signs + } in an
amended section is new. Matter within { - braces and minus
signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within
{ + braces and plus signs + } .
LC 1411
House Bill 2372
Sponsored by Representative BEYER (at the request of Dick Briggs)
SUMMARY
The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the
measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject to
consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor's
brief statement of the essential features of the measure as
introduced.
Expands exemptions from construction contractors regulation.
Clarifies purpose of claims procedure.
A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to construction contractors; creating new provisions;
and amending ORS 701.005, 701.010 and 701.055.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. ORS 701.005 is amended to read:
701.005. As used in this chapter:
(1) 'Board' means the Construction Contractors Board.
(2) 'Contractor' means a person who, for compensation or with
the intent to sell, arranges or undertakes or offers to undertake
or submits a bid to construct, alter, repair, add to, subtract
from, improve, inspect, move, wreck or demolish, for another, any
building, highway, road, railroad, excavation or other structure,
project, development or improvement attached to real estate or to
do any part thereof. 'Contractor' includes general contractors,
residential-only contractors and specialty contractors as defined
in this section.
(3) 'General contractor' means a contractor whose business
operations require the use of more than two unrelated building
trades or crafts that the contractor supervises or performs in
whole or part, whenever the sum of all contracts on any single
property, including materials and labor, exceeds an amount
established by rule by the board. 'General contractor' does not
include specialty contractors, as defined in subsection
{ - (6) - } { + (8) + } of this section, or limited
contractors, as described in ORS 701.085.
{ + (4) 'Independent business of construction contracting '
means an entity that contracts or offers to contract construction
services for another, receives or is expected to receive more
than $2,500 a year for such services and qualifies as an
independent contractor as provided in ORS 670.600 and
administrative rules adopted by the board.
(5) 'Independent business of construction management' means an
entity that contracts or offers to contract the coordination of
construction services for another, receives or is expected to
receive more than $2,500 a year for such services and qualifies
as an independent contractor as provided in ORS 670.600 and
administrative rules adopted by the board. + }
{ - (4) - } { + (6) + } 'Residential-only contractor' means
a general contractor or specialty contractor who performs work
exclusively in connection with residential structures and the
appurtenances thereto. 'Residential-only contractor' includes,
but is not limited to:
(a) A person who purchases or owns property and constructs or
for compensation arranges for the construction of one or more
residential structures with the intent of selling the residential
structure or structures;
(b) A school district, as defined in ORS 332.002, that permits
students to construct a structure as an educational experience to
learn building techniques and, upon completion of the residential
structure, the district sells the completed residential
structure;
(c) A community college district, as defined in ORS 341.005,
that permits students to construct a residential structure as an
educational experience to learn building techniques and upon
completion of the residential structure, the district sells the
completed structure; or
(d) Any person except a landscape contractor, nurseryman,
gardener or person engaged in the commercial harvest of forest
products who is engaged as an independent contractor to remove
trees, prune trees, remove tree limbs or stumps or to engage in
tree or limb guying.
{ - (5) - } { + (7) + } 'Residential structure' means a
residence, including a site-built home, a modular home
constructed off-site, a floating home as defined in ORS 830.700,
a condominium and a manufactured dwelling, a duplex or multiunit
residential building consisting of four units or less.
'Residential structure ' includes any nonresidential structure
with a ground area of 4,000 square feet or less and is not more
than 20 feet in height from the top surface of the lowest
flooring to the highest interior overhead finish of the building.
{ - (6) - } { + (8) + } 'Specialty contractor' means a
contractor who performs work on a structure, project, development
or improvement and whose operations as such do not fall within
the definition of ' general contractor.' 'Specialty contractor'
includes a person who performs work regulated under ORS chapter
446.
SECTION 2. ORS 701.010 is amended to read:
701.010. The following persons are exempt from registration
under this chapter:
{ + (1) A person who is constructing, altering, improving or
repairing real property who is not in pursuit of an independent
business of construction contracting or construction
management. + }
{ - (1) - } { + (2) + } A person who is constructing,
altering, improving or repairing personal property.
{ - (2) - } { + (3) + } A person who is constructing,
altering, improving or repairing a structure located within the
boundaries of any site or reservation under the jurisdiction of
the Federal Government.
{ - (3) - } { + (4) + } A person who furnishes materials,
supplies, equipment or finished product and does not fabricate
them into, or consume them, in the performance of the work of a
contractor.
{ - (4) - } { + (5) + } A person working on one structure
or project, under one or more contracts, when the aggregate price
of all of that person's contracts for labor, materials and all
other items is less than $500 and such work is of a casual, minor
or inconsequential nature. This subsection does not apply to a
person who advertises or puts out any sign or card or other
device which might indicate to the public that that person is a
contractor.
{ - (5) - } { + (6) + } An owner who contracts for work to
be performed by a registered contractor. This subsection does not
apply to a person who constructs or for compensation and with the
intent to sell the structure, arranges to have constructed a
structure with the intent of offering the structure for sale
before, upon or after completion. It shall be prima facie
evidence that there was an intent of offering the structure for
sale if the person who constructed the structure or arranged to
have the structure constructed does not occupy the structure
after its completion. { +
(7) A person who develops the person's own land or has the
person's own land developed by a registered contractor and who is
not in the pursuit of an independent business of construction
contracting or construction management. + }
{ - (6) - } { + (8) + } A person performing work on a
property that person owns or performing work as the owner's
employee, whether the property is occupied by the owner or not,
or a person performing work on that person's residence, whether
or not that person owns the residence. This subsection does not
apply to a person performing work on a structure owned by that
person or the owner's employee if such work is performed, in the
pursuit of an independent business, with the intent of offering
the structure for sale before, upon or after completion.
{ - (7) - } { + (9) + } A person licensed in one of the
following trades or professions when operating within the scope
of that license:
(a) An architect licensed by the State Board of Architect
Examiners.
(b) A registered professional engineer licensed by the State
Board of Engineering Examiners.
(c) A water well contractor licensed by the Water Resources
Department.
(d) A sewage disposal system installer licensed by the
Department of Environmental Quality.
(e) A landscaping business licensed under ORS 671.510 to
671.710 that constructs fences, decks, walkways or retaining
walls only when done in conjunction with landscaping work.
{ - (8) - } { + (10) + } A person who performs work subject
to this chapter as an employee of a contractor.
{ - (9) - } { + (11) + } A manufacturer of a manufactured
home constructed under standards established by the Federal
Government.
{ - (10) - } { + (12) + } A person involved in the movement
of:
(a) Modular buildings or structures other than manufactured
structures not in excess of 14 feet in width.
(b) Structures not in excess of 16 feet in width when they are
being moved by their owner if such owner is not a contractor
required to be registered under this chapter.
{ - (11) - } { + (13) + } A commercial lending institution
or surety company that arranges for the completion, repair or
remodeling of a structure. As used in this subsection,
'commercial lending institution' means any bank, mortgage banking
company, trust company, savings bank, savings and loan
association, credit union, national banking association, federal
savings and loan association, insurance company or federal credit
union maintaining an office in this state.
{ - (12) - } { + (14) + } A real estate licensee as defined
in ORS 696.010 or the employee of that licensee when performing
work on a structure that the real estate licensee manages under a
contract.
{ - (13) - } { + (15) + } Units of government other than
those specified in ORS 701.005 { - (4)(b) - } { + (6)(b) + }
and (c).
SECTION 3. { + The purpose of ORS 701.140 to 701.160 is to
provide a means to resolve disputes between those who have
provided construction services regulated under ORS chapter 701
and those who have received those services. It is not the intent
of ORS 701.140 to 701.160 to provide a warranty for construction
services. + }
SECTION 4. ORS 701.055 is amended to read:
701.055. (1) A person shall not undertake, offer to undertake
or submit a bid to do work as a contractor unless that person has
a current, valid certificate of registration issued by the board.
A partnership, corporation or joint venture may do such work,
offer to undertake such work or submit a bid to do such work only
if that partnership, corporation or joint venture is registered.
A partnership or joint venture shall be deemed registered for the
purpose of offering to undertake work as a contractor on a
nonresidential structure if any one of the partners or joint
venturers whose name appears in the name under which the
partnership or joint venture does business is registered.
(2) A registered partnership or corporation shall notify the
board immediately upon any change in partners or corporate
officers. Upon a change in partners, a registered partnership
immediately shall register again.
(3) A city, county or the State of Oregon shall not issue a
building permit to anyone required to be registered under this
chapter who does not have a current, valid certificate of
registration. Each county, city or the State of Oregon which
requires the issuance of a permit as a condition precedent to
construction, alteration, improvement, demolition, movement or
repair of any building or structure or the appurtenances to the
structure shall also require that each applicant for such permit
file as a condition to issuing the permit a written statement,
subscribed by the applicant, that the applicant is registered
under the provisions of this chapter, giving the number of the
registration and stating that the registration is in full force
and effect, or, if the applicant is exempt from the provisions of
this chapter, listing the basis for the exemption. The city,
county or the State of Oregon shall list the contractor's
registration number on the permit obtained by that contractor.
(4) If the applicant for a building permit is exempt from
registration under the provisions of ORS 701.010 { - (6) - }
{ + (8) + }, the city, county or State of Oregon shall supply
the applicant with an Information Notice to Property Owners About
Construction Responsibilities. The city, county or State of
Oregon shall not issue a building permit for a residential
structure to the applicant until the applicant signs a statement
in substantially the following form:
_________________________________________________________________
(a) I have read and understand the Information Notice to
Property Owners About Construction Responsibilities; and
(b) I own, reside in or will reside in the completed dwelling.
My general contractor is______, Construction Contractors Board
registration no.____, registration expiration date _____. I will
instruct my general contractor that all subcontractors who work
on this dwelling must be registered with the Construction
Contractors Board; or
(c) I am performing work on property I own, a residence that I
reside in or a residence that I will reside in.
(d) I will be my own general contractor and, if I hire
subcontractors, I will hire only subcontractors registered with
the Construction Contractors Board.
(e) If I change my mind and do hire a general contractor, I
will contract with a general contractor who is registered with
the Construction Contractors Board and I will immediately notify
the office issuing this building permit of the name of the
general contractor______.
_________________________________________________________________
(5) The board shall adopt by rule a form entitled ' Information
Notice to Property Owners About Construction Responsibilities'
which shall describe, in nontechnical language and in a clear and
coherent manner using words in their common and everyday meaning,
the responsibilities property owners are undertaking by acting as
their own general contractor and the problems that could develop.
The responsibilities described in the form shall include, but not
be limited to:
(a) Compliance with State of Oregon and federal laws regarding
social security tax, income tax and unemployment tax.
(b) Workers' compensation insurance on workers.
(c) Liability and property damage insurance.
(6) The board shall develop and furnish to the city, county and
State of Oregon building permit offices, at no cost to these
offices, the Information Notice to Property Owners About
Construction Responsibilities and the statement to be signed by
the permit applicant.
(7) Every city and county which requires the issuance of a
business license as a condition precedent to engaging, within the
city or city and county, in a business which is subject to
regulation under this chapter, shall require that each licensee
and each applicant for issuance or renewal of such license file,
or have on file, with such city or city and county, a signed
statement that such licensee or applicant is registered under the
provisions of this chapter and stating that the registration is
in full force and effect.
(8) It shall be prima facie evidence of doing business as a
contractor when a person for that person's own use performs,
employs others to perform, or for compensation and with the
intent to sell the structure, arranges to have performed any work
described in ORS 701.005 { - (4) - } { + (6) + } if within
any one 12-month period that person offers for sale two or more
structures on which that work was performed.
(9) Registration under this chapter is prima facie evidence
that the registrant conducts a separate, independent business.
(10) The provisions of this chapter shall be exclusive and no
city, county or other political subdivision shall require or
issue any registrations, licenses or surety bonds, nor charge any
fee for the regulatory or surety registration of any contractor
registered with the board. However, nothing in this subsection
shall limit or abridge the authority of any city or county to:
(a) License and levy and collect a general and
nondiscriminatory license fee levied upon all businesses, or to
levy a tax based upon business conducted by any firm within said
jurisdiction, or to limit the authority of any city or county
with respect to contractors not required to be registered under
this chapter; or
(b) Require a contractor to pay a fee, post a bond or require
insurance when the city, county or political subdivision is
contracting for the service of the contractor.
(11)(a) Every contractor shall maintain a list which includes
the following information about all subcontractors or other
contractors performing work on a project for that contractor:
(A) Names and addresses.
(B) Registration numbers.
(b) The list referred to in paragraph (a) of this subsection
shall be delivered to the board within 72 hours after a request
made during reasonable working hours.
(12) A contractor shall not hire any subcontractor or other
contractor to perform work unless the subcontractor or contractor
is registered under this chapter or exempt from registration
under the provisions of ORS 701.010.
(13) A summary of this chapter, prepared by the board and
provided at cost to all registered contractors, shall be
delivered by the contractor to the owner when the contractor
begins work on a residential structure. The summary prepared by
the board shall include an explanation of the meaning of
registration, including a statement that registration is not an
indorsement of the quality of work.
(14) A contractor shall not perform work subject to this
section for an owner of a residential structure without a written
contract if the aggregate contract price exceeds $2,500. If the
price of such contract was initially less than $2,500, but during
the course of performance of the contract exceeds that amount,
the contractor shall mail or otherwise deliver a written contract
to the owner not later than five days after the contractor knows
or should reasonably know that the contract price will exceed
$2,500. Failure to have a written contract will not void the
contract.
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