The Construction Contractors Board (CCB) offices will be closed Friday, August 19, 2011 for the first of the state government’s ten unpaid furlough day during the 2011-2013 Biennium.
Furlough days are the result of the current recession and have forced the Legislature to make deep cuts in agency budgets. Coping with these cuts requires closing most state offices and facilities ten days during the next two years. State workers affected by the closures will take unpaid furloughs on those days.
We apologize for any inconvenience these closures might cause.
The Construction Contractors Board (CCB) released the third online residential continuing education course on July 21, 2011. This course is titled: Residential Contractors Guide to Preventing and Resolving Disputes.
In April the CCB released Residential Contracts, Contract Terns and Required Notices. Last month, the agency released Contractor Endorsements and Structure Types: Why they Matter.
Each course is available online and qualifies towards one hour of continuing education credit in the Laws, Regulations and Business Practices area of their CORE continuing education requirement.
CCB-offered courses cost $15.00 per credit hour.
Residential contractors renewing on or after October 1, 2011 are required to have completed sixteen hours of continuing education.
“We are excited to be able to make these courses available,” says Gina Fox, spokesperson for the CCB. “Our plans are to follow-up with more so that contractors will have more choices.”
The link to register for CCB-offered online courses is available below: https://portal.ccb.state.or.us/?loginType=l
Contractors will be asked to register for a CCB Online Services account (or log in once an account is established) in order to access online courses. Currently, only the individuals that are part of the licensing record are able to access CCB’s continuing education courses.
The CCB will begin working with industry leaders to bring a limited number of “live” courses beginning this summer to supplement the online program.
Developing continuing education courses and the delivery systems is new ground for the agency. Feedback on the courses and what contractors would like to see in the future is important and contractors can include their thoughts as part of the course survey.
Contractors can find more information about residential continuing education and the requirements at www.oregon.gov/CCB.
The 76th Legislative Assembly adjourned the 2011 Session on June 30, 2011. Below are the bills passed (by topic) affecting construction contractors. The information includes when the law takes effect (Operative date) and the bill number and its section within the bill.
To read full text of the bills, go to www.leg.state.or.us/bills_laws/
Agricultural Exemptions
Operative date: June 1, 2011
Legislation: SB 704, sec. 1 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 174, sec. 1)
Persons are exempt from needing a CCB license to do work as contractor if the person performs work for the purposes of one of the following.
- Agricultural drainage.
- Agricultural trenching.
- Agricultural irrigation.
- Constructing agricultural fences to control livestock.
Appurtenance
Operative date: January 1, 2012
Legislation: SB 155, secs. 1 & 2 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 170, secs. 1 & 2)
An “appurtenance” refers to an accessory improvement to real estate associated with the structure, like a fence or swimming pool.
SB 155 defines the term “residential structure” to include an “appurtenance to a home, structure, unit or dwelling.” SB 155 also defines the term “small commercial structure” to include an “appurtenance.”
Construction Debt
Operative date: July 6, 2011
Legislation: SB 939, sec. 38 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630, sec. 38)
Under existing law, CCB may refuse to issue or may suspend a license if a contractor, or a business with which the contractor is or has been associated, has a “construction debt.” SB 939 expanded the term “construction debt” to include an arbitration award, in addition to a court judgment or civil penalty.
Construction Lien
Operative date: January 1, 2012
Legislation: SB 382 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 505)
A contractor claiming a lien, notice of which must be provided to a mortgage holder, is only required to deliver the notice if the name and address of the mortgage holder appears in a mortgage or trust deed recorded by the county clerk.
Continuing Education – Residential Contractors
Operative date: January 1, 2012
Legislation: SB 155, sec. 5 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 170, sec. 5)
CCB shall adopt criteria for exempting certain contractors from building code or building exterior shell continuing education (CE). These contractors must substitute equivalent elective hours to offset their CE requirements.
Continuing Education – Training Providers
Operative date: January 1, 2012
Legislation: SB 155, sec. 6 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 170, sec. 6)
CCB may approve private and public education and training as qualifying for continuing education. Such programs must be designed to directly contribute to the professional competency of residential contractors.
Dispute Resolution – Arbitration
Operative date: July 1, 2011 (Complaints filed on or after this date)
Legislation: SB 939 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630)
Beginning with complaints filed with CCB on or after July 1, 2011, Dispute Resolution Services will include mediation only (DRSMO). There will be no arbitration staffed by the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH). This also includes voluntary arbitrations in which the parties agree to allow OAH to resolve their issues.
Dispute Resolution – Attorney Fees
Operative date: July 1, 2011 (Complaints filed on or after this date)
Legislation: SB 939, secs. 46 & 47 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630, secs. 46 & 47)
For complaints arising out of residential (or certain small commercial) construction, CCB’s determination for payment may not include payment of attorney fees awarded in either a court judgment or Bureau of Labor and Industries final order.
For complaints arising out of large commercial (or certain small commercial) construction, CCB’s determination for payment may include payment of attorney fees awarded in a court judgment.
Dispute Resolution – Contested Case
Operative date: July 1, 2011 (Complaints filed on or after this date)
Legislation: SB 939 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630)
Beginning with complaints filed with CCB on or after July 1, 2011, Dispute Resolution Services will include mediation only (DRSMO). There will be no contested case staffed by the Office of Administrative Hearings.
Dispute Resolution – Contractual Arbitration or Mediation
Operative date: July 1, 2011 (Complaints filed on or after this date)
Legislation: SB 939, sec. 51 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630, sec. 51)
Filing a complaint with CCB does not change the mediation or arbitration obligations of the parties as provided for in their contract. The CCB mediation process, however, may go forward if the contractor does not invoke the contract process.
Dispute Resolution – Lien Against Contractor
Operative date: July 6, 2011
Legislation: SB 939, sec. 50 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630, sec. 50)
If a CCB issues an order on a complaint filed before July 1, 2011, and the order is not paid by the contractor or bonding company in full, the complainant may file a lien for the unpaid balance. This provision does not apply, however, to complaints filed on or after July 1, 2011.
Dispute Resolution – Offsets
Operative date: July 1, 2011 (Complaints filed on or after this date)
Legislation: SB 939, sec. 45 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630, sec. 45)
CCB will no longer be able to “offset” from damages suffered by complainants the amounts contractors are owed. If not resolved by mediation, resolution of disputes will be heard in court – where offsets and counterclaims will be resolved.
Dispute Resolution – Stay of Foreclosure Actions
Operative date: July 1, 2011 (Complaints filed on or after this date)
Legislation: SB 939, sec. 53 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630, sec. 53)
SB 939 repeals ORS 87.058, which allows circuit courts to stay (place on hold) foreclosure actions because the homeowner filed a complaint with CCB. Because homeowner complaints will now proceed in court (not by administrative arbitration or contested case), the statute is unnecessary for complaints filed on or after July 1, 2011.
Forest Land Exemption
Operative date: June 1, 2011
Legislation: SB 704, sec. 1 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 174, sec. 1)
Persons are exempt from needing a CCB license to perform work on forest lands for which a notice of operation has been filed with the State Board of Forestry.
Home Inspection
Operative date: January 1, 2012
Legislation: SB 153 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 79)
CCB may, by rule, identify businesses or individuals whose work might otherwise be a home inspection. However, these persons would not need to be home inspectors if the inspection is not a sufficient assessment of a home’s overall physical condition to require the services of a home inspector.
Notice of Defects
Operative date: January 1, 2012
Legislation: SB 383 (Or Laws 2011, ch 268)
Under existing law, before a person may compel arbitration or file a lawsuit against a contractor for damages arising from any defect in construction, they must first notify the contractor. The 2011 law eliminates this requirement if (1) the person files a lawsuit in small claims court or (2) the contractor initiated the lawsuit and the person is responding. Also, the notice of defect may be sent by certified mail, not registered mail, as required under existing law.
Surety Bond – Court Order for Payment
Operative date: July 1, 2011 (Complaints filed on or after this date)
Legislation: SB 939 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630)
In order for a surety company to pay a complaint filed on or after July 1, 2011, there must be:
- A final judgment issued by a court.
- An arbitration award that a court has reduced to a judgment.
- In the event of a wage complaint, a court judgment or a final order of the Bureau of Labor and Industries.
Surety Bond – Payment Determined by CCB
Operative date: July 1, 2011 (Complaints filed on or after this date)
Legislation: SB 939, sec. 39 (Or Laws 2011, ch. 630, sec. 39).
Beginning with complaints filed with CCB on or after July 1, 2011, bonding companies will pay an amount determined by CCB. This reflects a change to Dispute Resolution Services (DRS). Under the new law, DRS will include mediation only (DRSMO), but not arbitration or a contested case staffed by the Office of Administrative Hearings. As a result, CCB will no longer issue proposed and/or final orders subject to administrative review, but, instead, will issue determinations ordering payment.
On July 1, 2011 the Construction Contractors Board (CCB) Dispute Resolution Services (DRS) program will make significant changes to its program. Because of the relatively short amount of time between the Legislature finalizing the new laws impacting the program and its effective date, the agency will work diligently to make changes to the website and related documents, though it may take time.
For complaints filed on and after that date, DRS will provide only mediation services. If the parties do not settle the complaint, the complainant must go to court and obtain a court judgment before DRS can send it to the contractor’s surety for payment.
This change is made necessary by the recent sharp slowdown in construction that resulted in a significant drop in the number of licensed contractors and the fees paid to the CCB.
To adjust to this drop in revenue, the legislature made significant cutbacks in the CCB’s budget for the DRS program. This reduced budget recently was signed into law by the Governor.
The legislation and draft rules implementing the necessary changes are still being finalized. Parties interested in the DRS program should continue to check the CCB website at http://www.oregon.gov/ccb at for more information. In addition, the agency developed a list serve for automatic email notification of changes.
Registration for the list serve can be done by clicking on the below email link
drsservicetransition-request@listsmart.osl.state.or.us
and in the message body enter the word “Subscribe”