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Committee updates auctioneer licensing, bonding and complaint process; adds compensation option for board members
Summary
Senate Bill 8-90 committee substitute broadened the auction definition, raised the required bond to $25,000, added firm registration, clarified complaint procedures, and authorized compensation for board members; committee heard testimony from Rocky Peck of the Auctioneers Board.
The committee adopted a committee substitute for Senate Bill 8-90 that makes multiple changes to the auctioneer licensing and regulation code: it broadens the statutory definition of "auction," revises exceptions to licensure requirements, raises the surety bond requirement for auctioneers from $10,000 to $25,000, permits apprentice auctioneers and firms to conduct auctions for up to 30 days after paperwork is submitted for renewal, requires auction firms to register and post a surety bond (with exceptions for firms owned by licensed auctioneers operating under the auctioneer's bond), and makes it unlawful to advertise a sale as an auction if it does not meet the statutory definition.
The bill also clarifies procedures for investigation and review of complaints and authorizes compensation for members of the auctioneers' board up to the same amount legislators receive for interim duties (the committee cited $200 per day as the current amount).
Rocky Peck, identified as a recently appointed member of the Auctioneers Board from Wood County, testified in favor of the changes and emphasized consumer-protection rationales for state oversight, saying the outer regulatory "circle" protects consumers during stressful transactions such as estate sales. Peck described the complaint process: consumer complaint to the Department of Agriculture, investigation by Department of Agriculture, possible review by the board and recommendation to the commissioner.
Committee members questioned Peck about bond increases, compensation for board members, and the lay-person seat on the board; several senators questioned whether paying board members sets a broader precedent. One senator proposed an amendment to strike board compensation; the amendment was adopted and the committee substitute was later reported to the full Senate with the recommendation that it pass. The committee chair noted a fiscal estimate of approximately $2,400 for board compensation had been discussed. The transcript records voice votes; the chair declared the ayes to have it at each recorded vote.
