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Bill would close 'loophole' allowing journeyman exams without completing classroom apprenticeship work
Summary
Representative Ed Buttrey told the committee House Bill 497 closes a statutory gap that allowed an apprentice to qualify for a journeyman electrician exam without completing the required classroom‑based instruction.
Representative Ed Buttrey presented House Bill 497 as a fix to an unintended gap in Montana’s electrician licensure pathway that had allowed an apprentice to sit for the journeyman exam after completing required hours but before finishing the related classroom instruction.
Margaret Morgan of the Montana Independent Electrical Contractors explained that Montana’s registered apprenticeship model has two components — 8,000 hours of on‑the‑job training plus related instruction (classroom and lab work). She told the committee of a recent case in which an apprentice who had not completed the classroom portion used current statutory language to qualify to take the journeyman exam. HB 497 adds a definition of legally obtained experience that excludes apprenticeship hours from counting toward licensure if the apprentice did not finish the approved related instruction.
Trade unions and the Montana State Building and Construction Trades Council supported the change; Jay Reardon said it restores parity between employer‑based apprenticeship programs and the experience‑only pathway. Sarah Swanson, commissioner of the Department of Labor and Industry, said the department and the state electricians board and apprenticeship sponsors supported closing the loophole and thanked stakeholders for a quick negotiated fix.
No opponents testified and the committee closed the hearing without a recorded vote; the sponsor said he would stand for questions. Supporters said the change preserves safety and training integrity; the department said the board of electricians had been consulted.
Why it matters: supporters said the bill prevents partially trained workers from entering licensed practice before completing classroom instruction and thus protects public safety and the quality of the trades.
