Panel advances bill to license linemen and tighten HVAC contractor requirements

A House Business and Labor Committee advanced HB 442 on a unanimous voice vote after debate about worker qualifications and public safety. Representative Tom Peterson sponsored the bill, telling the committee the measure would allow linemen with field training and four years’ experience to qualify for an E-100 license to work on electric utility grid infrastructure and would add testing and a two-year related-experience requirement for HVAC contractors.

The bill’s sponsor said the E-100 change would let linemen who are trained in utility line work obtain a license appropriate to that work rather than requiring them to use an E-200 electrical contractor qualifier. “This will allow someone trained in electric utility work to be licensed in that arena,” Representative Tom Peterson said.

The measure also raises minimum qualification standards for HVAC contractors by requiring two years’ construction experience in the related field and the creation of a certification exam administered by the Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL). Peterson said the change is intended to reduce safety risks from poor installations, noting hazards such as carbon monoxide from incorrectly installed venting.

Committee members pressed about whether the changes would make it harder for workers to enter these trades. Representative Schallenberger described his own discovery that current HVAC licensing can be obtained by checking a box and paying a fee, and asked whether the bill would impede entry for new workers. Peterson responded the bill raises the bar for those who hold contractor responsibility but does not affect currently licensed contractors: “If they’re already a licensed contractor, they don’t have to worry about it. They’re already grandfathered in,” he said.

Public witnesses included Ross Ford of the Home Builders Association, who said linemen receive extensive training and supported the lineman licensing portion while endorsing the HVAC testing requirement as a reasonable compromise. David Spadafore, representing several trade associations, said stakeholders need clarity on the bill’s new term “licensed journeyman” and requested time to work with the sponsor; Mark Steinegal, director of DOPL, said the division can define journeyman lineman by administrative rule and will work with stakeholders.

Representative Jack moved adoption of the first substitute and later moved that the committee favorably recommend HB 442, first substitute. The committee adopted the substitute and gave the bill a favorable recommendation on voice votes.

The discussion combined safety, workforce development and regulatory clarity: supporters emphasized aligning licensure with the specialized training linemen receive and improving public-safety outcomes for HVAC installations; some industry groups and the licensing division asked for rulemaking language and definitions to be clarified with stakeholders.