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Council hears bill to count apprenticeship time toward high‑pressure boiler license; union apprentices back change
Summary
The Committee on Housing and Buildings heard Intro 1207, which would let supervised time in a New York State‑approved apprenticeship count toward the supervised practical experience required for a high‑pressure boiler operating engineer license.
The Committee on Housing and Buildings also heard testimony on Intro 1207, a bill sponsored by Council Member Carmen De La Rosa that would amend the city’s licensing requirement for high‑pressure boiler operating engineers to allow supervised time spent in a New York State‑approved apprenticeship program to count toward the required supervised practical experience.
In opening remarks read into the record on Council Member De La Rosa’s behalf, the sponsor described the bill as “a common sense and urgently needed amendment to the administrative code of the City of New York” that would remove duplication by recognizing apprenticeship hours as supervised experience required for licensure. The Department of Buildings was listed in the sponsor statement as supportive of the change.
Representatives of International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 30 and multiple apprentices testified in favor. A union representative described the change as restoring the original intent of the code and said apprentices already gain hands‑on supervised experience in the existing New York State‑approved program. “Applicants will still need three years of supervised work experience within seven years preceding the application. We simply acknowledge that apprenticeship work is qualifying experience,” a Local 30 representative told the committee.
Apprentices also testified about the personal impact of the change. One apprentice said the bill would allow them to sit for the licensing exam in the coming months and that counting apprenticeship time “will make a meaningful difference for apprentices like me.” Another witness recounted that the apprenticeship program was critical to acquiring hands‑on skills and income stability.
The hearing record showed no committee vote on the measure during the session. Council members and labor witnesses framed the change as preserving safety while removing a licensing barrier that lengthens the path to credentialing for a trade with workforce shortages.
