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All persons who perform any construction-related labor, installation, repair or other construction-related service - which totals five hundred dollars in time
and material - must be licensed by the Contractors State License Board (CSLB), which falls under the Department of Consumer Affairs in California.
The contractor’s license application process is tedious and often more time-consuming than one often would expect. There are several steps in the licensing process:
Application (fee for applying is currently two hundred fifty dollars), proof of experience to qualify for a license (fours years of journeyman level experience or higher
in the trade be applied for), fingerprints by a "Live Scan" provider, usually a local Sherriff’s department, examinations for the trade being applied for and every applicant
must take a Law and Business examination at one of the several testing centers operated by the CSLB of California.
While all of this seems simple enough on the surface, the "devil is in the details." There are nearly 40 classifications of a contractor (general builder, roofer, carpenter, painter, plumber,
electrician, concrete, HVAC, landscaping, fire protection, drywall, general engineering and the list goes on...). Each classification has a particular trade examination required to be passed
before a licensed is considered for issuance. Roughly 45% of all applications submitted to the CSLB are "rejected applications" and the reasons run a gamut ranging from minor
technical issues (forgot to include full middle name) to the absurd (name of business needs to be explained). While these issues are simple enough to overcome with the
assistance of one of the so-called contractor’s schools, there is really only a handful of experts in the field of licensing and these firms fall more in the line
of "contractor’s consulting firms” than a school.
California License Services is one such firm. In business since 1997, they provide an unprecedented level of knowledge in the construction licensing industry. While they
are certainly not always the cheapest route, they are by far the most successful at getting their clients through the bureaucratic red-tape that inhibits so many qualified
individuals and firms from leaving the "underground economy" and joining the ranks of the tax-paying legal businesses that California needs to remain a viable State.
The licensing process takes anywhere from 16 to 24 weeks on average but can be expedited with the help of California License Services and the application technicians they
employ. Founder and CEO Ron Givens has worked extensively with CSLB at virtually every level and has more experience dealing with CSLB executive staff than any other firm
of this type in the State. He has helped sponsor legislation on the CSLB’s behalf and has an impeccable reputation as an expert in the licensing industry throughout the
United States of America. He has been active with National Association of Contractor’s Licensing Agencies (NASCLA - a national body made up of executives from each state’s
contractor’s board or equivalent) and has a reputation as a leading expert in his field at the State capitol in California, often seeking assistance from members of the
legislature on behalf of the applicant pool as a whole or on a case by case basis as may be necessary.
One thing is certain, California License Services and other firms that help the industry deal with the government are vital to the ongoing success of licensing programs
through this state and the nation.
