Since the first of this year, CSLB's Licensing division has processed about three dozen limited liability company (LLC) license applications; to date, five licenses have been issued. This business classification became authorized to hold a California contractor license beginning January 1, 2012.
Cause for the high rejection rate so far mostly has been due to the missing LLC registration number issued by the Secretary of State (SOS), or the names and numbers of personnel listed are inconsistent with SOS records that are sent to CSLB. Do not submit your application until you have received an SOS registration number. CSLB cannot process the application until the information is identical to SOS records. Also, since the amount of liability insurance the LLC licensee must carry is determined by the number of officers, that information must be consistent.
SOS indicates there can be up to a four-month backlog in the processing times for the Statement of Information (Form LLC-12); however, expedited processing is available for additional fees.
CSLB's Enforcement division is scheduled to increase the number of statewide blitz operations it conducts in 2012. The first of the "California Blitz" operations, led by CSLB's Statewide Investigative Fraud Team (SWIFT) on March 14 and 15, 2012, resulted in 110 notices to appear (NTAs) in court for contracting without a license and related charges. The simultaneous sting operations were held in eight cities where SWIFT partnered with local prosecutors and police, as well as investigators from the Employment Development Department, in an effort to both protect consumers and level the playing field for licensed contractors.
Undercover stings were conducted in Chico (Butte County), Clovis (Fresno County), Grover Beach (San Luis Obispo County), Lawndale (Los Angeles County), Murrieta (Riverside County), Redwood City (San Mateo County), and Visalia and Porterville (Tulare County).
The 110 who received NTAs face misdemeanor charges of contracting without a license and, in many cases, also were cited for illegal advertising, soliciting excessive down payments, and failure to carry workers' compensation coverage. Some who did not have workers' compensation insurance also received stop orders.
In addition to the statewide enforcement blitz operations, SWIFT will continue its targeted enforcement and sting operations somewhere in the state each week.
Remember: when you hire or add additional workers to your business, be sure they're covered by the appropriate level of workers' compensation insurance. It's a good idea to make sure your insurance company notifies CSLB of any changes. Otherwise, you may be in violation of state Business and Professions Code section 7125.4, which carries fines from $200 to $5,000.
A new law is going to require you to recertify the level of workers' comp you carry through a current and valid Certificate of Workers' Compensation Insurance or a Certification of Self-Insurance when you renew your license. Once this requirement becomes effective, CSLB will provide details in your renewal package cover letter.