BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 1353 By: Crabb (Patterson) Intergovernmental Relations 4-18-95 Senate Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND Many cities in Texas require plumbers to secure a license and permit bond before issuing a permit. These bonds can reach up to $5,000 and are relatively easy to acquire, and generally have a minimum fee of $50. Many cities will not issue permits to contractors unless they have general liability insurance containing a completed operations clause. Frequently, contractors operating in and around larger cities in Texas are insured in this manner and still may be required to purchase a license and permit bond in each town in which they do business. It is commonly acknowledged that the insurance clearly provides more protection to the consumer and to the city than permit bonds do. Cities retain the right to refuse a permit to contractors who have failed to compensate for damages to the city or to a consumer. PURPOSE As proposed, H.B. 1353 requires a political subdivision to accept a certificate of insurance instead of a bond from a master plumber to meets requirements relating to the issuance of certain plumbing permits. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 15, Article 6243-101, V.T.C.S. (The Plumbing License Law), as follows: Sec. 15. New heading: LOCAL RULES AND REGULATIONS. (a) Created from existing text. (b) Requires a political subdivision that requires a master plumber to have a bond before the master plumber may be issued a permit by the subdivision to also accept, instead of a bond, a certificate of insurance that meets the requirements of Subsection (c) of this section. (c) Requires a certificate of insurance to be written by a state-licensed business, to provide for commercial liability insurance for the master plumber for certain claims, and be in a coverage amount of not less than $300,000 for all claims arising in any one-year period. SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 1995. Makes application of this Act prospective. SECTION 3. Emergency clause.