General Assembly Raised Bill No. 5225
February Session, 2010 LCO No. 988
*00988_______GL_*
Referred to Committee on General Law
Introduced by:
(GL )
General Assembly
Raised Bill No. 5225
February Session, 2010
LCO No. 988
*00988_______GL_*
Referred to Committee on General Law
Introduced by:
(GL )
AN ACT CONCERNING SOLAR WORK.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 20-330 of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2010):
As used in this chapter:
(1) "Contractor" means any person regularly offering to the general public services of such person or such person's employees in the field of electrical work, plumbing and piping work, solar work, heating, piping, cooling and sheet metal work, fire protection sprinkler systems work, elevator installation, repair and maintenance work, irrigation work, automotive glass work or flat glass work, as defined in this section;
(2) "Electrical work" means the installation, erection, maintenance, alteration or repair of any wire, cable, conduit, busway, raceway, support, insulator, conductor, appliance, apparatus, fixture or equipment that generates, transforms, transmits or uses electrical energy for light, heat, power or other purposes, but does not include low voltage wiring, not exceeding twenty-four volts, used within a lawn sprinkler system;
(3) "Plumbing and piping work" means the installation, repair, replacement, alteration or maintenance of gas, water and associated fixtures, tubing and piping mains and branch lines up to and including the closest valve to a machine or equipment used in the manufacturing process, laboratory equipment, sanitary equipment, other than subsurface sewage disposal systems, fire prevention apparatus, all water systems for human usage, sewage treatment facilities and all associated fittings within a building and includes lateral storm and sanitary lines from buildings to the mains, process piping, swimming pools and pumping equipment, and includes making connections to back flow prevention devices, and includes low voltage wiring, not exceeding twenty-four volts, used within a lawn sprinkler system, but does not include (A) solar thermal work performed pursuant to a certificate held as provided in section 20-334g, except for the repair of those portions of a solar hot water heating system that include the basic domestic hot water tank and the tie-in to the potable water system, (B) the installation, repair, replacement, alteration or maintenance of fire prevention apparatus within a structure, except for standpipes that are not connected to sprinkler systems, (C) medical gas and vacuum systems work, and (D) millwright work. For the purposes of this subdivision, "process piping" means piping or tubing that conveys liquid or gas that is used directly in the production of a chemical or a product for human consumption;
(4) "Solar thermal work" means the installation, erection, repair, replacement, alteration, or maintenance of active, passive and hybrid solar systems that directly convert ambient energy into heat or convey, store or distribute such ambient energy;
(5) "Heating, piping and cooling work" means (A) the installation, repair, replacement, maintenance or alteration of any apparatus for piping, appliances, devices or accessories for heating systems, including sheet metal work, (B) the installation, repair, replacement, maintenance or alteration of air conditioning and refrigeration systems, boilers, including apparatus and piping for the generation or conveyance of steam and associated pumping equipment and process piping and the installation of tubing and piping mains and branch lines up to and including the closest valve to a machine or equipment used in the manufacturing process, but excluding millwright work, and (C) on-site operation, by manipulating, adjusting or controlling, with sufficient technical knowledge, as determined by the commissioner, (i) heating systems with a steam or water boiler maximum operating pressure of fifteen pounds per square inch gauge or greater, or (ii) air conditioning or refrigeration systems with an aggregate of more than fifty horsepower or kilowatt equivalency of fifty horsepower or of two hundred pounds of refrigerant. Heating, piping and cooling work does not include solar thermal work performed pursuant to a certificate held as provided in section 20-334g, or medical gas and vacuum systems work or the passive monitoring of heating, air conditioning or refrigeration systems. For the purposes of this subdivision, "process piping" means piping or tubing that conveys liquid or gas that is used directly in the production of a chemical or a product for human consumption;
(6) "Apprentice" means any person registered with the Labor Department for the purpose of learning a skilled trade;
(7) "Elevator installation, repair and maintenance work" means the installation, erection, maintenance and repair of all types of elevators, dumb waiters, escalators, and moving walks and all mechanical equipment, fittings, associated piping and wiring from a source of supply brought to the equipment room by an unlimited electrical contractor for all types of machines used to hoist or convey persons or materials, but does not include temporary hoisting machines used for hoisting materials in connection with any construction job or project;
(8) "Elevator maintenance" means the lubrication, inspection and replacement of controls, hoistway and car parts;
(9) "Fire protection sprinkler systems work" means the layout, on-site fabrication, installation, alteration, maintenance or repair of any automatic or manual sprinkler system designed for the protection of the interior or exterior of a building or structure from fire, or any piping or tubing and appurtenances and equipment pertaining to such system including overhead and underground water mains, fire hydrants and hydrant mains, standpipes and hose connections to sprinkler systems, sprinkler tank heaters excluding electrical wiring, air lines and thermal systems used in connection with sprinkler and alarm systems connected thereto, foam extinguishing systems or special hazard systems including water spray, foam, carbon dioxide or dry chemical systems, halon and other liquid or gas fire suppression systems, but does not include (A) any engineering design work connected with the layout of fire protection sprinkler systems, or (B) any work performed by employees of or contractors hired by a public water system, as defined in subsection (a) of section 25-33d;
(10) "State Fire Marshal" means the State Fire Marshal or any member of the Division of State Police to whom the Commissioner of Public Safety has delegated powers under section 29-291;
(11) "Journeyman sprinkler fitter" means a specialized pipe fitter craftsman, experienced and skilled in the installation, alteration, maintenance and repair of fire protection sprinkler systems;
(12) "Irrigation work" means making the connections to back flow prevention devices, and low voltage wiring, not exceeding twenty-four volts, used within a lawn sprinkler system;
(13) "Sheet metal work" means the installation, erection, replacement, repair or alteration of duct work systems, both ferrous and nonferrous;
(14) "Journeyman sheet metal worker" means an experienced craftsman skilled in the installation, erection, replacement, repair or alteration of duct work systems, both ferrous and nonferrous;
(15) "Automotive glass work" means installing, maintaining or repairing fixed glass in motor vehicles;
(16) "Flat glass work" means installing, maintaining or repairing glass in residential or commercial structures;
(17) "Medical gas and vacuum systems work" means the work and practice, materials, instrumentation and fixtures used in the construction, installation, alteration, extension, removal, repair, maintenance or renovation of gas and vacuum systems and equipment used solely to transport gases for medical purposes and to remove liquids, air-gases or solids from such systems;
(18) "Solar electricity work" means the installation, erection, repair, replacement, alteration, or maintenance of photovoltaic or wind generation equipment used to distribute or store ambient energy for heat, light, power or other purposes, [to a point immediately inside any structure or adjacent to an end use] where such work commences at an outlet, receptacle or connection previously installed by a person licensed to install such outlet, receptacle or connection;
(19) "Active solar system" means a system that uses an external source of energy to power a motor-driven fan or pump to force the circulation of a fluid through solar heat collectors and which removes the sun's heat from the collectors and transports such heat to a location where it may be used or stored;
(20) "Passive solar system" means a system that is capable of collecting or storing the sun's energy as heat without the use of a motor-driven fan or pump;
(21) "Hybrid solar system" means a system that contains components of both an active solar system and a passive solar system;
(22) "Gas hearth product work" means the installation, service or repair of a propane or natural gas fired fireplace, fireplace insert, stove or log set and associated venting and piping that simulates a flame of a solid fuel fire. "Gas hearth product work" does not include (A) fuel piping work, (B) the servicing of fuel piping, or (C) work associated with pressure regulating devices, except for appliances gas valves; and
(23) "Millwright work" means the installation, repair, replacement, maintenance or alteration of (A) power generation machinery, or (B) industrial machinery, including the related interconnection of piping and tubing used in the manufacturing process, but does not include the performance of any action for which licensure is required under this chapter.
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2010) The Commissioner of Consumer Protection, after consulting with the Electrical Work Board, shall issue a solar photovoltaic work certificate authorizing the performance of solar electricity work, as defined in section 20-330 of the general statutes, as amended by this act, to any person who: (1) Has been issued an E-1 or E-2 license by the Department of Consumer Protection, (2) has completed a solar photovoltaic installation training course approved by the commissioner, and (3) has achieved a passing score on a solar photovoltaic work examination as determined and approved by the commissioner. The initial fee for a solar photovoltaic certificate shall be fifty dollars. Such certificate shall be renewed consistent with the renewal process for E-1 and E-2 licenses.
Sec. 3. Section 20-340 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to: (1) Persons employed by any federal, state or municipal agency; (2) employees of any public service company regulated by the Department of Public Utility Control or of any corporate affiliate of any such company when the work performed by such affiliate is on behalf of a public service company, but in either case only if the work performed is in connection with the rendition of public utility service, including the installation or maintenance of wire for community antenna television service, or is in connection with the installation or maintenance of wire or telephone sets for single-line telephone service located inside the premises of a consumer; (3) employees of any municipal corporation specially chartered by this state; (4) employees of any contractor while such contractor is performing electrical-line or emergency work for any public service company; (5) persons engaged in the installation, maintenance, repair and service of electrical or other appliances of a size customarily used for domestic use where such installation commences at an outlet receptacle or connection previously installed by persons licensed to do the same and maintenance, repair and service is confined to the appliance itself and its internal operation; (6) employees of industrial firms whose main duties concern the maintenance of the electrical work, plumbing and piping work, solar thermal work, heating, piping, cooling work, sheet metal work, elevator installation, repair and maintenance work, automotive glass work or flat glass work of such firm on its own premises or on premises leased by it for its own use; (7) employees of industrial firms when such employees' main duties concern the fabrication of glass products or electrical, plumbing and piping, fire protection sprinkler systems, solar, heating, piping, cooling, chemical piping, sheet metal or elevator installation, repair and maintenance equipment used in the production of goods sold by industrial firms, except for products, electrical, plumbing and piping systems and repair and maintenance equipment used directly in the production of a product for human consumption; (8) persons performing work necessary to the manufacture or repair of any apparatus, appliances, fixtures, equipment or devices produced by it for sale or lease; (9) employees of stage and theatrical companies performing the operation, installation and maintenance of electrical equipment if such installation commences at an outlet receptacle or connection previously installed by persons licensed to make such installation; (10) employees of carnivals, circuses or similar transient amusement shows who install electrical work, provided such installation shall be subject to the approval of the State Fire Marshal prior to use as otherwise provided by law and shall comply with applicable municipal ordinances and regulations; (11) persons engaged in the installation, maintenance, repair and service of glass or electrical, plumbing, fire protection sprinkler systems, solar, heating, piping, cooling and sheet metal equipment in and about single-family residences owned and occupied or to be occupied by such persons; provided any such installation, maintenance and repair shall be subject to inspection and approval by the building official of the municipality in which such residence is located and shall conform to the requirements of the State Building Code; (12) persons who install, maintain or repair glass in a motor vehicle owned or leased by such persons; (13) persons or entities holding themselves out to be retail sellers of glass products, but not such persons or entities that also engage in automotive glass work or flat glass work; (14) persons who install preglazed or preassembled windows or doors in residential or commercial buildings; (15) persons registered under chapter 400 who install safety-backed mirror products or repair or replace flat glass in sizes not greater than thirty square feet in residential buildings; (16) sheet metal work performed in residential buildings consisting of six units or less by new home construction contractors registered pursuant to chapter 399a, by home improvement contractors registered pursuant to chapter 400 or by persons licensed pursuant to this chapter, when such work is limited to exhaust systems installed for hoods and fans in kitchens and baths, clothes dryer exhaust systems, radon vent systems, fireplaces, fireplace flues, masonry chimneys or prefabricated metal chimneys rated by the Underwriter's Laboratory or installation of stand-alone appliances including wood, pellet or other stand-alone stoves that are installed in residential buildings by such contractors or persons; and (17) [employees of or any contractor employed by and under the direction of a properly licensed solar contractor, performing work limited to the hoisting, placement and anchoring of solar collectors, photovoltaic panels, towers or turbines; and (18)] persons performing swimming pool maintenance and repair work authorized pursuant to section 20-417aa.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2010 20-330
Sec. 2 October 1, 2010 New section
Sec. 3 from passage 20-340
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
October 1, 2010
20-330
Sec. 2
October 1, 2010
New section
Sec. 3
from passage
20-340
Statement of Purpose:
To ensure solar electricity work is performed safely, to authorize E-1 and E-2 license holders to perform solar voltaic work, subject to certain conditions, and to eliminate a licensing exemption relating to the hoisting, placement and anchoring of solar collectors, photovoltaic panels, towers and turbines.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]