Ponti (HB 421) Act No. 195
Existing law provides for renewal of licenses for contractors. Prior law allowed for the
licensing board for contractors to include on each license renewal form an optional election
to allow for the donation of additional funds to a specified public university or community
college foundation, which were to be remitted to the chosen foundation to be used solely for
construction management programs.
New law deletes prior law with regard to optional donations and instead requires the board
to assess on each license renewal for contractors an additional fee of $100 per year to be
dedicated to any public university in this state or any community college schools of
construction management or construction technology in this state. Requires the board to
include an optional election of the renewal form whereby the contractor may choose to not
participate in the remission of the additional fee.
New law further requires the schools to report to the board the number of graduates from the
previous calendar year. Requires the disbursement of the funds collected to be by Aug. 1 of
each year upon completion of the annual audit of the board.
New law further requires that the funds be used solely for the benefit of the accredited public
university or community college schools of construction management or construction
technology and requires the expenditure of the funds to be approved by the industry advisory
council or board of the school. Provides that the funds shall be in addition to any other
monies received by such schools. Provides that should the school experience a decrease in
the funding appropriated to them by the university or community college as determined by
the industry advisory council or board for the program, the school would be ineligible for
participation and the monies from the fund for that school would be redistributed on a pro
rata basis to all other eligible schools.
New law distributes the funds ½ pro rata to each accredited public university and community
college school and ½ pro rata to each public university school based on the total number of
graduates from the previous year as reported to the board by each school.
New law requires the schools to be accredited by either of two national accreditation boards
and requires the schools to maintain accreditation in order to receive funding.
Effective August 1, 2013.
(Amends R.S. 37:2156(C)(3))