Notarealsignguy
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Looks like you're gonna have to have a GC license for non-electrical signs in Florida soon. Does anyone know anything about this?
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Florida Sign Contractor Law Change?
- Thread starter Notarealsignguy
- Start date
Johnny Best
Active Member
Just say your a Carpenter.
Notarealsignguy
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You used to be able to get a certificate of competency in each locality. With something like sign installs, there's no need to know all the crap that a GC or building contractor would need. The state passed this bill which removes the right for cities to do this anymore so in order to continue your trade, you have to get the license that it would fall under. For signs non electrical it's either GC or building. Without this, you can't pull permits or do installations. Interior stuff you could.
The biggest problem is to get a GC or building license is the required experience in that trade. It also doesn't sound like they will be grandfathering anyone in unless the license was very close in scope. Some licenses went away, like painting, which is good but this is gonna screw a lot more people like fence contractors who will now need to figure out how to continue working.
bcxprint420
Sign & Banner Xpress
Welcome to our world out here in Az. They have made it easier to get a license but its truly all about the money. They need to make sure u are paying your employee tax your income tax your permit fees etc etc. what better way then a license? Honestly its beyond unconstitutional but no one cares. The insurance lobby and the bond holders/sellers stand to make so much money they throw millions lobbying so no state has a chance of being free from govt authoritarians making us modern day slaves to fund their wars and their political games and dont forget the big guys corruption. Realize this. They are throwing out everywhere these days the possibility of a nuclear fight. How many American citizens u knkw of with any word from the govt we fund about a bomb safe location or bomb protocol anywhere in the entire country? None correct. Every nuclear armed nation in the world has some sort of disaster shelters available in the case of an attack but one does not. The United States. The citizenry who works everyday to fund the weapons to fund the politics but our money runs dry when its time to defend us in our home lands you are on uour own. Meanwhile dipshits are printing and handing over 18 billion thats with a b billion dollars to ukraine whike we are left with a bill and on our own in case we are attacked. How about an attack on our power grid? Protected with any of that tax money? Not a penny not a single defense or even a plan in case something happens nothing. But they can come up with all sorts of ways to get more of our money from our pockets to theirs.
Notarealsignguy
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Having to prove that you have WC and liability insurance doesn't bother me one bit. You're supposed to have it and it's to protect everyone around you.
The issue I have is the "experience"
So the guy that's been in the sign business for 40 years now has to go get a license and pass an exam on building construction AND have 4 years experience as a foreman in that trade? What's he gonna do? Shut his shop down and go to work for a GC for 4 years? If you can pass the tests, you should be able to get a license. Permits and inspections are the backup. If they didn't require permits and it was solely based off of competency then I'd say the experience matters more. None of this is rocket science though, even the engineering. You follow a drawing so why the hassle?
TopFliteGraphics
New Member
what actually is a gc license, other than a requirement to have a $5,000,000 insurance certificate, so there is someone holding the bag?
i have a computer consultant friend who installs security systems, he became a gc in new jersey, practically overnight
if i held a gun to pradeep's head he wouldn't be able to change a lightbulb (or hang a picture in his living room)
i have a computer consultant friend who installs security systems, he became a gc in new jersey, practically overnight
if i held a gun to pradeep's head he wouldn't be able to change a lightbulb (or hang a picture in his living room)
Notarealsignguy
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Fort Pierce
A friend of mine posted that on Facebook flipping out, she's a fence contractor and is in the same boat now
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Notarealsignguy
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4 years experience in the field - 1 year as a foreman or better
Standard insurance requirements WC, GL
Buy the books - about $2k
Take the exams - business & finance, 2 part trade knowledge (very in depth covering pretty much every aspect of construction), contract administration and project management
$10k in the bank (unless that has changed)
Minimum 670 credit score
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Gino
Premium Subscriber
Around here, that's to protect people from all the wannabee construction people. That license merely means, you are registered with the state. It's supposed to stop all the j@ckasses who claim to be legitimate and take peoples' money without doing the work, doing it properly and with permits. If the contractor cannot provide that paperwork, you are supposed to report them. They're generally illegals aliens in more than one sense of the word. However, it can be regular US citizens, just trying to fly under the radar and get away with not paying their fair share.Here, as far as i know, ya still don't need one in the sign industry, unless you are building huge structures.
the trade knowledge exams make sense, is that just florida?
Notarealsignguy
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I am sure other states have similar. I agree on the knowledge but there should be more categories for specialty trades. From what I can tell, they still have electrical signs and that has a more limited test because the licensing is more limited.
Texas_Signmaker
Very Active Signmaker
Looks like you'll have to hire a GC and keep on the payroll full-time to use his license, that's what sign companies here do with electricians.
Notarealsignguy
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Trust me, it doesnt stop the jackasses. If nothing else, it protects them by limiting the amount of capable people that can run that sort of business. Most of these guys arent doing the work and half of them don't even oversee their jobs. It's a license to broker the unlicensed.
Scotchbrite
No comment
I hear people complain all the time about how annoying it is sign regulations very from city to city, but this is exactly why I don't complain. Our city of 100K doesn't need the same regulations as a city of 1mil. One size fits all stuff like this makes it extremely difficult for the small shops to operate. People wonder why the "mom & pop" businesses are disappearing.
We have a state sign association that would have done some lobbying against this as well as getting ISA involved. Does Florida not have a sign association?
Any chance they changed the GC license requirements along with this legislation?
We have a state sign association that would have done some lobbying against this as well as getting ISA involved. Does Florida not have a sign association?
Any chance they changed the GC license requirements along with this legislation?
