By Shauna Krause, President, Capitol Services
Like twins, sometimes things look the same, but there is a difference not always obvious. I also share an RME yes/ no answer everyone can benefit from…
Q: I just recently obtained my California General Building (“B”) license and I’m interested in obtaining a Nevada contractor’s license as well. Are the requirements the same? Does my experience need to be signed off by someone in Nevada, or is it okay to have my certifier(s) come from California?
A: The requirements for a General Building license in Nevada are a bit different than California’s requirement. As you likely know from recently obtaining your CA license, the CSLB requires you to document at least four years of experience doing framing, along with at least two unrelated trades. If you gained your experience with one company and it adds up to four years of full time within the last ten, you only need one certifier to verify your experience.
To qualify for a full “B” (General Building) contractor’s license in Nevada, you are required to document at least four years of full-time work, within the last fifteen, building structures from the ground-up, including everything it takes from foundation, framing, to finish work. The NSCB requires you to have four certifiers who can verify your experience.
If you do not have ground-up construction experience, there are other sub-classifications of the “B” you can refer to which don’t require ground-up experience.
Like CA, once your experience and application is approved, there is a Trade exam and a Business exam you will be required to take.
Nevada also requires the applying entity to provide a Financial Statement showing you have some financial strength. I suggest you give me a call to further discuss this if you’d like, these financials can be a challenge and timing is always important to submitting.
Q: Our Qualifier will be leaving the company at the end of next month. We are getting ready to interview people to take his place. Does the Qualifying party need to be a ‘W-2’ employee?
A: If the new individual will be an RME (Responsible Managing Employee), then yes, they need to be a ‘W-2’ employee. An RME is required to work at least 32 hours a week or 80% of the company’s operating time. If you will be giving the new individual an Officer title (President, Secretary, Treasurer, Vice President, Director, etc) and designate them as an RMO (Responsible Managing Officer) there is no hour requirement, however they are required to exercise direct supervision and control of the company’s construction operations.
As a bona fide Officer of the company actively engaged in the business, they should be on the company’s payroll as an employee. While the CSLB doesn’t explicitly define an RMO as a “W-2 employee”, in a practical sense it is similar and it would be risky to designate your RMO as a 1099 contractor. Your tax advisor might also be helpful in this decision.
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While knowledge is power, knowing where to go for the answers is half the battle. Get expert assistance immediately when you call 866-443-0657, email info@cutredtape.com, or write us at Capitol Services, Inc., 3609 Bradshaw Rd, Ste H, #343, Sacramento, CA 95827. Search past columns at www.cutredtape.com