Because of state regulations, the City of Andalusia is no longer issuing electrical licenses to those working in the city limits, building inspector Micah Blair said Tuesday.
The new process is a requirement under the Alabama Electri-cal Contr-actors Act, Blair said.
The law was enacted to safeguard homeowners and other property owners and tenants against faulty, inadequate or unsafe electrical installations.
“The way it worked (in Andalusia) before is that a person who wanted to do electrical work in the city had to come in, take a test, pass it and then be issued a license to do work within the city limits,” he said. “Then, that license would be renewable every three years for a $5 fee.
“Now, that’s changed,” he said. “Now, we’re not giving any more tests locally. The state has taken over issuing the licenses. So, what that means is local license holders must come by here and fill out a form for a provisional license through the state. That license will be good until Aug. 31.
“After that, everything will be handled through the state,” he said.
There is no test to obtain a provisional license, Blair said.
“However, that provisional license allows you work in the municipal and county you were already licensed to work,” he said. “For example, if you were licensed to work in Andalusia and in the county, those are the only two areas you can work in. The provisional license does not give you the ability to work statewide. There’s a separate license for that.”
Blair said all provisional licenses would be void after Oct. 1.
“The whole purpose of these laws is to protect both the contractor and the homeowner,” he said. “If you’re a homeowner, you want to make sure that your contractor not only has a business license, but also is properly licensed for the job that you’ve hired them to do.
“If, at any time, you have a question, don’t hesitate to contact us or the state to determine the status of someone’s license.”
Blair said the new regulations will effect some 200 license holders working in Andalusia.