Home Inspector Licensure Act.

Existing law regulates a person who performs certain home inspections for a fee in connection with a transfer of real property. Existing law provides that it is the duty of a home inspector who is not licensed as a general contractor, structural pest control operator, or architect, or registered as a professional engineer to conduct a home inspection with the degree of care that a reasonably prudent home inspector would exercise. Under existing law, contractual provisions that purport to waive this duty, or limit the liability of the home inspector to the cost of the home inspection report, are contrary to public policy and invalid. Existing law prohibits commencement of a legal action for breach of duty arising from a home inspection report more than 4 years from the date of the inspection. Under existing law, certain activities by a home inspector or a company that employs a home inspector constitute unfair business practices. This bill would enact the Home Inspection Licensure Act, which would revise and recast those provisions, and would make the substantive changes described below operative on and after January 1, 2025. This bill would require the Department of Consumer Affairs to administer and enforce the provisions of the act. The bill would prohibit a person from acting or holding themself out as a home inspector unless that person has an active license, except as specified. The bill would make a willful violation of this provision a public offense punishable by imprisonment, by a fine not exceeding an unspecified amount, or by both imprisonment and fine. By creating a new crime, the bill would create a state-mandated local program. This bill would require an applicant for a license to, among other things, submit to the department an original completed application containing specified personal information, proof of completion of a prelicensing education course from an approved provider, and payment of an unspecified application fee. The bill would require a license issued to be valid for 2 years following the date of issuance. The bill would authorize a person to renew their expired license upon the filing of a completed renewal application containing proof of completion of a continuing education course from an approved provider and payment of an unspecified renewal fee, except as specified. The bill would authorize a licensee to apply for an inactive license, and would prohibit the department from requiring an inactive license to be renewed after the licensee pays an unspecified one-time retired license fee. This bill would authorize the department to enter into a reciprocity agreement with another state that authorizes a home inspector from that state to act or hold themselves out as a home inspector, if the department makes specified determinations and issues a temporary license to that home inspector that is valid for a period not exceeding one year. This bill would require the department to approve a provider of professional home inspection educational courses that meets certain requirements, and would authorize the department to remove the approval if the course provider has failed to comply with those requirements. The bill would require the department to provide on its internet website certain information regarding every licensee and course provider, as specified. This bill, instead, would prohibit commencement of a legal action for breach of duty arising from a home inspection report more than 2 years from the date of the inspection. The bill would require a home inspector, before beginning a home inspection, to provide to the client, and to obtain the client's signature on, an inspection agreement containing specified information. The bill would require a home inspector to provide an inspection report to the client on or before 5 days following the completion of the home inspection, unless a different date is specified in the inspection agreement. This bill would establish the Home Inspectors License Fund, and would require all fees, fines, and penalties collected pursuant to these provisions to be deposited into the fund, which the bill would make available for administration of these provisions, upon appropriation by the Legislature. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.