CONTACT:  SUSAN TOLCHIN (914) 995-2932

                     LYNNE BEDELL SMITH                                                                            (914) 995-3106

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                            JUNE 4, 2007 

LEGISLATION WOULD GET TOUGH ON UNLICENSED CONTRACTORS

New bill allows equipment to be seized and penalties to increase

Continuing to crack down on unlicensed home improvement contractors, Westchester County Executive Andy Spano is today proposing legislation that would authorize the seizure of vehicles and tools and increase the civil penalty for repeat violators.

The bill, which will be formally submitted to the county Board of Legislators tonight, not only proposes harsher consequences for law-defying contractors, but would make it easier for the Department of Consumer Protection to catch up with those who have already accumulated fines for inferior work and failed to pay.

            “We’ve got about 1,200 unlicensed contractors running around out there – many improperly taking money for work that isn’t done right or isn’t done at all and not leaving people any recourse to get what they paid for,” Spano said. “When you hire someone to do work on your home, you should be guaranteed a certain level of expertise and fiscal responsibility – and that comes with having a license.”

            Spano noted that the consumer protection department gets more complaints about shoddy home repairs than anything else and most of them are done by unlicensed contractors.       

Under his proposal, tools and equipment used in connection with the unlicensed operation of a home improvement business could be seized by authorities and held until the contractor applies for a license and pays all outstanding fines. The bill would also increase the civil penalty for unlicensed contractors who are repeat violators.  The initial penalty would remain at $1000, but would increase to $5000 for a second violation within five years and $10,000 for a third and all subsequent violations within ten years.

Licenses are intended to protect homeowners by ensuring that persons working on residents’ homes are financially responsible, properly insured, and do not have serious criminal records or a trail of unresolved

complaints.  Each applicant pays a $300 fee for a two year license and undergoes a thorough background check. The process also protects law-abiding contractors who lose business to their unscrupulous and unlicensed counterparts, Spano said.

According to the Department of Consumer Protection, approximately 1,200 home improvement contractors – 15 percent of the total - are currently conducting business without a license in Westchester County.  In many instances, contractors might be ineligible for a license due to criminal convictions, previous trade license suspensions or revocations, and/or outstanding business-related judgments.  Others may simply wish to avoid liability and workers’ compensation insurance requirements.

            Many of the most serious consumer complaints brought to the Department of Consumer Protection involve shoddy, substandard work or failure to perform any work at all by unlicensed home improvement contractors.  In addition, approximately $180,000 in annual licensing revenue is lost by the County due to the failure of home improvement contractors to obtain licenses.

            All home improvement contractors - - including roofers, driveway pavers, landscapers, tile setters, chimney sweeps, fence installers, exterior painters, masons, and persons who install or repair exterior siding, decks, windows, doors and swimming pools - - must be licensed by the Department of Consumer Protection. 

Under Spano’s proposed law, any police officer or authorized officer of the Department of Consumer Protection would be permitted to seize and impound any vehicle, tool or other implement being used in connection with unlicensed home improvement contracting.

“Besides the obvious protections to the consumer, a law like this would allow the county to collect unpaid penalties,” said Gary Brown, director of Consumer Protection. “Believe it or not, some of these contractors have been skating by for years and have outstanding bills in the thousands of dollars.”

In 2006, approximately $100,000 in civil penalties assessed against home improvement contractors went unpaid.  Nearly the entire amount was assessed against unlicensed contractors.  If the above measures were enacted into law, Westchester County would have a strong tool to collect the unpaid civil penalties, since release of seized vehicles and tools of these contractors would require payment of all previously imposed outstanding civil penalties.

 In his letter to the Board of Legislators, Spano noted that these stern, proactive measures mirror very similar laws that are currently in place in Nassau County, Suffolk County and New York City.  Experience in

those jurisdictions has shown that such measures are effective in increasing the filing of license applications and in the collection of civil penalties. In Westchester County, a 2006 law authorized the Taxi and Limousine Commission to boot scofflaw vehicles as a means of enforcing the For-Hire Vehicle Law.  The Commission has reported that payment of previously unpaid civil penalties by the for-hire vehicle industry has increased since enforcement under the law began.  Since Dec., 2006, the county has collected $18,980 as a direct result of this legislation.

In another enforcement effort, Westchester County conducted a sting operation in April using undercover police to solicit bids from unlicensed contractors for work on a house in Yorktown. Sixteen contractors were nabbed for operating a home improvement business without a license. 

Residents can go to the Consumer Department’s website at www.westchestergov.com to search for a licensed contractor, watch a video on how to choose a contractor, and request a complaint history. Consumers can also file complaints on line or call (914) 995-2155.