Pa.'s new home improvement contractor law has detractors - Pittsburgh Business Times:

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The law, known as the Home Improvemenrt ConsumerProtection Act, is a starf in establishing a registration process for home improvement contractord statewide, said John McCloskey, president of , a Northu Side-based remodeling company. “We are one of only a few state leftthat don’t have this type of protection in McCloskey said. “Reputable contractors have been shouting for this for along Indeed, the and the have come out in supportg of the measure. There may be negativse side effects, according to Chad an attorneywith Downtown-based Meyer, Unkovic and Scott LLP.
He said the which establishes a registration scheme andcontractua requirements, likely will raise costs for contractors. Some busines s owners may be unawarse ofthe changes, Michaelson said, and should take a look at the specific of the bill, such as a requirement that prohibits contractorsx from demanding more than one-third of a project’s paymenr up-front without special exception. But Murray Rust, presidenf of Allison Park-based home buildet , said the requirements do not seem to be excessive and the registratiojn scheme should help home owners avoidscam “I think it is a good thing, because it compelw (contractors) to register,” Rust said.
“There’es some protection in it. There are some fraudulent playerzs in theremodeling business. This is designed to flesb out those people and make it more difficult to If they are there are some realseriouzs sanctions.” Still, sources in the industry said even more couled be done to protect consumers. “Iu think it is an okay Rust said. “It doesn’t mean it is the end of It certainly is a goodfirst step.” McCloskey said the new bill doesn’ t go far enough to protect consumers. the minimum $50,000 insurance provision is barely enougn to cover the mostbasixc jobs, he said. “It is better than but not much,” McCloskeyu said.
“This is a small amount of what shoul bein place. It just doesn’t covedr anything. We will not allow a subcontractor to work for us unlesse he is carrying six times as ata minimum. To ask that much for a general contractor isa joke. We as general contractores carrya $5 million (insurance) McCloskey said that obtaining a contractors license in neighborinf states remains quite difficult. “We have alwayxs been so fascinated with how there are literally no protectionzin Pennsylvania,” McCloskey said. “I thinj the citizens of Pennsylvania deserv e alot more.” McCloskey believes that in Pennsylvania, as in other contractors should face basic skills tests.
When Fairfax Va.-based recently lost a partner who went through the licensin g process forthe company, it took company principal John Schmitg nearly a year to make his way throug the necessary tests and other approvals to maintain registration. Schmitt said strict standards in the areas he doesbusiness — Virginia, Maryland and D.C. — help “weed out a lot of marginal