ELECTRICIANS; APPRENTICE RATIOS S.B. 895 (S-2):
ANALYSIS AS PASSED BY THE SENATE
Senate Bill 895 (Substitute S-2 as passed by the Senate)
Sponsor: Senator John Cherry
Committee: Labor
Date Completed: 7-24-24
RATIONALE
The bill would reduce the jobsite ratio of master electricians or electrical journeymen to
registered apprentices from one to three to one to one. According to testimony before the
Senate Committee on Labor, many electricians are not being adequately supervised or trained
under the current one to three ratio. The bill would help make Michigan's registered
apprentices better qualified to perform electrical work.
CONTENT
The bill would amend Article 7 (Electricians and Electrical Contractors) of the Skilled
Trades Regulation Act to do the following:
-- Modify the jobsite ratio for electrical journeymen or master electricians to
registered apprentices from one to three to one to one.
-- Prescribe administrative fines for violating the one-to-one ratio described above
and require the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) to pay
any fines collected to the enforcing agency that discovered the violation.
-- Establish the joint and respective responsibility of an electrical contractor and
the master electrician who was responsible for the contractor's Electrical Code
compliance in the supervision or control of all electrical wiring operations
necessary to secure compliance with Article 7.
-- If an electrical contractor's individual responsible for Electrical Code compliance
left the contractor's employment, require the contractor to hire another
individual qualified to be responsible for Code compliance within 30 days.
Definitions
Under the Act, "fire alarm specialty apprentice technician" means an individual other than a
fire alarm contractor or a fire alarm specialty technician who is engaged in learning about and
assisting in the installation or alteration of fire alarm system wiring and equipment under the
direct, personal supervision of a fire alarm specialty technician.
The Act defines "apprentice electrician" as an individual other than an electrical contractor,
master electrician, or electrical journeyman, who is engaged in learning about and assisting
in the installation or alteration of electrical wiring and equipment under the direct, personal
supervision of an electrical journeyman or master electrician.
The bill would modify the definitions to change the requirement of "personal supervision" to
"on-site, in-person supervision".
Master Electrician's Responsibility
Currently, LARA must issue an electrical contractor's license to a person that meets the
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application and licensure requirements described in Article 2 (Issuance of Licenses) and either
of the following:
-- Is an individual who holds a master electrician's license.
-- Has at least one full-time employee who is a master electrician, resides in Michigan, and
is actively in charge of and responsible for Michigan Electrical Code compliance of all
installations of electrical wiring and equipment.
Under the bill, if an electrical contractor's license were issued to a person that had at least
one full-time employee who was a master electrician, resided in Michigan, and was actively
in charge of and responsible for Michigan Electrical Code compliance of all installations of
electrical wiring and equipment, the electrical contractor and the master electrician employed
by the electrical contractor would be jointly and severally responsible for the supervision or
control of all electrical wiring operations necessary to secure compliance with Article 7, the
rules promulgated under Article 7, and all other laws and rules related to the installation of
electrical wiring and equipment.
Additionally, if the master electrician described above ceased to be employed by the electrical
contractor, the electrical contractor would have to employ another master electrician to be
actively in charge of and responsible for Michigan Electrical Code compliance of all installations
of electrical wiring and equipment within 30 days after the end of the master electrician's
employment. The electrical contractor would have to notify LARA in writing of the change in
master electricians.
Ratio of Electrician to Apprentice
The Act requires the ratio of electrical journeymen or master electricians to registered
apprentice electricians on a jobsite to be one electrical journeyman or master electrician to
not more than three registered apprentice electricians. The bill would require the ratio to be
one journeyman or master electrician to not more than one registered apprentice electrician.
Penalties for Violation of Ratio
Under the bill, either an electrical contractor or a jointly and severally responsible pair of an
electrical contractor and master electrician who violated the ratio prescribed above would be
subject to the following punishments:
-- For a first violation, a $5,000 administrative fine.
-- For a second violation, a $10,000 administrative fine.
-- For a third violation, a suspension of the individual's master electrician licensure for at
least 90 days; after 90 days, the former master electrician could have the license
reinstated if the former master electrician passed the appropriate licensing examination.
The bill would require LARA to pay any money collected for an administrative fine to the
enforcing agency that discovered the violation that resulted in the administrative fine.
Additionally, if LARA issued an order for a violation, LARA would be entitled to actual costs
and attorney fees related to the investigation and adjudication of the violation.
MCL 339.5701 et al.
BACKGROUND
The provisions in Senate Bill 740 and Senate Bill 895 were originally presented in the same
bill because of a similar interests in establishing and modifying jobsite ratios in the plumbing
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and electrical sectors; however, the provisions of Senate Bill 740 regarding electrical work
were deleted and re-introduced in Senate Bill 895.
ARGUMENTS
(Please note: The arguments contained in this analysis originate from sources outside the Senate Fiscal Agency. The
Senate Fiscal Agency neither supports nor opposes legislation.)
Supporting Argument
The bill would establish joint and respective responsibility for electrical contractors and
masters of record for compliance with the Electrical Code. According to testimony before the
Senate Committee on Labor, this would resolve an issue that the Electrical Administrative
Board has witnessed many times in recent years in which apprentices are unknowingly not
registered with the State. Under Michigan law, an individual looking to apply for an electrical
journeyman's license must register as an apprentice with the State and obtain 8,000 hours
of work over four years in electrical construction, maintenance of buildings, or electrical wiring
or equipment under the direct supervision of an electrical journeyman or master electrician. 1
Unregistered apprentices' hours do not count toward an electrical journeyman's license unless
they can get a letter from their supervisor certifying their hours. Reportedly, supervisors are
often unwilling to write this certification for their apprentices, causing apprentices to work
unnecessary hours as an apprentice or leave electrical work altogether. When a registered
apprentice's hours are not recorded, the apprentice can bring the pay stubs verifying their
hours of work to the Board, and the Board can investigate in a more thorough capacity.
Establishing joint and respective responsibility for electrical contractors and masters of record
would create accountability to ensure that apprentices were registered as such and received
credit for hours worked toward the goal of becoming an electrical journeyman.
Legislative Analyst: Alex Krabill
FISCAL IMPACT
The bill would have a positive fiscal impact on State government. The administrative fines
collected would be paid to the enforcing agency that discovered the violation, but the increase
in revenue from fines would depend on the number of violations.
Fiscal Analyst: Nathan Leaman
1 MCL 339.5715
SAS\A2324\s895a
This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official
statement of legislative intent.
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Statutes affected:
Senate Introduced Bill: 339.5701
As Passed by the Senate: 339.5701