Kalb's Capitol Connection

By David Kalb

We are all human -- we all make mistakes and later regret them. However, like an elephant and peanuts, the bureaucracy is big and slow, but it never forgets. One contractor will be disappointed to learn you can't deny history. Another should recall last week's column on the recent court case that ruled payment could be withheld on work if there was any gap, even just a few days, in your valid licensing. If you missed that column, or others, you can always catch up at cutredtape.com:

Question: I want to transfer my sole owner license to a new corporation I just started. I was reading your Q&A and saw a similar question, but want a clarification on something. My sole owner license expires next week. Since I am transferring it to the new company and applied for the new license, should I just let it expire and wait until it's transferred? I can save the $300 renewal fee plus the cost of my bond.

Answer: Unless you want to temporarily shut down your business, I would strongly recommend that you pay the $300 and renew the license -- today. Once your license expires, you are technically out of business. If your new corporate license number is not issued (or in your case re-issued), for three to four weeks, you will be without a valid license during that time period. Another reason to renew the license is this is required to reassign your sole owner license.

The CSLB will only re-issue a sole owner license number to a corporation if it is in good standing.

Q: I know you have answered a lot of questions about fingerprinting, but I have one more. Should I answer "no" on the application to the question about having been convicted of any offense? My only "crime" was a DUI in college and that was 21 years ago. It's a very embarrassing situation and I was only given a small fine. I was told that by answering "yes," my application processing could be delayed. Will this prevent me from getting a license?

A: I would urge you to answer the question accurately, which means answering "yes." The question on the CSLB application you're referring to asks, "Has anyone listed on this application ever pleaded guilty or no contest to or been convicted by a court of any offense(s) (other than minor traffic violations) in this state or elsewhere?" A DUI is considered a felony offense and the board expects you to check "yes" and provide all of the requested information even if the conviction was sealed or expunged or very embarrassing. The Department of Justice or FBI will almost assuredly have this arrest record in their files so they will find out about it anyway.

You are correct that this will likely delay your application processing by weeks or months. The nature and timing of your offense should not prevent you from getting a license. More serious felony offenses are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. However, if you answer "no" and they find the answer should have been "yes," this WILL delay processing much longer since the board may determine that you were trying to hide this information. Plus, falsifying any question could cause the board to deny the application.

Kalb is president of Sacramento-based Capitol Services. If you have a contracting question, contact him at info@cutredtape.com, (916) 443-0657, fax (916) 443-1908, or write to Capitol Services Inc., 1225 8th St., Suite 580, Sacramento, Calif. 95814.