SB 814: Household goods and services.

(1)Existing law, the Electronic and Appliance Repair Dealer Registration Law, establishes the Bureau of Household Goods and Services, under the direction of a chief who is responsible to the Director of Consumer Affairs, and provides for the licensure and regulation of, among others, electronic and appliance repair dealers and service contractors by the bureau. A violation of its provisions is a crime. Existing law repeals those provisions relating to service contractors on January 1, 2024.

This bill would extend operation of those provisions relating to service contractors until January 1, 2028. Because a violation of those provisions is a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law prohibits acting as a service dealer without obtaining registration under the law and defines service dealer for this purpose to include, among other things, a person who for compensation repairs, services, or maintains an electronic set or major appliance. Existing law defines various terms for purposes of the law, including, among other things, electronic set, appliance, and video game.

This bill would amend the definition of electronic set to additionally include a cellular device or any other device that depends for its functioning on digital electronics, as specified. The bill would expand the definition of appliance to mean any device primarily used for residential purposes, including an ice maker, dehumidifier, and portable residential furnace. The bill would amend the definition of video game to remove the requirement that it has its own cathode ray tube, television set, or monitor. By expanding the definition of service dealer for purposes of the law, the violation of which is a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law requires the director, on their own initiative, to conduct spot check investigations of service dealers of specified electronics and appliances throughout the state on a continuous basis.

This bill would require the director to conduct spot check investigations, as described above, no less than twice per year.

Existing law requires the director to distribute to each registered service dealer and each registered service contractor copies of these provisions and of the regulations adopted under these provisions.

This bill would authorize the director to, alternatively, make those provisions and regulations available on its internet website.

Under existing law, registration under the Electronic and Appliance Repair Dealer Registration Law expires no more than 12 months after the issue date. Existing law provides for the renewal of both unexpired and expired registrations, as specified.

This bill would authorize the bureau to impose conditions on the renewal of an expired registration of a service contractor. The bill would cancel a registration of a service contractor that has not been renewed within 6 years of its issuance and would authorize a holder of a canceled registration to submit a new application for reissuance or reinstatement of the registration if specified requirements are met.

(2)Existing law, the Home Furnishings and Thermal Insulation Act, prohibits any person from engaging in business regulated by the act unless they hold a valid, unexpired license, as specified. Existing law defines person for this purpose.

This bill would expand the definition of person to include a limited liability company and would make conforming changes.

Existing law imposes various labeling requirements, including requiring a manufacturer of a covered product to indicate whether or not the product contains added flame retardant chemicals by including a flame retardant chemical statement on the label, as specified. Existing law requires the manufacturer to retain documentation to show whether flame retardant chemicals were added to a product sold in California and to provide documentation upon request of the bureau establishing the accuracy of the flame retardant chemical statement on the label. Existing law imposes fines for a violation of those documentation requirements.

This bill would delete the above-described documentation requirements and would make conforming changes.

(3)Existing law, the Household Movers Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of household movers, including corporations and persons, as defined, by the Division of Household Movers established within the bureau.

This bill would add to the definition of corporation a limited liability company and would make conforming changes.

Existing law requires the bureau to issue a permit only to those applicants who it finds have demonstrated that they possess sufficient knowledge, ability, integrity, and financial resources and responsibility to perform the service within the scope of their application.

This bill would delete that requirement.

(4)Existing law subjects the powers and duties of the bureau to review by the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature and requires this review to be performed as if the laws administered by the bureau were scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2024.

This bill would instead require this review to be performed as if those laws were scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2028.

(5)Existing law, the Electronic and Appliance Repair Dealer Registration Law, establishes the Electronic and Appliance Repair Fund, and requires all fees collected pursuant to that law to be deposited in the fund and used for the administration of the bureau and the administration of that law. Existing law, the Home Furnishings and Thermal Insulation Act, establishes the Home Furnishings and Thermal Insulation Fund to be expended for the purposes of the bureau in carrying out the act. Existing law requires all fees collected under the act to be credited to the fund. Existing law, the Household Movers Act, establishes the Household Movers Fund to be used by the bureau for the administration of the act and requires all moneys collected pursuant to the act to be deposited into the fund.

This bill would establish the Household Goods and Services Fund within the Professions and Vocations Fund to be administered by the bureau for the purposes of administering the Electronic and Appliance Repair Dealer Registration Law, the Home Furnishings and Thermal Insulation Act, and the Household Movers Act. The bill would require all moneys collected pursuant to those laws to instead be deposited in the Household Goods and Services Fund and would require all moneys in the above-described funds to be transferred to the Household Goods and Services Fund by July 1, 2026. The bill would abolish the Electronic and Appliance Repair Fund, the Home Furnishings and Thermal Insulation Fund, and the Household Movers Fund on July 1, 2026.

(6)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.