Interior Design Bill Heard in Committee

Today, the debate over interior design licensing came before the Senate Labor Commerce Research & Development Committee. SB 6707 creates an expansive practice act.

The AIA/WA is opposed to the bill for many reasons. The primary problem is the bill is a practice act. It also attempts to define architecture as designing the “building shell” (which is defined in the bill) and interior design as everything inside the shell. Also, it includes sealing privileges for interior designers and requires building officials to accept their sealed drawings. There are many other problems with the substance of the bill.

Timothy Buckley, AIA, AIA/WA President, testified against the bill at the hearing. The room was packed with interior designers, remodelers, retailers, contractors and architects who are opposed to the bill. The proponents also had a good sized group there to support the bill.

From the testimony and the turn out, it was clear that the interior design providers are deeply divided over the proposal.

Even with the many concerns with the current bill, the AIA/WA remains open to dialogue with the interior designers.

Senate Committee Passes Architecture Law Revisions

Today, the Senate Labor Commerce Research & Development Committee unanimously passed SB 6757 to modernize Washington’s architecture licensing laws.

The bill has been put forward by the AIA Washington Council to update the statute’s qualification standards, streamline corporate registration and clean-up the exemptions section.

The bill now goes to the Senate Rules Committee, which determines the bills that will go to the full Senate for a vote.

Committee Hearing on Architecture Law Revisions

Yesterday, the Senate Labor Commerce Research & Development committee heard testimony in support of modernizing Washington architecture licensing laws. The bill is sponsored by Senators Ed Murray (D-43, Seattle), Mike Hewitt (R-16, Walla Walla) and Jeanne Kohl-Welles (D-36, Seattle). SB 6757 is the product of over three years of work by the AIA/WA and allied organization. It seeks to update the qualification standards for licensing, streamline corporate registration and clean up the exemptions sections.

The bill has the support of building officials, engineers and other groups. In addition, the AIA/WA has worked with contractor and building designer groups to address concerns they have raised. There was no opposition to the bill in committee.

The next step is for the Committee to pass the bill. There will be several technical and other amendments to the bill before it comes out of the committee.

To watch or listen to the hearing, visit www.tvw.org. Enter the bill number or committee name in the search engine.

Anti-Vesting Bill Heard in Committee

The Senate Government Operations and Elections Committee held a hearing today on SB 6784

to radically alter our state’s vesting rights. In short, the bill would shift the point in vesting from the time of permit application to the time of permit approval.

The AIA/WA testified against the bill, citing the profoundly negative effects it would have on legal clarity and regulatory certainty.

SB 6784 would allow project and development opponents the ability to indefinitely block projects. All one would have to do is file a code or plan amendment and the vesting rights for an project pending approval are voided.

The bill is being pushed by Futurewise, an environmental group, and the United Food and Commercial Workers. Senator Adam Kline (D-37, Seattle) is the prime sponsor.

This issue will be one of several priority bills that AIA Washington members will educate lawmakers on during their annual legislative day on January It is not too late to attend AIA/WA’s Capitol Connections. For registration information, visit http://www.aiawa.org/.

Senate Labor Committee Busy Moving Bills

The Senate Labor Committee was very busy in the day before the committee cutoff (when bills have to be passed out of committee to stay alive). It held a hearing on to bills that the AIA Washington Council is supporting. SB 5746 makes modifications to the landscape architecture licensing law. SB 5984 would restrict the practice of structural engineering to only those engineers who are specifically licensed as structural engineers. Neither bill would have an impact on the practice of architecture, but both would improve public protection by increasing the level of professionalism in the affected professions.

The committee also held executive session to move bills out of committee. It passed Substitute Senate Bill 5788 to require licensing of home inspectors. For the most part, the AIA/WA supports this bill. However, we are continuing to work to have an exemption for licensed architects and engineers added to the bill. The AIA/WA is also concerned that the substitute moves the licensing program from the Department of Licensing (DOL) to the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I). The AIA/WA believes that is more appropriate for DOL to oversee professional regulation programs such as proposed in SSB 5788.

SB 5990 also passed by the committee today to increase regulation of construction cranes. This bill is in response to a high profile crane collapse late in Bellevue in 2006. The construction community and organized labor groups have been working closely with lawmakers on the bill.

Crane Safety Hearing

The House Commerce & Labor Committee and the Senate Labor Commerce, Research and Development Committee held a joint hearing on crane safety. The hearing comes after a high profile collapse of a crane in Bellevue and several other cranes had problems as well.

Legislators are investigating the need for crane operator licensing, increasing crane inspections before and after assembly, more frequents inspections during operations, and other steps to increase crane safety. AIA/WA is working with our coalition partners in the engineering and construction organizations to monitor this bill’s progress.

Legislation has not been introduced on this topic, but stakeholders testifying at the hearing pledged to work cooperatively toward ideas to improve crane safety.

Go to www.tvw.org and enter "crane safety" in the search engine to listen to the hearing.