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Video Transcribed: Tulsa Construction Attorney Brian Carter with Tulsaconstructionlawyer.com and in this video I’m going to talk a little bit about when a contractor has to register as a roofing contractor.
In a previous video, I had mentioned that there is no requirement for a general contractor to be licensed in the state of Oklahoma, but certain trades, including roofing, do require licensing at the state level.
There is a statutory definition of a roofing contractor in Oklahoma which is fairly involved. So I will just go through that real quick and then get into some more of of the details of what is required.
In Oklahoma a roofing contractor means any person including a subcontractor and non-resident contractor engaged in the business of commercial or residential roofing contractor work, or who himself or herself or through another attempts to or advertises, holds himself or herself out as having or purports to have the capacity to undertake roofing contractor work.
Or engages in or solicits roofing installation related services including construction, installation, renovation, remodeling, re-roofing, repair, maintenance, alteration, and waterproofing unless expressly exempt.
Some of the exceptions to this definition are individuals who engage in demolition or cleanup of construction waste including debris of roofing materials. Those who work under the direct supervision of a roofing contractor who is either hired as an employee, a day laborer a contract laborer, and those are folks whose payment is received in any form from the roofing contractor and is subject to self employment tax.
A person working on his own property or working on an immediate relative’s property for which there is no compensation or a handyman who receives compensation from a property owner who performs roofing repairs in conjunction with other repairs to the property and who does not perform more than two roofing jobs per year.
What direct supervision means as far as the exemptions go is sort of like what distinguishes an employee from an independent contractor in respect to who has control and oversight of the work. A good way to think of this is how liability flows.
If liability ultimately flows from the independent contractor or laborer to the licensed roofing contractor, then that sub contractor, for lack of a better term, or subordinate contractor is not required to be licensed since they are essentially working under the license of a licensed entity.
Another thing that has come up in the past is agencies that supply temporary labor for roofing contractors and those as well do not have to be licensed as a roofer so long as they don’t advertise and hold themselves out as engaging in roofing work. So that’s a couple of things there that establish the licensing requirements for roofing contractors here in Oklahoma.
One other thing before I go here, there is a difference in licensing requirements between residential and commercial roofers. Commercial roofers must pass a commercial roofing examination and apply for and receive a commercial roofing endorsement.
So there’s an extra step there with the licensing requirement. Hopefully that was helpful. I will have some more videos on some more nuanced and requirements for roofing contractors once they are licensed. Brian Carter, Tulsaconstructionlawyer.com.
