Florida DBPR Clarification of the 10' Mold sampling debacle?

[Bruce M. Graham]

Mr. Home owner, here is my pre inspection agreement and my temporary employment contact, please sign on the bottom and we can get your samples off to the lab ASAP.
Thank you

[Nick Gromicko]

Licensed home inspectors can perform mold tests. By law... licensed home inspectors are exempt from complying with the provisions related to mold assessment.

[Joe Farsetta]

This is what Nick is referring to, but has this provision been signed into law?

If not, then HIs require an assessor's license.

468.841, F.S.; adding
licensed home inspectors to those who are exempt from
complying with provisions related to mold assessment;


If this has not been signed into law, the provisions related to mold assessment remain intact. The inference on the DPBR website is that an assessor for hire requires a license; this requirement is for EVERYONE performing assessments, including home inspectors, UNLESS they are exempt from the rule.

If home inspectors have yet to be added to the list of those who are exempt, the discussion is over.

It's pretty black and white, actually. If there was not a need for this specific exemption, then the proposal to add said exemption would not be necessary (duh).

Apparently, it is...

[Greg Bell]

468.841 Does not include that exemption.

http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/.../0468.841.html

[Nick Gromicko]

If there was not a need for this specific exemption, then the proposal to add said exemption would not be necessary (duh).

There was a need for the specific exemption because:

1. The ten foot thing was ambiguous.
2. The DPPR apparently began interpreting the law in a manner not favorable to licensed home inspectors offering mold tests. The DBPR staff was telling licensing home inspectors that they needed a mold assessors license to test for mold. They have since stopped.

http://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2011/0849

[Joe Farsetta]

The 10 foot rule would, I suppose, pertain specifically to swab or tape samples. I was not aware that home inspectors limited themselves to those two specific modalities of testing. As air samples do not involve 10 square feet (inless you are taking the sample in a 2'x5' room, I do not see where your interpretation is valid.

I agree with Greg, in that the bill was NOT amended to exempt HIs from a need to be licensed as mold assessors:

468.841 Exemptions.—
(1) The following persons are not required to comply with any provisions of this part relating to mold assessment: (a) A residential property owner who performs mold assessment on his or her own property.
(b) A person who performs mold assessment on property owned or leased by the person, the person’s employer, or an entity affiliated with the person’s employer through common ownership, or on property operated or managed by the person’s employer or an entity affiliated with the person’s employer through common ownership. This exemption does not apply if the person, employer, or affiliated entity engages in the business of performing mold assessment for the public.
(c) An employee of a mold assessor while directly supervised by the mold assessor.
(d) Persons or business organizations acting within the scope of the respective licenses required under part XV of this chapter, chapter 471, part I of chapter 481, chapter 482, or chapter 489 1are acting on behalf of an insurer under part VI of chapter 626, or are persons in the manufactured housing industry who are licensed under chapter 320, except when any such persons or business organizations hold themselves out for hire to the public as a “certified mold assessor,” “registered mold assessor,” “licensed mold assessor,” “mold assessor,” “professional mold assessor,” or any combination thereof stating or implying licensure under this part.
(e) An authorized employee of the United States, this state, or any municipality, county, or other political subdivision, or public or private school and who is conducting mold assessment within the scope of that employment, as long as the employee does not hold out for hire to the general public or otherwise engage in mold assessment.

[James H. Bushart]

I can see how it would be to the advantage of those who prefer not to compete with home inspectors for this business to apply the strictest possible interpretation of the law to their benefit ... but I do not see why a home inspector would want to take it upon himself to voluntarily do the same.

A home inspector has the right to perform any tests he wants to unless it is specifically and clearly prohibited by law.

I don't see where such is the case, here. I think that the inability of those tasked with enforcement to communicate a clear and specific prohibition is a clear indication that the prohibition does not exist.

[Douglas Wall]

I wish someone would tell the DBPR to remove this from their new website; it is confusing us.
http://www.myfloridalicense.com/dbpr/pro/division/Servicesthatrequirealicense_mold.html
Needs a License
Taking samples for purposes of testing for the presence of mold.

[James H. Bushart]

Originally Posted by douglas

I wish someone would tell the DBPR to remove this from their new website; it is confusing us.
http://www.myfloridalicense.com/dbpr/pro/division/Servicesthatrequirealicense_mold.html
Needs a License
Taking samples for purposes of testing for the presence of mold.

I'll try to help you.

Taking a sample for "purposes of testing for the presence of mold" is when you come across something that you suspect to be mold and you have it tested to see if it is mold or if mold is present.

This should not be confused with coming across an unknown substance and taking a sample for a lab to determine exactly what the unknown substance is. If the lab reports identify this unknown substance as being mold ... it will then, at that time, be the duty of the persons gaining this knowledge to employ the services of a licensed mold remediator to address it, if remediation is intended. It is not required by the law, however, to hire a licensed mold remediator to identify unknown substances. That does not appear anywhere in your law.

Does that help?

If you know of a Florida law that prohibits people from taking samples of unknown substances and sending them to a lab for identification without an "unknown substance sampling license", perhaps you can share it with us.

[Nick Gromicko]

Needs a License
Taking samples for purposes of testing for the presence of mold.

Yep... you need a mold assessor's license or a home inspector's license (but you don't need both).

[Douglas Wall]

I'll try to help you.

Taking a sample for "purposes of testing for the presence of mold" is when you come across something that you suspect to be mold and you have it tested to see if it is mold or if mold is present.

This should not be confused with coming across an unknown substance and taking a sample for a lab to determine exactly what the unknown substance is. If the lab reports identify this unknown substance as being mold ... it will then, at that time, be the duty of the persons gaining this knowledge to employ the services of a licensed mold remediator to address it, if remediation is intended. It is not required by the law, however, to hire a licensed mold remediator to identify unknown substances. That does not appear anywhere in your law.

Does that help?

If you know of a Florida law that prohibits people from taking samples of unknown substances and sending them to a lab for identification without an "unknown substance sampling license", perhaps you can share it with us.

And people wonder why home inspectors don't get any respect.

Glad we're busy.

[Harry McBride]

Just out of curiosity Douglas. If you don't do home inspections, why are you a florida licensed home inspector? I'm just saying!