Michigan Bill 6088

[bemelander]

Well it looks like Rep. Accavitti is at it again. House bill 6088 was introduced yesterday. I haven't had a chance to read the entire bill but I will tonight. I would suggest all MI inspectors take a look.

More later

Bill

[Michael Bazzo, CMI]

Thanks Bill for the heads up

[Michael Bazzo, CMI]

Here is the contents of HB-6088

It appears ASHI has a heavy hand in this as usual.

[Nick Gromicko]

Michael, huh? Why would you say that? Explain.

[Nick Gromicko]

We've met many times with Rep. Accavitti and he has spoken at our chapter meetings. Rep Accavitti has been nothing but very helpful and has assured us many times that licensing in Michigan will be InterNACHI-friendly. This Bill is very InterNACHI-friendly and assocition neutral.

This quote from Representative Accavitti, the sponsor of the Bill:

Update: The following came from a recent article dated Sunday August 29th, 2004 and quotes State Representative Frank Accavitti.

Inspect the inspectors

Lawmakers introduce bills requiring home inspectors to receive training, be licensed

By DOUG HENZE
Of The Daily Oakland Press

"While Accavitti says the three major home inspector trade groups-the American Society of Home Inspectors, the National Association of Home Inspectors, and the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors - have signed off on the licensing bill, some local inspectors say they hate the idea." "Im dead set against it," said Mel Jacobs, Great Lakes Chapter president of ASHI...

"Accavitti, who already has drafted a substitute bill to address the concerns inspectors have brought to him, said ASHI has tried to establish its test as the state's. "That's not going to happen in the state of Michigan," he said, explaining that the law won't be designed to give any organization an advantage."

[Michael Bazzo, CMI]

What does this mean to you Nick? As written, this does not appear to be INACHI friendly as this has been submitted to license Michigan home inspectors with a well known ASHI exam. No mention of INACHI or our exam is mentioned as acceptable. How is that association neutral?

22 (c) The passage of an examination acceptable to the

23 department and the board. The current examination referred to as

24 the national home inspection examination developed by the

25 examination board of professional home inspectors, as it exists

26 on the effective date of this article, is considered an

27 acceptable examination. Any other examination utilizing



1 psychometric standards and having substantially the same

2 substantive areas of testing, as determined by the board and the

3 department, may also be used for purposes of this subdivision.

4 The director, in consultation with the board, may adopt any

5 updates or alternatives to the examination described in this

6 subdivision by the promulgation of a rule.

[Nick Gromicko]

Any other examination utilizing



1 psychometric standards and having substantially the same

2 substantive areas of testing, as determined by the board and the

3 department, may also be used for purposes of this subdivision.

4 The director, in consultation with the board, may adopt any

5 updates or alternatives to the examination described in this

6 subdivision by the promulgation of a rule.



I think the language is fine and opens it up to any organization or Community College that wants to offer an exam. Furthermore, the "everyone passes" NHIE is the world's simplest exam with a 92% pass rate. Guess what association membership is responsible for most of the failed exams?


Anyway, this Bill leaves the door open for harder exams, the director of the department makes the decisions, is InterNACHI friendly, and contains no mention of ASHI. I can't complain.

[Gary Farnsworth]

I will trade the Michigan bill for the Kansas bill any day.

[James H. Bushart]

Nick, you are a wonderful person...but so naive in interpreting these bills.

ASHI is pushing this bill, along with most of the others, in tandem with the state association for realtors. They cloak themselves under the guise of a "coalition" and they refrain from the language that you and others seek as a trigger-point.

Instead....they quietly leave open all of the areas they traditionally addressed....and instead of writing these into the bill, they create autonmous "licensing boards" that the state real estate associations (through their lobbying infrastructure) have already promised seats to the ASHI presidents to fill.

Once on these boards...there is nothing to stop the full ASHI agenda from going forward.

Follow the money behind these bills and you will discover the truth in what I am saying. Kansas is the latest to fall. Look at Kansas.

You will read the bill and find nothing about ASHI in it. But look at who will man the autonomous licensing board that will be making all of the rules.

Wake up, Nick.

[Vince Santos]

Originally Posted by mbazzo

Here is the contents of HB-6088

It appears ASHI has a heavy hand in this as usual.

I met an ASHI member a couple weeks ago at a networking event. He mentioned he, and some other associates in his local chapter, were pushing for licensing in Michigan. Is that such a bad idea really? I guess the way I see it is it will place some requirements on those HI's with a flashlight, screwdriver and the ability to frame a wall but somehow think they're a qualified HI. I've read posts were those with licensing requirements don't like it but would you rather live in a State with NO requirements?

I'm not saying I'm COMPLETELY sold on the idea of licensing but isn't better than no regulation at all?

[James H. Bushart]

Originally Posted by vsantos

I'm not saying I'm COMPLETELY sold on the idea of licensing but isn't better than no regulation at all?

,

No, it is not better.

Regulation is now in the hands of the consumer. If you look around you, they are deciding what home inspector will be in business and what inspector will be hanging up his toolbelt for the last time.

When the state decides who will be a home inspector, the criteria is lower than you can ever imagine. A few hours of training, a test, pay a fee...and...bingo! 40 graduates of "Jim's Home Inspector School" now hit the streets of Michigan advertising the fact that....just like Vince Santos, they TOO are licensed and qualified to perform their $120 home inspections. But hurry, because in two weeks, 40 more graduates hit the street and they will be selling them for $95.

[Nick Gromicko]

Jim, having watched many states adopt licensing, here is my thinking on the subject:

1. Licensing harms inspectors (InterNACHI members included) by tripling the number of state-credentialed competitors almost overnight, all waving their freshly printed licenses just like the one's the veterans are issued, and causing the opening of a home inspection school on every corner. Licensing also commoditizes the inspection service to the point where everyone thinks all inspections performed by equally licensed inspectors are the same, and so the only thing left to compete on is pricing.

2. Licensing helps newbies by giving them instant credibility and putting them on the same state list that all the REALTORs begin to point to as the veterans get listed on.

3. Licensing harms veterans with established markets for reasons explained in #1 & #2.

4. Licensing harms ASHI as they are a membership-benefitLESS organization with a fake credential (anyone can join ASHI in less than 30 seconds online with no requirements whatsoever) and logo usage as their only member benefits. Once the state goes into the credential issuing business, ASHI has nothing more to offer. The state does what it does best (issues credentials) and ASHI simply can't compete with a government who wants ASHI's niche. The government basically tells ASHI... we want your space... get out! InterNACHI on the other hand is designed (like NAR was) to be a post-licensing member benefit trade association. We do best in licensed states.

5. Licensing helps InterNACHI the organization (while harming individual InterNACHI members) for reasons explained in #1 and because once everyone is equally licensed... competence means nothing. It becomes an all out marketing race. And because it increases the number of inspectors. And because InterNACHI offers all those www.nachi.org/benefits.htm that inspectors desperately need after licensing is adopted and which other organizations and the state don't provide. And because InterNACHI offers so much free or at least inexpensive, state approved CE.

6. Licensing is bad for consumers as the competence standard for survival prior to adoption is fairly high. The standard the state sets after adoption is fairly low.

7. Licensing is good for REALTORs who escape negligent referral suits by pointing to "the state list of licensed inspectors" instead of recommending the very best inspectors as is their fiduciary duty to. This of course leads to stronger commoditization of our services and even greater lowering of fee structures.

In summary, Licensing... bad for inspectors, bad for individual InterNACHI members, bad for ASHI, bad for veterans, good for InterNACHI the organization, good for newbies, bad for consumers, good for REALTORs.

[James H. Bushart]

Originally Posted by gromicko

Jim, having watched many states adopt licensing, here is my thinking on the subject:

1. Licensing harms inspectors (InterNACHI members included) by tripling the number of state-credentialed competitors almost overnight, all waving their freshly printed licenses just like the one's the veterans are issued, and causing the opening of a home inspection school on every corner. Licensing also commoditizes the inspection service to the point where everyone thinks all inspections performed by equally licensed inspectors are the same, and so the only thing left to compete on is pricing.

2. Licensing helps newbies by giving them instant credibility and putting them on the same state list that all the REALTORs begin to point to as the veterans get listed on.

3. Licensing harms veterans with established markets for reasons explained in #1 & #2.

4. Licensing harms ASHI as they are a membership-benefitLESS organization with a fake credential (anyone can join ASHI in less than 30 seconds online with no requirements whatsoever) and logo usage as their only member benefits. Once the state goes into the credential issuing business, ASHI has nothing more to offer. The state does what it does best (issues credentials) and ASHI simply can't compete with a government who wants ASHI's niche. The government basically tells ASHI... we want your space... get out! InterNACHI on the other hand is designed (like NAR was) to be a post-licensing member benefit trade association. We do best in licensed states.

5. Licensing helps InterNACHI the organization (while harming individual InterNACHI members) for reasons explained in #1 and because once everyone is equally licensed... competence means nothing. It becomes an all out marketing race. And because it increases the number of inspectors. And because InterNACHI offers all those www.nachi.org/benefits.htm that inspectors desperately need after licensing is adopted and which other organizations and the state don't provide. And because InterNACHI offers so much free or at least inexpensive, state approved CE.

6. Licensing is bad for consumers as the competence standard for survival prior to adoption is fairly high. The standard the state sets after adoption is fairly low.

7. Licensing is good for REALTORs who escape negligent referral suits by pointing to "the state list of licensed inspectors" instead of recommending the very best inspectors as is their fiduciary duty to. This of course leads to stronger commoditization of our services and even greater lowering of fee structures.

In summary, Licensing... bad for inspectors, bad for individual InterNACHI members, bad for ASHI, bad for veterans, good for InterNACHI the organization, good for newbies, bad for consumers, good for REALTORs.

Absolutely true in every regard.

But understand that ASHI goes about pushing these bills differently than they used to.

They are not up front, nationally, but underground, locally. They form make-believe "coalitions" staffed with ASHI members leading it to provide a front and give the illusion that the agenda they propose is widely accepted.

They work hand-in-hand with the state realty association in formulating and lobbying for the bill and, in return for their efforts, the realty association uses its clout to get ASHI preferred vendors etc. in the key positions.

They are careful not to come out in the beginning with an "ASHIfied" bill that will attract the attention of you and other national associations who will cry "foul" and blow their cover. Instead...they create for themselves autonomous licensing boards that will ... after the fact... feed in all of the one-sided, ASHI requirements after the bill becomes law.

Want proof?

Fight the autonomous licensing board provisions in these bills....then look across the table and see who your opposition is. It will be the three or four local ASHI presidents who plan to sit on it. Happens every time.

[Michael Bazzo, CMI]

Originally Posted by vsantos

I met an ASHI member a couple weeks ago at a networking event. He mentioned he, and some other associates in his local chapter, were pushing for licensing in Michigan. Is that such a bad idea really? I guess the way I see it is it will place some requirements on those HI's with a flashlight, screwdriver and the ability to frame a wall but somehow think they're a qualified HI. I've read posts were those with licensing requirements don't like it but would you rather live in a State with NO requirements?

I'm not saying I'm COMPLETELY sold on the idea of licensing but isn't better than no regulation at all?

Vince,

I'm not sold on licensing at all. the point is if we, as home inspectors in Michigan are going to be required to be licensed, INACHI should be stepping forward and following through with Rep Accavitti to ensure our requirements as an association are equaled to or exceed the nhie standard mentioned in the current version of the bill. as it stands right now, that's open to interpretation by a board that has yet to be set up. JB makes a very good point that the most probable board members will be ASHI. MichAHI is seeing to it.

[Vince Santos]

Originally Posted by mbazzo

Vince,

I'm not sold on licensing at all. the point is if we, as home inspectors in Michigan are going to be required to be licensed, INACHI should be stepping forward and following through with Rep Accavitti to ensure our requirements as an association are equaled to or exceed the nhie standard mentioned in the current version of the bill. as it stands right now, that's open to interpretation by a board that has yet to be set up. JB makes a very good point that the most probable board members will be ASHI. MichAHI is seeing to it.

So what can we do to ensure our voices, as INACHI members, are heard? Why should one organization have a say an another be ignored when these decisions effect ALL of us? Perhaps we need to speak up and make sure we are heard considering we do in fact have a voice and a say in these matters. Do we have a SE Michigan INACHI chapter?