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UDC Inspection Advisory Workgroup, Wednesday, July 28, 2004, 10 a.m.- 2:30 p.m., Wisconsin Builders Association, 4868 High Crossing Boulevard, Madison, Wisconsin Council
Member Attendance: Arthur BiesekP, Tom MartinP, (Charlie Nehls, alt) Tom DeLacyP, Darin PagelP, Wally HabheggerP, Devin RainsE (Jane Witt, alt), Mark JankowskiP, Dan SchneiderP, Butch JohnsonP, Jack Van Der WeeleP
Commerce Staff: Larry Swaziek, Program Manager, Leroy Stublaski, Code Consultant, Duane Hubeler, Code Consultant, Brian Ferris, Integrated Services Section Chief, Tom Kasper, Integrated Services Section Chief
Visitors: Jim Hellen, Independent Inspections, Ltd.
Agenda review Larry reviewed the agenda and the summary from the last meeting.
Answers to some general questions from the previous meeting: - Under the state program, there will be inspection of new dwellings only. Additions and alterations to post-1980 dwellings will probably be added in the future but initially, there will be enough problems with just new construction.; - A municipality under state jurisdiction will not be allowed to hire an outside party to inspect just additions and alterations.; - All state contracts have a standard clause that limits the amount of subcontracting. Those standard limits will apply to the subcontracting of inspection duties.; - There will be no criminal background checks.; - The electrical service statute applies specifically to one- and 2-family dwellings, not to all buildings in general.

New issues for this meeting: - How will orders be handled? Specifically, if the time to fix a violation runs out, where do the orders go?; - There was discussion of an “Occupancy bond”. An agency could set up a bond account, but 2 signatures would be needed to disburse from the account. This would have to be an item in the contract. Any forfeited monies in an account would probably have to go to the state, but it would go into the general fund. More discussion is needed.; - There was discussion of requiring any uncorrected violations to be reported to the Register of Deeds. If the violation is corrected later, another entry would have to be made on the deed by a registered inspector. More discussion is needed.; - There was additional discussion on the number of trips. Some people don’t want a minimum number of trips specified. There was also mention of a percentage refund if the minimum number of trips are not completed.; - There should be one central location, probably the Madison office, to receive complaints.; - If there is a dispute between the inspector and builder and Commerce has to resolve the dispute, who pays the fee required under ch. Comm 2?

Contracting Issues: Larry Swaziek handed out the document “Potential Additional Points for UDC Inspection Agency Contract or Procedures Manual” dated 7/27/04. Items in bold relating to contract issues where discussed. Following are some of the bullet points: - The surveys that went out to Inspection Agencies earlier this year came back with an average of approximately 80 new dwellings as the recommended workload for a single inspector.; - The department needs to check that certified inspectors are available to the agencies prior to awarding contracts.; - The contracts are expected to be out by September 15, 2004.; - There was discussion of limiting contracts to one year only to weed out “bad actors” and to improve competition and keep costs low. The current plan is a 2+2 contract where the contracts are reviewed at the end of 2 years and can be renewed without re-bidding. It was generally decided that the 2+2 will work, as the local municipality could adopt and enforce the code themselves if they found a better inspector/inspection agency and price.; - There may be an upper limit of proposed fees where the department will have to come up with another plan if the bids are determined to be too high.; - There should be a provision for additional charges if the dwelling is not ready for an inspection that was scheduled.; - There will not be a requirement to have a 1-800 phone number.; - There was discussion of requiring the agency to periodically check in on a project to make sure the owner or contractor is calling for the inspections in a timely manner.; - There was discussion of requiring backup inspection staff for absences beyond a certain number of days.; - The inspector should offer to provide the county or municipality with copies of, or a summary of, all permits issued.; - If an inspector is also a builder, they cannot inspect their own work.

General information: - As of the end of June, 2004, there were 1,284 registered UDC inspectors with a credential in at least one of the UDC specialties. Of these, 395 were credentialed in all 4 UDC categories.; - There should be an information packet available to builders at the county zoning office, if the counties agree.; - Travel distance should be limited to approximately 100-150 miles per day.

Assignments for next meeting: Continue reading background documents handed out at last 2 meetings. The next meeting has been scheduled for: Wednesday, August 25, 2004 If you have any questions , please contact Larry Swaziek at (608) 267-7701 or email at lswaziek@commerce.state.wi.us.
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UDC Inspection Advisory Workgroup Wednesday, June 30, 2004, 10 a.m. - 2:30 p.m., Wisconsin Builders Association, 4868 High Crossing Boulevard, Madison, Wisconsin
Council Member Attendance: Arthur Biesek P, Tom Martin P, Bob Blankenheim P, Darin Pagel P Wallace Habhegger P, Devin Rains P, Mark Jankowski, P, Dan Schneider P, Lester Johnson P, Jack Van Der Weele P
Commerce Staff: Larry Swaziek, Program Manager, Leroy Stublaski, Code Consultant, Brian Ferris, Integrated Services Section Chief, Tom Kasper, Integrated Services Section Chief

Agenda review
This is a workgroup to provide advice in an informal setting.
Brainstorming session: - How will areas for contracting be determined?; - Should use county lines for determining contract areas since general public is most familiar with them.; - Will there be cost controls? Commerce staff indicated that the cost of inspection services provided to the consumer should be considered when issuing contracts.; - Can we break contract areas down into individual municipalities? County areas may be easiest for customers to understand.; - Should include alterations and additions with the state program. Commerce mailings and the draft contract specify that the state program will only include inspections of new homes. Otherwise some municipalities will defer to state. More consistency with typical local enforcement programs Can financially help support an agencies’ activities in an area?; - Discussion about what code and statutes say about alterations and additions.; - Concerns about adequate inspector force, agency oversight, staffing, auditing.; - Concern about the contract limiting subcontracting. Commerce staff noted that this is a standard state contract clause.; - Need agency oversight of inspection agencies.; - Should have mentoring available for new inspectors.; - Problems will occur with inspector going on vacation without backup.; - Some inspectors don’t do the inspections; - Contract provision for refunding fees when inspections are missed. Will help inspection agency compliance. But builder needs to call for inspections. Emphasis should be on getting the inspections done. Practicality is that all inspections can’t get done.; - Need to make pulling permits easy. Should have inspection agency local office hours.; - Travel distance is important in determining fees.; - Agencies don’t’ need office hours – can do by mail, fax, etc.; - What is applicability of open records law to inspectors?; - Agencies need vacation backup, especially for permit issuance versus inspections.; - Should check staffing of agency for adequacy in bidding process. Agencies should notify state of inspector departures.; - How to document that inspections were made? How to resolve disputes between owners and inspectors whether inspections were made.; - Builder can be inspector’s best ally.; - Many contractors don’t have Dwelling Contractor certification, so owner takes out permit.; - What enforcement tools will inspectors have? Stop work order?; - Occupancy bonds are an effective tool. Should be a month’s rent at a motel.; - District Attorneys don’t seem to care about code enforcement.; - Maybe let further experience with program direct policies and procedures.; - How long is agency responsible for a permit?; - Use a filing at Register of Deeds to flag inspection problems in a home.; - When the house is resold 5 years later, how is this filing cleared?; - Some banks look for occupancy permit.; - There may be a parallel with how flood plain enforcement history evolved.; - Who gets forfeited occupancy bond? Should be state, but how is it managed?; - There are currently occupancy bonds up to $2,500.; - Hard to get county zoning cooperation.; - Is there possibility to extend future citation authority to Insp. Agencies.; - Owner-builders and one-man builders will be the problems.; - Need an appeal process for builders.; - Will need to educate some builders.; - Some builders will be more knowledgeable than some new inspectors.; - Will want mostly uniform procedures such as for any occupancy bonds.; - Need to cash occupancy bond checks quickly before the account is closed.; - Could use part of an occupancy bond to pay SB administrative costs.; - Bigger builders could have a lot of occupancy bond money tied up.; - What are criteria for holding back a bond – missing a light switch?; - How will this be bid? Number of inspections will vary, so use cost per sq. ft.; - $25 Contract Administration Fee – if kept, allow agency to settle up with Commerce after permit issuance, perhaps once a month, to reflect various enforcement situations and need for fee. Draft contract does not include a contract fee.; - SB will have flexibility in refunding or transferring seals.; - Feels 3 years is too long for contract. Need competition especially during initial this initial period when new agencies are trying to get established.; - What criteria will be used for renewals/rebids? Complaints? If yes, what kind of complaints?; - Right of cancellation should be uniform (30 day notice for department vs. 60 day notice for contractor.); - If contract is terminated can contractor get a refund on seals already purchased? Yes. May also sell to another inspector or municipality for their use.; - Feels that the 30% retained fee on a project with no inspections completed would be overly generous on a big house permit fee.; - Should have Errors and Omissions insurance to better protect consumers. $2,500/yr min premium for $1M coverage – deductible? Better legitimizes the inspection agency.; - Will state cover agency liability?; - Does state want to deal with large or small agencies?; - Shouldn’t check staffing levels until contract signing. But how many homes can an inspector handle? Travel time is significant, also number of hours worked.; - Subcontracting should be allowed so agency can contract inspectors rather than employ them.; - Agencies will have ultimate responsibility to get enough staff.; - Agencies may falsely list staff that will not actually do the inspections.; - Will the county determine what a dwelling is?; - Should consider inspector geographical location in awarding contracts.; - Give weight to experienced inspectors.; - Get county sanitary departments to work with us.; - Get electric utilities to enforce inspector signoff for new services.; - Does electrical service statute require electrical inspector release for electrical services for any type of building if there is any type of electrical inspector, such as a UDC-electrical inspector, present? Commerce staff did not think the statute regarding inspection and release of electrical service applied to any type of building. Staff will research and bring back to next meeting.; - Have a potential problem with temporary dwelling permits issued by counties for garages, etc until owner finishes the house.; - Will we allow conditional final inspections?; - What is agency responsibility for checking project status when inspections are not called for?; - What does inspector do for uninspected/covered work?; - How long do records need to be retained? The draft contract states that records shall maintained for at least three years. Commerce staff will investigate statutory requirements further.

Reviewed background documents: - Municipalities may be delaying their enforcement decisions based on the possibility of another extension of time for the program.; - Contracted agencies are exclusive to an area.; - Density of new home construction is significant.; - Inspectors may relocate after awhile to where there is more work.; - How many UDC inspectors are there? How many with all four UDC categories?; - Should be no shortage of bids – agency may relocate its staff.; - Discussion regarding need to list backup inspector.; - Debate about the minimum number of inspection trips. Ranged between 5 to 10.; - Should not charge extra inspection fee if correction can be checked on next trip anyway.; - Who to bill for extra inspections? Owner, general contractor, subcontractors?; - What if subcontractors call for inspections?; - What if subcontractors want to pull separate permits and call for separate inspections?; - When does clock start for responding to inspection requests? When notification is provided in advance of work being completed? Commerce staff stated that the answer to the second question is no. The work must be completed and available for inspection before the clock starts for the two business day response period.; - One agency figures about 85 new homes, plus alterations and additions can be handled by a county-wide inspector.; - How are duplexes bid?; - Can there be a gasoline escalator surcharge for contracts?

Assignments for next meeting: Continue reading background documents handed out at June 30th meeting, including the draft contract.

Next Meeting: The next meeting has been scheduled for: July 28, 2004.
If you have any questions, please contact Larry Swaziek at (608) 267-7701 or email at lswaziek@commerce.state.wi.us. *********************************************************************** Email this page's manager, Todd Taylor, ttaylor@commerce.state.wi.us or 608-267-3606 X The Department of Commerce Safety and Buildings Division is an equal opportunity service provider and employer. If you need assistance to access services or need material in an alternate format, please contact us, 608-266-3151, TTY 608-264-8777, or ttaylor@commerce.state.wi.us