Who this applies to
A Florida construction license does not carry a bond that every holder must post. What the licensing statute holds instead is a ceiling on bonding, and it reaches Division I and Division II certificateholders only when the Construction Industry Licensing Board's financial-stability guidelines call for bonding [2].
The board must adopt guidelines for judging an applicant's financial stability, and the statute lets those guidelines include net worth, cash and bonding minimums of no more than $20,000 for Division I certificateholders and no more than $10,000 for Division II certificateholders [2]. Those figures are ceilings the statute sets for the board's guidelines, not a flat requirement for every licensee.
Coursework can carry part of the load. Fifty percent of the financial requirements may be met by completing a 14-hour financial responsibility course [2].
What the rule says
Section 489.115(7) of the Florida Statutes does not impose a bond by itself; it caps the bonding the board may build into its financial-stability guidelines at $20,000 and $10,000 for the two divisions [2]. Because the board adopts those guidelines by rule, whether an applicant is asked for a bond, and how large one is under the ceiling, turns on the board's rules rather than on the statute.
How to comply
Licensing runs through the Construction Industry Licensing Board of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, DBPR (construction industry page).
- Start from the board's guidelines. They set the financial-stability requirement for your license, and any bonding minimum in them is capped at $20,000 for a Division I certificateholder or $10,000 for Division II [2].
- The course route. A 14-hour financial responsibility course may meet fifty percent of the financial requirements [2].
- Registered, not certified. A registered contractor is licensed to work only in the local jurisdiction that issued its competency card, and individual counties and municipalities may impose their own bonds.
Before applying, confirm the financial-stability requirement for your license category with the board, since the statute leaves the details to its rules.
Related
- contractor license bond cost calculator: enter any bonding figure the board's guidelines set for you; the statute keeps it within its ceiling.
- all states' bond requirements, for Florida's entry alongside the rest.