sundance-communications.com/forum Forums Wiring - Telecom Carriers - Trunks & Services Cabling Telephones Systems Wiring Permits????

In Cobb County Georgia to get a low voltage permit you have to have a state license, a Cobb County business license and a 10k bond exclusively for Cobb County only.

EV,
If it weren't so down right sad the way you got jacked around it would be almost funny.

So far out here in the sticks there is no requirement to pull permits but I can just see it coming!

Did you ever think about show business? What a monologue this story would make.

Have a good weekend, KLD

Damn: I had a great chapter two of my book, but this new forum doesn't let you respond without logging in. By the time I did that, chapter two was gone.

Permits, licenses and technology. My three best friends.

Maybe I will re-write chapter two later. It was good. The saga continued after I thought my day had ended. I will leave you hanging...........

Speaking of permits. Does anyone know of an electrician in Baltimore Maryland that I can partner with to pull permits there?

Thanks

We are still ok here for now, but have heard it is coming.

Is this a county,city or state law?

Mr. Vice President:

Around here, it's on a city-by-city, town-by-town, county-by-county and state-by-state basis. I could have saved a bunch of keystrokes by saying that any jurisdiction within 100 miles of my office requires a local business license (yes, each jurisdiction with annual renewal fees paid based upon sales volume), a state contractor's license (big, bad test if you want a class A with no "per-job" dollar limit) and then an individual electrical contractor's license for the locality.

It has actually gotten so bad around here that there are "permit runner" companies that provide you with a body who will take your application to the appropriate office, wait in line, pay the fee, and then bring you the permit back when they are done. Of course, they do these in mass, but it still costs money. It costs less than paying an employee to waste three+ hours. A runner can cost anywhere from $20.00 to $100.00 over and above the cost of the permit, depending on how long they have to spend waiting. It's just like a taxi. If we sign an annual contract with the runner company, then they give us a flat-rate price per-permit, but it's expensive since we have to write a check for the whole year.

Amazingly, the licensing is the easy part. Getting the permit is the fun part. Here's the process:

1. GC demands a low-voltage permit or we can't set foot on the job;

2. Get GC to fax us a copy of the building permit so we can get the "building owner, lot, block, district" and all of that other stuff;

3. They resist since they are too busy; we should be able to get this information on our own;

4. Eventually get the fax or figure it out, then drive anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes to take the application, along with a blank check. It has to be blank because the permit fees change each time you go there;

5. After an hour waiting to get the permit, you make the return 30-90 minute trip back to the office so you can fax the permit to the GC superintendent.

6. You use the appropriate jurisdiction's automated system to order a concealment inspection for your wiring.

7. The inspector calls you the next morning and asks if it will be OK if they just "catch" the low-voltage wiring when they do the other inspections a week from now. (We paid for our own permit and inspection, but who is going to argue with the inspector?).

8. The inspector never even looks at our wiring when he inspects the high-voltage.

9. We call the automated system for the final inspection after we have installed all jacks.

10. Again, the inspector calls and asks if he can just pick our inspection up when he does the final for everyone else.

11. Again, we agree. Who wants to poke a skunk? Give him what he wants, period.

12. The county collects their $50.00 to $200.00 (plus our time, of course) for the permit which is nothing but paperwork.

We even tested the system by pulling a permit for two cable runs (like we are supposed to do) in a plenum ceiling, but we intentionally ran non-plenum cable. It was in our own office. The installation passed with flying colors. The inspector never even opened a ceiling tile!

No, nothing was said to the inspector. It just brought me to the realization that inspections on low-voltage are just a matter of license and permit fee revenue. These people aren't stupid.

Mike, you made me drag it (the box) out again!

I'm glad I work in Maine Here how it goes here.

1. Customer calls wants new lines installed.

2. Send tech to pull wires and make connections.

3. Send invoice for completed job.

In upstate NY it depends on where you are. In the city of Buffalo, I had to get a permit to run LV. The permit fee was $75 and then it was something like $5.50 per termination. Now, in the 'burbs of Buffalo, a permit isn't required. In Rochester, I have heard you're supposed to have one, but no one is enforcing it.

We also fight this battle. In fact it is so bad we just recently did a job where the guys were a little anxious in getting started so they pulled cable before pulling the permit in Washington DC. Bad call...inspector showed up when they had about 95% of cable roughed-in. Electrical contractor did not have a permit posted and either did we...$2,000 fine each.

Never had that happen before. We had the permit the next morning. Lessen learned !!! We do no work without permits any more...

Mike

Ouch! Anyone know a good cabling outfit in Jacksonville, FL?