08-21-2013, 12:59 PM
The issue not whether anyone is incompetent to glue two pieces of ABS together or wire an outlet. The issue is whether a complex residential electrical or plumbing job is implemented competently. If the electrician or plumber has confidence in you and you wire an outlet or glue two pieces of ABS together, great. They still have to sign off on the job and the inspector still has to inspect it. That's a different situation than shelling out a couple of hundred dollars and having someone blindly sign off. What's to stop them? What's to prevent a few buried boxes or taped junctions, maybe some zip cord from being installed in walls, buttoned up and pass a polarity test? Hopefully, a good professional on the job.
Now, could you implement a legal structure where owner-builders could do their own major residential construction work with licensed and regulated oversight? Perhaps specific inspections with pictures and logs of work might be submitted to the county in lieu of a full professional job? I would think probably, if the will was there from interested parties, whoever they are. Since health and safety are key issues in both electrical and plumbing, it's hard to deny a public interest. On that basis I doubt that constitutional challenges would be successful, but that's certainly MHO.
Now, could you implement a legal structure where owner-builders could do their own major residential construction work with licensed and regulated oversight? Perhaps specific inspections with pictures and logs of work might be submitted to the county in lieu of a full professional job? I would think probably, if the will was there from interested parties, whoever they are. Since health and safety are key issues in both electrical and plumbing, it's hard to deny a public interest. On that basis I doubt that constitutional challenges would be successful, but that's certainly MHO.