Asbestos Work Must Be Performed within License Classification

A licensed contractor who wants to become certified to perform asbestos removal and/or abatement must be tested by CSLB and also register with the Department of Industrial Relations' Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH). Once registered, the licensee submits verification of the DOSH registration to CSLB, and "ASB" (asbestos) appears on the license to indicate that the individual can perform removal/abatement within his/her classification.

A recent legal opinion from the Department of Consumer Affairs confirmed that asbestos certification is intended only to certify a licensed contractor's ability to perform asbestos work exclusively within his/her license classification(s).

This conclusion is based largely on the fact that the asbestos abatement certificate does not require the qualifier to have four years of experience in the field for which licensure is sought, unlike every other applicant for CSLB licensure. Asbestos certification by itself is not a CSLB license classification.

For more information on this topic, please see the legal opinion to conduct asbestos-related contracting work.