The Issue Whether Petitioner is entitled to additional credit on the challenged examination for licensure.
Findings Of Fact Petitioner, John R. Maroney, is a candidate for licensure as an electrical contractor low voltage applicant. He sat for examination in January 1999. His candidate number is 240024. Respondent, Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Board of Electrical Contractors, is the state agency charged with the responsibility of licensing applicants such as Petitioner. On the examination challenged, Petitioner received a score of 73.00, which was designated a failed status. In order to achieve a pass status Petitioner was required to obtain a score of 75.00. Petitioner timely challenged the results of two questions on the January 1999 examination. First, as to question 49, Petitioner maintained that his answer was reasonable as none of the answers given were correct. Question 49 required applicants to perform a mathematical computation and to select the best answer from those offered. The answer selected by Petitioner was $6.59 from the correct answer. The answer, the one that was given credit, was $4.77 or $1.47 from the correct answer, depending on whether the individual was paid for over-time at a higher rate. In either case the Department’s "correct" answer while not being mathematically accurate was the closer answer to a properly computed answer. The instructions on the examination directed applicants to choose the best answer to each question posed. Thus, while not mathematically accurate, Respondent’s answer to question 49 was the best from those offered. Choosing the best answer was also the issue in question 84 as none of the answers given on the examination accurately describes the cause of the problem. In making his selection, Petitioner admitted he had guessed, as he could not determine how any of the provided answers could decipher the problem he was to solve. Petitioner’s argument in this regard is well made since none of the answers given are attributable to the conditions described. Nevertheless, by process of elimination, an applicant could rule out the options offered by recognizing that two choices related to relay 1 could not contribute to the problem described. As Petitioner selected one of these clearly erroneous options, he cannot be given credit for the choice. As to the two remaining options, while inaccurate, the option that received credit was more likely related to the problem as the stop switch (stop 3) being faulty could cause the described problem if the circuit were to continue to be closed. Petitioner’s answer that described the problem on a relay unrelated to stop 3 would not be the best answer.
Recommendation Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Electrical Contractors’ Licensing Board, enter a final order dismissing Petitioner’s challenge to the examination for licensure. DONE AND ENTERED this 15th day of December, 1999, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. J. D. PARRISH Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 SUNCOM 278-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 15th day of December, 1999. COPIES FURNISHED: Lynne A. Quimby-Pennock Assistant General Counsel Department of Business and Professional Regulation Northwood Centre 1940 North Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1007 John R. Maroney 9641 Northwest 39th Court Cooper City, Florida 33024 Ila Jones, Executive Director Board of Electrical Contractors Department of Business and Professional Regulation 1940 North Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399 William Woodyard, General Counsel Department of Business and Professional Regulation 1940 North Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399
Findings Of Fact Johnson Controls, Inc., Petitioner, is a foreign corporation licensed to do business in Florida. It maintains offices in Jacksonville, Tampa, and Miami, employs sixty to eighty employees in this state and conducts business throughout Florida. It holds licenses in twenty-three separate Florida counties and municipalities. Petitioner is a multi-million dollar corporation licensed to do business in forty-nine of the fifty states. It engages in the business of manufacturing electrical components and constructing, installing, and servicing electrical control systems and other phases of electrical contracting work. On November 16, 1978, Petitioner filed with the Florida Electrical Contractors' Licensing Board (Board or Respondent) its application for licensure naming Wilfred Allen Infinger as qualifying agent. Winfred Allen Infinger holds a B.E. degree in technology and construction and a journeyman's electrician license in Pinellas County. He has experience in all phases of electrical contracting work and is fully qualified to serve as qualifying agent of Johnson Controls. On December 5, 1978, the Board returned the application requesting additional information relating to Johnson Control's financial statement and credit standing. On June 29, 1979, Johnson Controls refiled its application including additional financial information. On March 14, 1979, the Board advised Petitioners that the application would be reviewed by the application committee, thereby acknowledging receipt of a complete application. By letter of 8 May 1978, the Board advised applicants that it found in the application insufficient evidence to qualify Johnson Controls to sit for the examination because: Your application failed to meet the qualifications as that of a Florida licensed electrical contractor (468.181(5)) whose services are unlimited in the Electrical Field. The review of your application reflects that Johnson Controls, Inc. is a specialty contractor and presently Florida Statutes, Chapter 468, Part VII does not provide for a licensure of specialty contractors. Thereafter this petition and the petition in Case 79-1145R were filed. Johnson Controls' primary interest in the electrical contracting field involves wiring for temperature and humidity controls, communications and protective systems, and maintenance and repair of these systems. During the period from December 1976 to September 1978, included in Petitioner's application showing type of work performed, twenty-six contracts were listed varying from $5,000 to $300,000 in which Johnson Controls was subcontractor. Although not apparent on the face of the application, most of these subcontracts involved the installation of temperature control equipment and various low-voltage control equipment for life safety systems such as fire alarms and smoke detectors, security, and energy consumption. In the construction and installation of control systems, Johnson Controls performs design work, wires control systems by connecting the various components, installs sensors, motors, conduit, raceways, panels, switches, circuit breakers and power wiring. Although Johnson Controls normally works on voltage no higher than the 440 volt range, it has performed work on high voltage systems in excess of 13,000 volts. In addition, it has wired entire buildings, both industrial and residential, including phase balancing of the circuits. Control wiring is generally considered more complicated, therefore requiring a higher degree of skill, than most residential wiring. Commencing in 1973, Johnson Controls has filed five applications for licensure, including the present application, and all have been denied by the Board. Although the Board denied Johnson Controls' latest application on the grounds that the work it performs was not "unlimited", at the same time the applications of Brown and Root, Inc. and Bechtel Power Corporation were approved. Both of the latter companies are large international contractors whose only work in Florida involves electrical power plant installations. Holding local licenses allows Petitioners to enter into any electrical contract for the area in which licensed. However, if Petitioner is called upon to bid on work in an area in which it is not licensed, it must rely upon a local electrical contractor to perform the work. If the applied for license was granted, Petitioner would be able to bid and work statewide and could also cease paying annual renewal fees for the twenty-three local licenses it now holds. Johnson Controls is financially capable of performing unlimited services in the electrical field. Winfred A. Infinger is qualified by training and experience to serve as qualifying agent for a Florida electrical contractor.
Findings Of Fact Petitioner Luther E. Council, Jr., who is now 32 years old, is no stranger to the business of contracting. His father, Luther E. Council, Sr., began instructing him in the trade when Petitioner was approximately 10 years old. Mr. Council, Sr. operates Council Brothers, Incorporated, a commercial plumbing, heating and air conditioning contracting firm. From July 1969 until July 1973 Petitioner was employed as a plumber by Prescott Plumbing Company in Tallahassee, Florida. His duties included assembling and repairing pipes and fixtures for heating, wastewater, and drainage systems according to specifications and plumbing codes. In September 1973 Petitioner entered the United States Navy where he served as an aviation electrician. He attended numerous training schools including electrical, electronics, and avionics schools at the Naval Air Station in Memphis, Tennessee, and at the Naval Air Station at Cecil Field, Jacksonville, Florida. This instruction included over 1,500 hours of classroom time. After two years of service he was honorably discharged. Upon his discharge from the Navy in 1975, Petitioner went to work for Litton Industries at their Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi. He began in the position of Maintenance Electrician B but was promoted to Journeyman in less than six months. After approximately one and a half years at Ingalls Petitioner was hired at Brown & Root Construction Company as a Journeyman Electrician on their electrical termination crew. In that position he was responsible for the termination of all electrical equipment in the steam power plant for Mississippi Power Company. He remained in that position until the plant was shut down. Petitioner then returned to Ingalls where he was a Maintenance Electrician on the automated equipment crew. He maintained and repaired equipment such as boilers, welding machines, x-ray machines, air compressors, bridge cranes, communications equipment, sheet metal shop equipment, and fire and security alarm systems. This period of employment was from July 8, 1976 until February 2, 1977. Thereafter Petitioner was again employed by Brown & Root Construction Company, this time in Axis, Alabama. In his position as Work Leaderman Electrician (assistant foreman) he was responsible for the construction, installation, and termination of all electrical equipment for a particular utilities area at the Shell Chemical Plant. He worked on equipment such as boilers, air compressors, water treatment facilities, pump motors, hot oil furnaces instruments, monitoring and control panels, and incinerators with a crew of up to 18 men. Petitioner did not have a foreman but was directly responsible to the project superintendent. From June 1978 until June 1979 Petitioner was employed as an electrician by Union Carbide in Theodore, Alabama. As the only electrician on duty at night, Mr. Council was responsible for the electrical maintenance of all machinery ranging from the power plant distribution system to overhead bridge cranes to small electronic devices. Included within his responsibilities were maintaining air conditioning systems, interior and exterior lighting systems, and repairing huge sandblasting equipment. Upon completion of his work for Union Carbide he returned home to Council Brothers, Inc. Since his return to Council Brothers in June of 1979 Petitioner has had a variety of responsible duties. His functions can be placed in two categories: roving foreman and estimator. Council Brothers is a mechanical contractor with a gross profit of over 1.1 million dollars for the year 1983. Some of the firm's recent projects include installing heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment at several local high schools; pressurizing the stairwells and elevator shafts in the State Capitol building, modification of HVAC systems at several state office buildings in Tallahassee, Florida, and renovation work at the State Hospital in Chattahoochee, Florida. As an estimator Petitioner supervises the project design and is responsible for the firm's mechanical contracting projects. On most of its projects Council Brothers is the general contractor for the mechanical work. It then subcontracts out the specific electrical work required. In his capacity as a roving foreman Respondent serves as a trouble shooter available to assist those projects which may encounter particular problems. He is then responsible for solving the problems through a redesign of the project, the use of alternative equipment, or some other means. Since August of 1981 however, Mr. Council has spent most of his time in the office estimating and bidding jobs. On August 4, 1983 Petitioner became Vice-President of Council Brothers, Inc. The firm first registered as an electrical contractor in June 1983. Petitioner holds licenses as a certified building contractor, plumbing contractor, mechanical contractor and underground utilities contractor.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED: That the Electrical Contractors Licensing Board enter a Final Order denying Petitioner permission to take the examination for licensure as a certified electrical contractor. DONE and RECOMMENDED this 14th February, 1984, in Tallahassee, Florida. MICHAEL PEARCE DODSON Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings The Oakland Building 2009 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32301 (904) 488-9675 Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 14th day of February, 1984.
The Issue The issue in this case is whether the Electrical Contractors' Licensing Board should discipline the Respondent for violating section 489.533(1)(a), Florida Statutes (2013),1/ by violating section 455.227(1)(j), which prohibits "[a]iding, assisting, procuring, employing, or advising any unlicensed person or entity to practice a profession contrary to this chapter, the chapter regulating the profession, or the rules of the department or the board."
Findings Of Fact The Respondent, Michael Ellis, is licensed in Florida as an electrical contractor and holds licenses EC0000680 and EC13003559. He has been licensed in Florida since 1986 and has not been disciplined prior to this case. In the summer and fall of 2013, the Respondent was the primary qualifying agent of M. Ellis Electrical, Inc. (Ellis Electrical). In the summer and fall of 2013, Clark Huls was not licensed as an electrical contractor in Florida. In August 2013, Ellis Electrical had a subcontract with Powerhouse, Inc. (Powerhouse), which had a contract with 7-Eleven, Inc. (7-Eleven), for the installation of hot food cabinets at several different 7-Eleven retail locations in Florida. The installation required electrical work (including subpanels, new circuits, outlets, and breakers) and had to be done by a licensed electrical contractor. Someone at Powerhouse referred Huls to the Respondent, and the Respondent hired him to do the installations for $1,400 for each of nine different 7-Eleven jobsites. It was the Respondent's initial intent to hire Huls as a subcontractor. The evidence is disputed and not clear as to exactly what Huls represented to the Respondent about his license status when the Respondent hired him. The evidence is clear that Huls did not provide him with licensure and insurance information at that time and was supposed to provide this information to the Respondent at the first jobsite. The Respondent did not initially check DBPR's website to verify Huls' license status, which was the prudent and appropriate thing for him to have done. The first work performed by Huls for the Respondent was on August 21, 2013. The Respondent was there to supervise and direct the work. Huls did not provide license and insurance information. By this time, the Respondent clearly knew or should have known that Huls was not licensed. At the third installation Huls performed, on August 24, 2013, the Respondent had an employee named Jason Ippolito deliver an employment package to Huls. Huls refused to complete and sign the employment paperwork because it would change the terms of his agreement with the Respondent to be paid $1,400 per jobsite. The Respondent allowed Huls to continue to work on installations while trying to resolve the subcontract/employment issue. In all, Huls completed nine installations between August 21 and September 3, 2013. When Huls asked to be paid $1,400 per jobsite, as originally agreed, the Respondent refused to pay because Huls was not licensed as a subcontractor and refused to complete the paperwork to be paid as an employee. Huls then placed liens on all nine 7-Eleven properties and contacted Powerhouse to be paid. In order to save its relationship with 7-Eleven, Powerhouse paid Huls $5,806 and deducted that amount from what it owed Ellis Electrical. On October 12, 2013, the Respondent filed a DBPR complaint against Huls for subcontracting without a license. DBPR filed an Administrative Complaint against Huls for unlicensed activity. Criminal prosecutions of Huls also were filed and were pending at the time of the final hearing in this case. In mitigation, in addition to his clean record as a long-time licensee, the Respondent presented that he was dealing with his wife's serious health issues during the summer and fall of 2013, which affected his ability to manage his jobsites. In addition, no consumer or member of the public suffered financial harm. Ultimately, the financial harm was borne by the Respondent.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that the Electrical Contractors' Licensing Board find the Respondent, Michael Ellis, guilty as charged, fine him $1,000, require him to pay reasonable investigative costs, and take two additional hours of continuing education with an emphasis on laws and rules. Jurisdiction is retained for 30 days after the final order to determine reasonable investigative costs if the parties cannot reach an agreement. DONE AND ENTERED this 13th day of March, 2015, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. S J. LAWRENCE JOHNSTON Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 13th day of March, 2015.
The Issue The parties stipulated that the Petitioner's financial responsibility and morals were not an issue. The only basis for the Board's denial was the Petitioner's alleged lack of experience. Petitioner and Respondent submitted proposed findings of fact which were read and considered. These proposals are discussed in detail in the Conclusions of Law.
Findings Of Fact Petitioner is presently employed as an electrical inspector for Hillsborough County, Florida. He has held this position for approximately two and one-half (2 1/2) years. He holds a master's electrician's license issued by Hillsborough County but is prohibited by terms of his employment as an electrical inspector from engaging in any electrical contracting activity. Petitioner is technically experienced as an electrician. Prior to his employment as an electrical inspector, Petitioner was employed by Mobil Chemical Company which operates several phosphate mines in central Florida. The Petitioner was employed at its Fort Meade mine. The Fort Meade mine, or plant, is a substantial operation producing approximately four (4) million tons of phosphate per year at the time when Petitioner was employed. The mining area occupies several hundred acres and the working or processing area occupies approximately ten (10) of those acres. The working area comprises of a flotation plant, a washer plant, a sizing section, a shipping area where the rock is loaded on railroad cars, a maintenance area, and an office complex. The plant ran three (3) shifts around the clock and employed approximately one hundred (100) persons. All of the major equipment to include the 30 and 40 yard draglines at the Fort Meade plant alone contained in excess of one hundred (100) electric motors each with its own fuse box and disconnect. The Petitioner was employed by Nobil Chemical Company for twenty (20) years (1962-1982); 16 years as an electrician and four years as supervisor of the electrical maintenance at the Fort Meade plant. He was responsible for all electrical repairs, maintenance, and new construction at the plant for all three shifts. His direct superior was the department chief who was in charge of all the electrical departments at all of Mobil's phosphate mining locations. Approximately twenty (20 percent) percent of the Petitioner's time was spent on new construction projects. Approximately forty (40 percent) percent of petitioner's time was spent on regular maintenance and repairs. Fifteen (15 percent) percent of the Petitioner's time was spent on emergency repairs. The remainder of petitioner's time was spent on miscellaneous projects. Petitioner supervised a staff of ten (10) men: two (2) crewmen, four linemen, and four (4) electricians. The Petitioner was responsible for estimating the cost of jobs for his immediate superior to include the cost of materials and the number of man hours. The Petitioner was responsible for counting and reporting the number of hours his employees worked in turning this information into the company's payroll section. Petitioner had the power to request overtime work for his employees and made recommendations concerning hiring and firing personnel. On new construction the Petitioner's responsibilities began with doing takeoffs from blueprints provided for the job and supervising the work through to its completion. He was responsible for the maintenance and repair of the Fort Meade facility to include small electrical motors, large electrical motors, office lighting, transformers, and the large draglines. Petitioner's experience included experience with three (3) phase electrical power, high voltage electrical service, and lower voltages used in small motors, lights and appliances. The electrical department which the Petitioner headed provided service only to Mobil's Fort Meade plant. Mobil is not an electrical contractor; however, its electrical department provided extensive services which are comparable to those an outside electrical contracting service would have provided. Although the petitioner did not prepare a payroll for those persons who he supervised, he did serve as the clerk for his church for five (5) years during which time he was responsible for preparing the payroll for the church's employees. The petitioner applied in 1982 to sit for the electrical contractor's licensing examination. His application was approved by the Respondent and the Petitioner sat for the examination on two occasions, failing both examinations. Petitioner reapplied to sit for the electrical contractor's licensing examination in 1984 and was denied by the Respondent based upon lack of satisfactory experience. The Petitioner held a responsible management position with Mobil at the Fort Meade plant as supervisor of electrical maintenance at the Fort Meade facility for four (4) years. The Petitioner never negotiated a construction contract, was never bonded as a contractor, never obtained insurance to cover his operation as a contractor, and never sought a building permit for any of the electrical work done at the Fort Meade facility.
Recommendation Based upon the foregoing findings of fact and conclusions of law, it is recommended that the Florida Electrical Contractors Licensing Board disapprove the application of Cecil U. Lane to sit for the statewide electrical contractor's license. DONE and ORDERED this 18th day of January, 1985, in Tallahassee, Florida. STEPHEN F. DEAN Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings The Oakland Building 2009 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32301 (904) 488-9675 Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 18th day of January, 1985. COPIES FURNISHED: Mr. Jerry W. Hendry Executive Director Department of Professional Regulation Division of Electrical Contractors 130 North Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32301 Eric S. Ruff, Esquire Post Office Box TT Plant City, Florida 33566 Arthur C. Wallberg, Esquire Department of Legal Affairs Suite 1601 The Capitol Tallahassee, Florida 32301 Mr. Fred M. Roche, Secretary Department of Professional Regulation 130 North Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32301
The Issue The issue is whether J. P. Electrical Contractors Corp. qualifies as a socially and economically disadvantaged business enterprise under Rule 14- 78.005(c), (e), and (f), Florida Administrative Code.
Findings Of Fact J. P. Electrical Contractors is a Florida corporation which has been in business for approximately 17 years. It was founded and owned by Jacques Paul- Hus. The firm currently employees approximately 58 people. Its strengths are in contracting for highway lightning systems, traffic signals, and navigation lighting systems for airport runways. The firm has done a substantial amount of business. Its gross receipts for recent years are as follows: 1984 - $8,961,845 1985 - $7,881,440 1986 - $7,900,000 Mr. Mario Avin has been employed at J. P. Electrical since 1975, and has been a project manager for cost control. He has functioned as the controller or chief financial officer for the company. He is well experienced in the management of electrical contracting firms. Mr. Avin is black. About 1985, J. P. Electrical Contractors found itself in financial difficulty because of a contract it had with the Dade County Airport Authority. It had installed a shipment of runway lighting from Westinghouse Corporation which turned out to be defective. Due to the problems with those lights, a substantial portion of the contract price was retained by Dade County pending resolution of the lighting problem. This adversely affected the business' cash flow and required it to enter Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. The company filed suit against Westinghouse Corporation and has received a favorable judgment at trial, which is on appeal. The business received an infusion of 200,000 invested by David E. Graham, a lawyer not experienced in contracting. To secure the loan, a transaction was structured by which Graham obtained indirect ownership of 1/2 of the stock of J. P. Electrical Contractors, a lien on the remaining stock of the company and became the lessor of the building occupied by J. P. Electrical Contractors. At about this time, Mario Avin began thinking of opening his own contracting company, based on his substantial experience in the contracting business, and on the assistance he could receive from the disadvantaged business enterprise programs of various governments due to his minority status. Jacques Paul-Hus suggested to Mr. Avin that he become an owner as well as manager of J. P. Electrical Contractors Corp. Mr. Paul-Hus understood that if J. P. Electrical Contractors obtained minority status, it could enhance sales. As the result, the stock in J. P. Electrical Contractors Corp. was divided as follows: Mario Avin 25,500 shares Jacques Paul-Hus 24,400 shares Louise Paul-Hus 100 shares David E. Graham ceased to own any stock in the company. Graham was most interested in recovering his investment and a profit, but was not interested in running a contracting company, which was outside his expertise. He also wished to be released from the guarantees which he, as a shareholder, had to provided to the surety company which underwrote the various construction bonds which J. P. Electrical Contractors had. Graham maintained, however, a lien in the form of a pledge and hypothecation agreement on the shares of J. P. Electrical Contractors Corp. The first application of J. P. Electrical Contractors to the Florida Department of Transportation for certification as a disadvantaged business enterprise was disapproved on January 5, 1988, due to the pledge and hypothecation agreement. In view of the Department certification review committee, Mr. Avin, who was chairman of the board of the company and held the majority of the stock, still did not have functional control over the company due to the pledge encumbering his stock. A new application was submitted on February 4, 1988, by J. P. Electrical Contractors Corp. After the first disapproval, the affairs of the corporation were restructured. The pledge held by David E. Graham was cancelled and Mr. Avin owned outright the 25,500 shares of stock which represented 51 percent ownership without any encumbrance. Mr. Avin did not pay cash for his shares. The contribution to the enterprise which justified the transfer of the stock to him was the value of his experience in the financial management of electrical contracting business. As a chief financial officer, Mr. Avin is well experienced in estimating, in accounting systems, and in keeping track of the business' cash flow. This is essential in determining whether the company's position will permit it to bid and handle new work profitably. There is no doubt that, in part, the majority ownership was transferred to Mr. Avin by the former owners because of his minority status. With his majority ownership of the corporation, Mr. Avin also took on substantial personal liabilities. He became personally liable to Southeastern Causality and Indemnity Insurance Company on the performance bonds which J. P. Electrical Contractors has. He is now also personally liable to the Internal Revenue Service for payroll taxes due on the salary of all the company employees, because he is the corporate officer in charge of payroll. While Mr. Avin handles the day-to-day financial affairs and planning for the company, Mr. Jacques Paul-Hus still handles supervision of the field work of the company on a day-to-day basis. Given Mr. Avin's experience in financial matters, and Mr. Paul-Hus' experience in field supervision, this division of responsibility is appropriate. In return for taking on the additional responsibilities of becoming both the chief executive officer and chief financial officer of the company, and assuming the personal liabilities explained above, Mr. Avin now receives a 51 percent portion of the profits of the company. The remaining 49 percent of any profits goes to Jacques Paul-Hus and his wife Louise. Mr. Graham's interest is limited to the ownership of indebtedness of the company. The second (current) application of J. P. Electrical Contractors for certification as a minority business enterprise was disapproved by the Department of Transportation on March 7, 1988. The certification review committee had been troubled by the restructuring of the affairs of J. P. Electrical Contractors Corp. to meet the departmental objections which had resulted in the first disapproval of minority certification. The Department is wary of changes in corporate control as indications of improper manipulation of disadvantage business enterprise requirements. Here, Mr. Avin actually owns the majority of the stock of the contracting company and he shares both the risks of ownership as well as profits in proportion to his ownership. He has managerial authority commensurate with his majority ownership and has substantial experience in electrical contracting. He has the power to set the policies of the business, and his authority is not subject to any restriction, whether by a pledge of his stock or otherwise. While Mr. Paul-Hus is responsible for field supervision, Mr. Avin's experience and authority in planning and financial matters, as well as his ability to set overall policy, places Mr. Avin in charge of the business. Mr. Avin's testimony that he is responsible and empowered to make business decisions without the concurrence of Mr. Paul-Hus is accepted. While it is appropriate for the Department to be concerned about the restructuring of the corporation to meet the requirements of its program for disadvantaged business enterprises, the structure of J. P. Electrical Contractors is such that Mr. Avin does have ownership and control of the firm.
Recommendation It is RECOMMENDED that the application of J. P. Electrical Contractors Corp. for certification as a disadvantaged business enterprise be GRANTED. DONE AND ENTERED in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida, this 30th day of June, 1988. WILLIAM R. DORSEY, JR. Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings The Oakland Building 2009 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1550 (904) 488-9675 Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 30th day of June, 1988. COPIES FURNISHED: Mr. Mario Avin J. P. Electrical Contractors Corp. 877 Northwest 61st Street Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33309 James W. Anderson, Esquire Department of Transportation Haydon Burns Building, M.S. 58 605 Suwannee Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0458 Kaye N. Henderson, Secretary Department of Transportation Haydon Burns Building, M.S. 58 605 Suwannee Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0458 Thomas H. Bateman, III General Counsel Department of Transportation Haydon Burns Building, M.S. 58 605 Suwannee Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0458
