Bill would set fraud rules for home and land improvement work

The measure would treat certain knowing conduct in home and land improvement jobs as fraud. Home improvement includes work on a residence, such as roof work. Land improvement includes site work, roads, tree work, and forestry, whether or not it is tied to a residence. The agreement must be for at least $1,000 with one owner, or at least $2,500 in total across agreements with more than one owner. Fraud also includes material lies about the agreement or property, deceptive efforts to win or change an agreement, and emergency prices above twice the average when added costs do not explain the increase. The text proposes an effective date of July 1, 2026.

The measure would require people with certain convictions to meet limits before doing paid home or land improvement work. The employer option excludes employers with a prior violation and employers or managers who are family, household members, or current or former business associates of the person. This applies to people sentenced for a second or later violation, certain higher-loss violations, or convicted of related fraudulent acts. A person could work for a qualifying employer after giving required notices, or notify the Attorney General and provide a bond or letter of credit of at least $250,000, with regular fees paid. The text proposes an effective date of July 1, 2026.

The measure would place people convicted of improvement fraud on a registry and restrict some access to state aid and contracts. These provisions concern people convicted of home or land improvement fraud and people subject to timber trespass surety requirements. The Attorney General would list the person's name and whether they reported filing a bond or letter of credit. A convicted person could be barred from state grants and state or local government contracts for up to three years, as decided by the Buildings and General Services commissioner. People subject to timber trespass surety rules would have to meet them before doing land improvement work. The contract and grant restriction would run from the conviction date; the text proposes an effective date of July 1, 2026.