74th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2007 Regular Session
 
NOTE:  Matter within  { +  braces and plus signs + } in an
amended section is new. Matter within  { -  braces and minus
signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within
 { +  braces and plus signs + } .
 
LC 763
 
                         House Bill 2120
 
Ordered printed by the Speaker pursuant to House Rule 12.00A (5).
  Presession filed (at the request of Governor Theodore R.
  Kulongoski for Construction Contractors Board)
 
 
                             SUMMARY
 
The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the
measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject to
consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor's
brief statement of the essential features of the measure as
introduced.
 
  Requires original contractor for work on residential property
to maintain copy of 'Information Notice to Owner' signed by
recipient of notice. Requires contractor to provide copy of
signed ' Information Notice to Owner' to Construction Contractors
Board upon request. Makes violator subject to license suspension
and to civil penalty not exceeding $5,000. Creates presumption of
nondelivery if contractor fails to provide copy of notice in
response to subpoena, court order or board request.
  Prohibits original contractor from asserting lien against
residential property if contractor fails to give required '
Information Notice to Owner.  '
 
                        A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to construction contractor liens; creating new
  provisions; and amending ORS 87.018 and 87.093.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
  SECTION 1. ORS 87.018 is amended to read:
  87.018. All notices required under ORS 87.001 to 87.060 and
87.075 to 87.093 shall be in writing and delivered in person or
delivered by registered or certified mail except for the '
Information Notice to Owner' described in ORS 87.093 which may
also be   { - proved by a United States Postal Service
certificate of mailing - }  { +  sent by first class mail.
However, proof that an original contractor has delivered an
'Information Notice to Owner' must be in the form described under
ORS 87.093 (2)(c) + }.
  SECTION 2. ORS 87.093 is amended to read:
  87.093. (1) The Construction Contractors Board shall adopt by
rule a form entitled 'Information Notice to Owner'
 { - which - }   { + that + } shall describe, in nontechnical
language and in a clear and coherent manner using words in their
common and everyday meanings, the pertinent provisions of the
Construction Lien Law of this state and the rights and
responsibilities of an owner of property and an original
contractor under that law. The rights and responsibilities
described in the form shall include, but not be limited to:
  (a) Methods by which an owner may avoid multiple payments for
the same materials and labor;
 
  (b) The right to file a claim against a licensed contractor
with the Construction Contractors Board and, when appropriate, to
be reimbursed from the contractor's bond filed under ORS chapter
701; and
  (c) The right to receive, upon written request therefor, a
statement of the reasonable value of materials, equipment,
services or labor provided from the persons providing the
materials, equipment, services or labor at the request of an
original contractor and who have also provided notices of right
to a lien.
  (2)(a) Each original contractor shall provide a copy of the '
Information Notice to Owner' adopted by the Construction
Contractors Board under this section to:
  (A) The first purchaser of residential property constructed by
the contractor and sold before or within the 75-day period
immediately following the completion of construction; and
  (B) The owner or an agent of the owner, other than an original
contractor, at the time of signing a written residential
construction or improvement contract with the owner.
  (b) When the residential construction or improvement contract
is an oral contract, the original contractor shall mail or
otherwise deliver the 'Information Notice to Owner' not later
than five days after the contract is made.
   { +  (c) The original contractor shall maintain a copy of each
' Information Notice to Owner' delivered under this subsection or
subsection (3) of this section, signed by the recipient of the
notice. Within 72 hours after receiving a request by the board, a
contractor shall deliver a copy of the signed notice to the
board. + }
  (3) This section applies only to a residential construction or
improvement contract for which the aggregate contract price
exceeds $1,000. If the price of a home improvement contract was
initially less than $1,000, but during the course of the
performance of the contract exceeds that amount, the original
contractor shall mail or otherwise deliver the 'Information
Notice to Owner' not later than five days after the contractor
knows or should reasonably know that the contract price will
exceed $1,000.
  (4) An 'Information Notice to Owner' need not be sent when the
owner is a contractor licensed with the Construction Contractors
Board under ORS chapter 701.
   { +  (5) Failure to timely provide a copy of the signed notice
the contractor is required to maintain under subsection (2)(c) of
this section in response to a subpoena, court order or board
request creates a rebuttable presumption that the contractor
failed to deliver the notice as required by subsections (2) and
(3) of this section. + }
    { - (5) - }  { +  (6) + } Notwithstanding ORS 87.010 { +  and
87.030 + }, if an original contractor does not provide an owner
or agent with an ' Information Notice to Owner' as required under
subsections (2) and (3) of this section, the original contractor
may not claim any lien created under ORS 87.010 upon any
improvement, lot or parcel of land of the owner for labor,
services or materials supplied under the residential construction
or improvement contract for which the { +  original contractor
failed to provide the required + } ' Information Notice to Owner'
 { - was not provided - } .
    { - (6) - }  { +  (7) + } If an original contractor does not
 { - provide an owner or agent with an - }  { +  timely provide
the Construction Contractors Board with a requested copy of a
signed + } 'Information Notice to Owner' as required under
subsection (2) of this section, the   { - Construction
Contractors - }  board may suspend the license of the original
contractor for any period of time that the board considers
appropriate or impose a civil penalty of not more than $5,000
upon the original contractor as provided in ORS 701.992.
    { - (7) - }  { +  (8) + } As used in this section:
  (a) 'Residential construction or improvement' means the
original construction of residential property and constructing,
repairing, remodeling or altering residential property and
includes, but is not limited to, the construction, repair,
replacement or improvement of driveways, swimming pools,
terraces, patios, fences, porches, garages, basements and other
structures or land adjacent to a residential dwelling.
  (b) 'Residential construction or improvement contract ' means
an agreement, oral or written, between an original contractor and
an owner for the performance of a home improvement and includes
all labor, services and materials furnished and performed
thereunder.
  SECTION 3.  { + The amendments to ORS 87.018 and 87.093 by
sections 1 and 2 of this 2007 Act apply to notices for which
delivery by the original contractor is first required on or after
the effective date of this 2007 Act. + }
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