Officials with the Kentucky Better Business Bureau say they've received a high number of complaints of shoddy roof work. The House approved a measure Wednesday aimed at addressing such fraud.
The bill establishes a $25 per job roofer fee to support a statewide inspection program. Louisville lawmaker Steve Riggs says the legislation is being dubbed the 'fraud buster' bill. "When they see a state has adopted something like this, they'll just go find another state to work and leave our state alone," said Riggs. "So it's a wonderful deterrent to protect people, not just that you've got the program of now licensing and certifying, but now you have a deterrent for them coming here in the first place."
800 roof complaints have been registered with the BBB since 2012. Of that number, Representative Jerry Miller says questionable contractors came to the Commonwealth from 20 different states. "We had contractors from New England, from Arizona, from Florida, from Wisconsin, from Minnesota and these are the people that are the storm chasers," said Miller.
South Shore Representative Tanya Pullin believes the added expense could be a burden for legitimate roofers. "We have not heard from the roofers in Adair County, or Allen County, or Ballard County, or Barren County," said Pullin. "Nor have we heard of them telling us that they need this additional bureaucracy and additional red tape."
Riggs also told his colleagues there are exemptions for small roofing companies and new homes or buildings. He's confident the legislation can win final approval this session.
