Bill Text: CT SB00975 | 2015 | General Assembly | Chaptered
Bill Title: An Act Making Minor And Technical Changes To Department Of Consumer Protection Statutes.
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Passed) 2015-06-19 - Signed by the Governor [SB00975 Detail]
Download: Connecticut-2015-SB00975-Chaptered.html
Substitute Senate Bill No. 975
AN ACT MAKING MINOR AND TECHNICAL CHANGES TO DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER PROTECTION STATUTES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 7-173 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2015):
Any organization desiring to operate a bazaar or raffle in a municipality which has adopted the provisions of sections 7-170 to 7-186, inclusive, shall make application, [in duplicate,] duly executed and verified, to the Commissioner of Consumer Protection on a form to be prescribed by the commissioner, in which shall be stated (1) the name and address of the applicant; (2) facts relating to its incorporation or organization; (3) the names, titles and addresses of its officers; (4) the kind of bazaar or raffle intended to be held, operated and conducted by the applicant; (5) the place where such bazaar or raffle is intended to be conducted by the applicant under the permit applied for; (6) the date or dates and the time or times when such bazaar or raffle is intended to be conducted by the applicant under the permit applied for; (7) in the case of a raffle, the number and price of tickets intended to be sold; (8) the items of expense intended to be incurred or paid in connection with the holding, operating and conducting of such bazaar or raffle and the names and addresses of the persons to whom, and the purposes for which, they are to be paid; (9) the items of merchandise offered, the price to be paid by the organization therefor or the retail value of any prize donated, and the names and addresses of the persons from whom purchased or by whom donated; (10) the specific purposes to which the entire net proceeds of such bazaar or raffle are to be devoted and in what manner; and (11) any other information which the commissioner reasonably requires for the protection of the public. In each application there shall be designated three active members of the applicant under whom the bazaar or raffle described in the application is to be held, operated and conducted and to the application shall be appended a statement signed, under penalty of false statement, by such members so designated that they are residents of this state and will be responsible for the holding, operation and conduct of such bazaar or raffle in accordance with the terms of the permit and the provisions of said sections, and that the statements contained in the application are, to the best of their knowledge and belief, true. The commissioner shall forward [the duplicate copy of] such application to the chief of police of the municipality or, if there is no police department, to the chief executive officer of the municipality. [For the purposes of applying for a "Class No. 7" permit, authorized pursuant to section 7-175, the application required pursuant to this section shall be retained by the commissioner. ]
Sec. 2. Section 7-176 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2015):
The fees to be charged for permits [and submitted to the Commissioner of Consumer Protection at the time of application] shall be as follows: A "Class No. 1" permit, fifty dollars, twenty-five dollars to be retained by the state at the time application for the permit is made and twenty-five dollars remitted to the municipality upon issuance of the permit; a "Class No. 2" permit, twenty dollars, ten dollars to be retained by the state at the time application for the permit is made and ten dollars to be remitted to the municipality upon issuance of the permit; a "Class No. 3" permit, twenty dollars for each day of the bazaar, ten dollars to be retained by the state at the time application for the permit is made and ten dollars to be remitted to the municipality upon issuance of the permit; a "Class No. 4" permit, five dollars, to be remitted to the municipality; a "Class No. 5" permit, eighty dollars, forty dollars to be retained by the state at the time application for the permit is made and forty dollars remitted to the municipality upon issuance of the permit; a "Class No. 6" permit, one hundred dollars, fifty dollars to be retained by the state at the time application for the permit is made and fifty dollars remitted to the municipality upon issuance of the permit; and a "Class No. 7" permit, one hundred dollars to be retained by the state.
Sec. 3. Subsection (h) of section 7-185a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2015):
(h) (1) Any sponsoring organization qualified to conduct a bazaar or raffle under the provisions of section 7-172 may operate a golf ball-drop raffle once each calendar year. Any such raffle shall conform to the provisions of sections 7-170 to 7-186, inclusive, and shall be subject to regulation by the Commissioner of Consumer Protection. For the [purpose] purposes of this subsection, "golf ball-drop raffle" means a raffle in which golf balls, numbered consecutively to correspond with the number of tickets sold for such raffle, are dropped from a pay loader, bucket truck, crane or similar vehicle, platform, helicopter, hot air balloon or other aircraft hovering above a designated target, and in which the ticket corresponding to the number of the first golf ball to be closest to the center of the designated target is the winning ticket. (2) The commissioner shall adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, establishing procedures for the operation of golf ball-drop raffles.
Sec. 4. Section 20-304a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2015):
(a) The board may issue an automatic fire sprinkler system layout technician's license to any person who has received level III certification from the National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies in the field of fire protection engineering technology or a subfield of automatic sprinkler system layout. Any person who is a professional engineer licensed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter [, a plumbing and piping journeyman licensed pursuant to chapter 393, a plumbing and piping contractor licensed pursuant to chapter 393 or a journeyman sprinkler fitter licensed pursuant to chapter 393] shall be exempt from such licensing requirement.
(b) The Commissioner of Consumer Protection shall adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, for the issuance of automatic fire sprinkler system layout technician's licenses and to prescribe the amount of the fees required pursuant to this section. Upon the adoption of such regulations, the fees required [by this section] for such licenses shall be as prescribed in such regulation.
Sec. 5. Section 20-417i of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2015, and applicable to orders and decrees entered on or after said date):
(a) The commissioner shall establish and maintain the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund.
(b) Each person who receives a certificate pursuant to sections 20-417a to 20-417j, inclusive, shall pay a fee of four hundred eighty dollars biennially to the fund. Such fee shall be payable with the fee for an application for a certificate or renewal of a certificate.
(c) (1) For fiscal years commencing on or after July 1, 2003, payments received under subsection (b) of this section shall be credited to the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund until the balance in the fund equals seven hundred fifty thousand dollars. Annually, if the balance in the fund exceeds seven hundred fifty thousand dollars, the first three hundred thousand dollars of the excess shall be deposited in the consumer protection enforcement account established in section 21a-8a. On June 1, 2004, and each June first thereafter, if the balance in the fund exceeds seven hundred fifty thousand dollars, the excess shall be deposited in the General Fund.
(2) Any money in the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund may be invested or reinvested in the same manner as funds of the state employees retirement system and the interest arising from such investments shall be credited to the fund.
(d) Beginning October 1, 2000, whenever a consumer obtains a court judgment, order or decree against any new home construction contractor holding a certificate or who has held a certificate under sections 20-417a to 20-417j, inclusive, within the past two years of the date of entering into the contract with the consumer, for loss or damages sustained by reason of any violation of the provisions of sections 20-417a to 20-417j, inclusive, by a person holding a certificate under said sections, such consumer may, upon the final determination of, or expiration of time for taking, an appeal in connection with any such judgment, order or decree, apply to the commissioner for an order directing payment out of the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund of the amount, not exceeding thirty thousand dollars, unpaid upon the judgment, order or decree for actual damages and costs taxed by the court against such contractor, exclusive of punitive damages. The application shall be made on forms provided by the commissioner and shall be accompanied by a [certified] copy of the court judgment, order or decree obtained against the new home construction contractor together with a notarized affidavit, signed and sworn to by the consumer, affirming that the consumer has: (1) Complied with all the requirements of this subsection; (2) obtained a judgment, order or decree stating the amount of the judgment, order or decree and the amount owing on the judgment, order or decree at the date of application; and (3) made a good faith effort to satisfy any such judgment, order or decree in accordance with the provisions of chapter 906 which effort may include causing to be issued a writ of execution upon such judgment, order or decree but the officer executing the same has made a return showing that no bank accounts or personal property of such contractor liable to be levied upon in satisfaction of the judgment, order or decree could be found, or that the amount realized on the sale of them or of such of them as were found, under the execution, was insufficient to satisfy the actual damage portion of the judgment, order or decree or stating the amount realized and the balance remaining due on the judgment, order or decree after application on the judgment, order or decree of the amount realized, except that the requirements of this subdivision shall not apply to a judgment, order or decree obtained by the consumer in small claims court. A true and attested copy of such executing officer's return, when required, shall be attached to such application and affidavit. Whenever the consumer satisfies the commissioner or the commissioner's designee that it is not practicable to comply with the requirements of subdivision (3) of this subsection and that the consumer has taken all reasonable steps to collect the amount of the judgment, order or decree or the unsatisfied part of the judgment, order or decree and has been unable to collect the same, the commissioner or the commissioner's designee may, in the commissioner's or the commissioner's designee's discretion, dispense with the necessity for complying with such requirement. No application for an order directing payment out of the fund shall be made later than two years from the final determination of, or expiration of time for taking, an appeal of such court judgment, order or decree and no such application shall be for an amount in excess of thirty thousand dollars.
(e) Upon receipt of such application together with such [certified] copy of the court judgment, order or decree, notarized affidavit and, except as otherwise provided in subsection (d) of this section, true and attested copy of the executing officer's return, the commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall inspect such documents for their veracity and upon a determination that such documents are complete and authentic and that the consumer has not been paid, the commissioner shall order payment out of the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund of the amount not exceeding thirty thousand dollars unpaid upon the judgment, order or decree for actual damages and costs taxed by the court against the contractor, exclusive of punitive damages.
(f) Beginning October 1, 2000, whenever a consumer is awarded an order of restitution against any new home construction contractor for loss or damages sustained as a result of any violation of the provisions of sections 20-417a to 20-417j, inclusive, by a person holding a certificate or who has held a certificate under said sections within the past two years of the date of entering into the contract with the consumer, in (1) a proceeding brought by the commissioner pursuant to subsection (h) of this section or subsection (d) of section 42-110d, as amended by this act, (2) a proceeding brought by the Attorney General pursuant to subsection (a) of section 42-110m or subsection (d) of section 42-110d, as amended by this act, or (3) a criminal proceeding pursuant to section 20-417e, such consumer may, upon the final determination of, or expiration of time for taking, an appeal in connection with any such order of restitution, apply to the commissioner for an order directing payment out of the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund of the amount not exceeding thirty thousand dollars unpaid upon the order of restitution. The commissioner may issue such order upon a determination that the consumer has not been paid.
(g) Before the commissioner may issue any order directing payment out of the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund to a consumer pursuant to subsection (e) or (f) of this section, the commissioner shall first notify the new home construction contractor of the consumer's application for an order directing payment out of the fund and of the new home construction contractor's right to a hearing to contest the disbursement in the event that such contractor has already paid the consumer. Such notice shall be given to the new home construction contractor not later than fifteen days [from the] after receipt by the commissioner of the consumer's application for an order directing payment out of the fund. If the new home construction contractor requests a hearing, in writing, by certified mail not later than fifteen days [from receipt of] after receiving the notice from the commissioner, the commissioner shall grant such request and shall conduct a hearing in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54. If the commissioner does not receive a written request for a hearing by certified mail from the new home construction contractor on or before the fifteenth day from the contractor's receipt of such notice, the commissioner shall conclude that the consumer has not been paid, and the commissioner shall issue an order directing payment out of the fund for the amount not exceeding thirty thousand dollars unpaid upon the judgment, order or decree for actual damages and costs taxed by the court against the new home construction contractor, exclusive of punitive damages, or for the amount not exceeding thirty thousand dollars unpaid upon the order of restitution.
(h) The commissioner or the commissioner's designee may proceed against any new home construction contractor holding a certificate or who has held a certificate under sections 20-417a to 20-417j, inclusive, within the past two years of the effective date of entering into the contract with the consumer, for an order of restitution arising from loss or damages sustained by any consumer as a result of any violation of the provisions of said sections 20-417a to 20-417j, inclusive. Any such proceeding shall be held in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54. In the course of such proceeding, the commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall decide whether to (1) exercise the powers specified in section 20-417c, (2) order restitution arising from loss or damages sustained by any consumer as a result of any violation of the provisions of sections 20-417a to 20-417j, inclusive, and (3) order payment out of the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 54, the decision of the commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall be final with respect to any proceeding to order payment out of the fund and the commissioner and the commissioner's designee [are exempted from] shall not be subject to the requirements of chapter 54 as such requirements relate to an appeal from any such decision. The commissioner or the commissioner's designee may hear complaints of all consumers submitting claims against a single new home construction contractor in one proceeding.
(i) No application for an order directing payment out of the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund shall be made later than two years from the final determination of, or expiration of time for, an appeal in connection with any judgment, [or] order or decree of restitution, and no such application shall be for an amount in excess of thirty thousand dollars.
(j) In order to preserve the integrity of the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund, the commissioner, in the commissioner's sole discretion, may order payment out of the fund of an amount less than the actual loss or damages incurred by the consumer or less than the order of restitution awarded by the commissioner or the Superior Court. In no event shall any payment out of the fund be in excess of thirty thousand dollars for any single claim by a consumer.
(k) If the money deposited in the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund is insufficient to satisfy any duly authorized claim or portion of a claim, the commissioner shall, when sufficient money has been deposited in the fund, satisfy such unpaid claims or portions of claims not exceeding thirty thousand dollars, in the order that such claims or portions of claims were originally determined.
(l) Whenever the commissioner has caused any sum to be paid from the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund to a consumer, the commissioner shall be subrogated to all of the rights of the consumer up to the amount paid plus reasonable interest, and prior to receipt of any payment from the fund, the consumer shall assign all of the consumer's right, title and interest in the claim up to such amount to the commissioner, and any amount and interest recovered by the commissioner on the claim shall be deposited [to] in the fund.
(m) If the commissioner orders the payment of any amount as a result of a claim against a new home construction contractor, the commissioner shall determine if such contractor is possessed of assets liable to be sold or applied in satisfaction of the claim on the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund. If the commissioner discovers any such assets, the commissioner may request that the Attorney General take any action necessary for the reimbursement of the fund.
(n) If the commissioner orders the payment of an amount as a result of a claim against a new home construction contractor, the commissioner may, after notice and hearing in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, revoke the certificate of such contractor and such contractor shall not be eligible to receive a new or renewed certificate until such contractor has repaid such amount in full, plus interest from the time such payment is made from the New Home Construction Guaranty Fund, at a rate to be in accordance with section 37-3b, except that the commissioner may, in the commissioner's sole discretion, permit a new home construction contractor to receive a new or renewed certificate after such contractor has entered into an agreement with the commissioner whereby such contractor agrees to repay the fund in full in the form of periodic payments over a set period of time. Any such agreement shall include a provision providing for the summary suspension of any and all certificates held by the new home construction contractor if payment is not made in accordance with the terms of the agreement.
Sec. 6. Section 20-432 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2015, and applicable to orders and decrees entered on or after said date):
(a) The commissioner shall establish and maintain the Home Improvement Guaranty Fund.
(b) Each salesman who receives a certificate pursuant to this chapter shall pay a fee of forty dollars annually. Each contractor who receives a certificate pursuant to this chapter shall pay a fee of one hundred dollars annually to the guaranty fund. [Said] Such fee shall be payable with the fee for an application for a certificate or renewal thereof. The annual fee for a contractor who receives a certificate of registration as a home improvement contractor acting solely as the contractor of record for a corporation [,] shall be waived, provided the contractor of record shall use such registration for the sole purpose of directing, supervising or performing home improvements for such corporation.
(c) Payments received under subsection (b) of this section shall be credited to the guaranty fund until the balance in such fund equals seven hundred fifty thousand dollars. Annually, if [such fund has an excess] the balance in the fund exceeds seven hundred fifty thousand dollars, the first four hundred thousand dollars of the excess shall be deposited into the consumer protection enforcement account established in section 21a-8a. Any excess thereafter shall be deposited in the General Fund. Any money in the guaranty fund may be invested or reinvested in the same manner as funds of the state employees retirement system, and the interest arising from such investments shall be credited to the guaranty fund.
(d) Whenever an owner obtains a court judgment, order or decree against any contractor holding a certificate or who has held a certificate under this chapter within the past two years of the effective date of entering into the contract with the owner, for loss or damages sustained by reason of performance of or offering to perform a home improvement within this state by a contractor holding a certificate under this chapter, such owner may, upon the final determination of, or expiration of time for, taking an appeal in connection with any such judgment, order or decree, apply to the commissioner for an order directing payment out of said guaranty fund of the amount unpaid upon the judgment, order or decree, for actual damages and costs taxed by the court against the contractor, exclusive of punitive damages. The application shall be made on forms provided by the commissioner and shall be accompanied by a copy of the court judgment, order or decree obtained against the contractor together with a notarized affidavit, signed and sworn to by the owner, affirming that: (1) He or she has complied with all the requirements of this subsection; (2) he or she has obtained a judgment, order or decree, stating the amount thereof and the amount owing thereon at the date of application; and (3) he or she has caused to be issued a writ of execution upon said judgment, order or decree and the officer executing the same has made a return showing that no bank accounts or personal property of the contractor liable to be levied upon in satisfaction of the judgment, order or decree could be found, or that the amount realized on the sale of them or of such of them as were found, under the execution, was insufficient to satisfy the actual damage portion of the judgment, order or decree or stating the amount realized and the balance remaining due on the judgment, order or decree after application thereon of the amount realized, except that the requirements of this subdivision shall not apply to a judgment, order or decree obtained by the owner in small claims court. A true and attested copy of said executing officer's return, when required, shall be attached to such application and affidavit. No application for an order directing payment out of the guaranty fund shall be made later than two years [from] after the final determination of, or expiration of time for, taking an appeal of said court judgment, order or decree.
(e) Upon receipt of said application together with said copy of the court judgment, order or decree, notarized affidavit and true and attested copy of the executing officer's return, the commissioner or his designee shall inspect such documents for their veracity and upon a determination that such documents are complete and authentic, and a determination that the owner has not been paid, the commissioner shall order payment out of the guaranty fund of the amount unpaid upon the judgment, order or decree for actual damages and costs taxed by the court against the contractor, exclusive of punitive damages.
(f) Whenever an owner is awarded an order of restitution against any contractor for loss or damages sustained by reason of performance of or offering to perform a home improvement in this state by a contractor holding a certificate or who has held a certificate under this chapter within the past two years of the date of entering into the contract with the owner, in a proceeding brought by the commissioner pursuant to this section or subsection (d) of section 42-110d, as amended by this act, or in a proceeding brought by the Attorney General pursuant to subsection (a) of section 42-110m or subsection (d) of section 42-110d, as amended by this act, or a criminal proceeding pursuant to section 20-427, such owner may, upon the final determination of, or expiration of time for, taking an appeal in connection with any such order of restitution, apply to the commissioner for an order directing payment out of said guaranty fund of the amount unpaid upon the order of restitution. The commissioner may issue said order upon a determination that the owner has not been paid.
(g) Before the commissioner [shall] may issue any order directing payment out of the guaranty fund to an owner pursuant to subsections (e) or (f) of this section, the commissioner shall first notify the contractor of the owner's application for an order directing payment out of the guaranty fund and of the contractor's right to a hearing to contest the disbursement in the event that the contractor has already paid the owner or is complying with a payment schedule in accordance with a court judgment, order or decree. Such notice shall be given to the contractor [within] not later than fifteen days [of the] after receipt by the commissioner of the owner's application for an order directing payment out of the guaranty fund. If the contractor requests a hearing, in writing, by certified mail [within] not later than fifteen days [of receipt of] after receiving the notice from the commissioner, the commissioner shall grant such request and shall conduct a hearing in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54. If the commissioner [receives no written] does not receive a request by certified mail from the contractor for a hearing [within] not later than fifteen days [of] after the contractor's receipt of such notice, the commissioner shall determine that the owner has not been paid, and the commissioner shall issue an order directing payment out of the guaranty fund for the amount unpaid upon the judgment, order or decree for actual damages and costs taxed by the court against the contractor, exclusive of punitive damages, or for the amount unpaid upon the order of restitution.
(h) The commissioner or his designee may proceed against any contractor holding a certificate or who has held a certificate under this chapter within the past two years of the effective date of entering into the contract with the owner, for an order of restitution arising from loss or damages sustained by any person by reason of such contractor's performance of or offering to perform a home improvement in this state. Any such proceeding shall be held in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54. In the course of such proceeding, the commissioner or his designee shall decide whether to exercise his powers pursuant to section 20-426; whether to order restitution arising from loss or damages sustained by any person by reason of such contractor's performance or offering to perform a home improvement in this state; and whether to order payment out of the guaranty fund. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 54, the decision of the commissioner or his designee shall be final with respect to any proceeding to order payment out of the guaranty fund and the commissioner and his designee [are exempted from] shall not be subject to the requirements of chapter 54 as they relate to appeal from any such decision. The commissioner or his designee may hear complaints of all owners submitting claims against a single contractor in one proceeding.
(i) No application for an order directing payment out of the guaranty fund shall be made later than two years from the final determination of, or expiration of time for, appeal in connection with any judgment, [or] order or decree of restitution.
(j) Whenever the owner satisfies the commissioner or his designee that it is not practicable to comply with the requirements of subdivision (3) of subsection (d) of this section and that the owner has taken all reasonable steps to collect the amount of the judgment, order or decree or the unsatisfied part thereof and has been unable to collect the same, the commissioner or his designee may in his discretion dispense with the necessity for complying with such requirement.
(k) In order to preserve the integrity of the guaranty fund, the commissioner, in the commissioner's sole discretion, may order payment out of said fund of an amount less than the actual loss or damages incurred by the owner or less than the order of restitution awarded by the commissioner or the Superior Court. In no event shall any payment out of said guaranty fund be in excess of fifteen thousand dollars for any single claim by an owner.
(l) If the money deposited in the guaranty fund is insufficient to satisfy any duly authorized claim or portion thereof, the commissioner shall, when sufficient money has been deposited in the fund, satisfy such unpaid claims or portions thereof, in the order that such claims or portions thereof were originally determined.
(m) [When] Whenever the commissioner has caused any sum to be paid from the guaranty fund to an owner, the commissioner shall be subrogated to all of the rights of the owner up to the amount paid plus reasonable interest, and prior to receipt of any payment from the guaranty fund, the owner shall assign all of this right, title and interest in the claim up to such amount to the commissioner, and any amount and interest recovered by the commissioner on the claim shall be deposited to the guaranty fund.
(n) If the commissioner orders the payment of any amount as a result of a claim against a contractor, the commissioner shall determine if the contractor is possessed of assets liable to be sold or applied in satisfaction of the claim on the guaranty fund. If the commissioner discovers any such assets, he may request that the Attorney General take any action necessary for the reimbursement of the guaranty fund.
(o) If the commissioner orders the payment of an amount as a result of a claim against a contractor, the commissioner may, after notice and hearing in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, revoke the certificate of the contractor and the contractor shall not be eligible to receive a new or renewed certificate until he has repaid such amount in full, plus interest from the time said payment is made from the guaranty fund, at a rate to be in accordance with section 37-3b, except that the commissioner may, in his sole discretion, permit a contractor to receive a new or renewed certificate after that contractor has entered into an agreement with the commissioner whereby the contractor agrees to repay the guaranty fund in full in the form of periodic payments over a set period of time. Any such agreement shall include a provision providing for the summary suspension of any and all certificates held by the contractor if payment is not made in accordance with the terms of the agreement.
Sec. 7. Subsection (a) of section 20-515 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2015):
(a) A person who is certified or provisionally licensed in another state as a real estate appraiser may become a certified or provisionally licensed real estate appraiser in this state by conforming to all of the provisions of sections 20-500 to 20-528, inclusive. The commission shall recognize a current, valid certification or provisional license, as the case may be, issued to a currently practicing, competent real estate appraiser by another state as satisfactorily qualifying such appraiser for a certification or provisional license, as the case may be, as a real estate appraiser under said sections, provided [: (1) The laws of the state in which such appraiser is certified or provisionally licensed allow certifications or provisional licenses, as the case may be, to be issued to a resident of this state, without examination, who is certified or provisionally licensed, as the case may be, under said sections 20-500 to 20-528, inclusive, and (2)] the certification and provisional licensing requirements of the state in which such appraiser is licensed are substantially similar to or higher than those of this state, including establishment of competency by written examination in the case of certified appraisers, and such appraiser has no disciplinary proceeding or unresolved complaint pending against such appraiser. If the applicant is licensed in a state that does not have such requirements, such applicant shall be certified or provisionally licensed by a state in accordance with Section 1116 of Title XI of FIRREA.
Sec. 8. Subsection (d) of section 42-110d of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2015):
(d) Said commissioner, in conformance with sections 4-176e to 4-185, inclusive, whenever he has reason to believe that any person has been engaged or is engaged in an alleged violation of any provision of this chapter, shall mail to such person, by certified mail, a complaint stating the charges and containing a notice of a hearing, to be held upon a day and at a place therein fixed at least fifteen days after the date of such complaint. The person so notified shall have the right to file a written answer to the complaint and charges therein stated and appear at the time and place so fixed for such hearing, in person or otherwise, with or without counsel, and submit testimony and be fully heard. Any person may make application, and upon good cause shown shall be allowed by the commissioner to intervene and appear in such proceeding by counsel or in person. The testimony in any such proceeding, including the testimony of any intervening person, shall be under oath and shall be reduced to writing by the recording officer of the hearing and filed in the office of the commissioner. The commissioner or his authorized representatives shall have the power to require by subpoena the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of any documentary material at such proceeding. If upon such hearing the commissioner is of the opinion that the method of competition or the act or practice in question is prohibited by this chapter, the commissioner shall make a report in writing to the person complained of in which he shall state his findings as to the facts and shall forward by certified mail to such person an order to cease and desist from using such methods of competition or such act or practice, or, if the amount involved is less than [five] ten thousand dollars, an order directing restitution, or both. The commissioner may apply for the enforcement of any cease and desist order, order directing restitution or consent order issued under this chapter to the superior court for the judicial district of Hartford, or to any judge thereof if the same is not in session, for orders temporarily and permanently restraining and enjoining any person from continuing violations of such cease and desist order, order directing restitution or consent order. Such application for a temporary restraining order, temporary and permanent injunction, order directing restitution and for such other appropriate decree or process shall be brought and the proceedings thereon conducted by the Attorney General.