Request By:
Ervin Klein
Opinion
Opinion By: Albert B. Chandler, III, Attorney General; Stuart W. Cobb, Assistant Attorney General
Opinion of the Attorney General
Ervin Klein, President of Kentucky Association of Plumbing Heating-Cooling Contractors, Inc. wrote to request an opinion of the Attorney General as to what kind of plumbing work required a license. In response to a request from this office for clarification, Mr. Klein seemed to indicate that his primary concern was the issue of whether a licensed journeyman plumber can do any plumbing work unless under the supervision of a licensed master plumber. He stated, "We would assume that a person with a Journeyman license could only perform or offer to perform plumbing work of any kind (Maintenance, repair or new construction) under the supervision of a person who holds a Master plumbing license. " It is the opinion of the Attorney General that Mr. Klein is correct.
In general, only licensed plumbers can engage in plumbing. 1 However, there are exceptions to this general provision. First, homeowners may install plumbing in their personal residences pursuant to 815 KAR 20:050 Section 1(3) since they are not engaged in the practice of plumbing pursuant to KRS 318.020(4). See OAG 82-391. Second, apprentices may assist journeyman plumbers and master plumbers pursuant to KRS 318.010(7) and KRS 318.020(1). Finally, "plumbing" is defined by KRS 318.010(4) 2 as the installation of plumbing. Plumbing can be repaired by anyone who is employed or who acts as a maintenance man for the purpose of maintaining and repairing plumbing pursuant to KRS 318.010(6) 3 and KRS 318.020(2) 4. However, the maintenance man exception only applies to relatively minor repairs. Only licensed journeyman plumbers, licensed master plumbers, and homeowners working on their own residence are authorized to make alterations to existing plumbing.
Though maintenance men can perform unsupervised repair work, licensed journeyman plumbers cannot. KRS 318.010(2) defines "journeyman plumber" as:
[A] person who engages or offers to engage, either as an occupation or otherwise, in the construction, installation, alteration, maintenance, repair, remodeling or removal, and replacement of plumbing under the supervision, direction and responsibility of a master plumber.
Emphasis added.
Licensed journeyman plumbers may object that 815 KAR 20:050 Section 1(2) only requires them to work under the supervision of a licensed master plumber to construct, install or alter plumbing, sewerage or drainage. However, the plumbing regulations do not authorize journeyman plumbers to do repairs without supervision, whereas KRS 318.010(2) clearly requires supervision by a licensed master plumber. In addition, 815 KAR 20:050 deals with the subject of installation permits, which are not required for repairs, therefore there is no reason for it to address repair work. The mere failure of the regulations to address whether journeymen plumbers need supervision for repairs is of no significance when the statute expressly requires supervision.
The General Assembly's intent appears to be that if a person repairs his own plumbing or hires a "maintenance man" to repair it, he knows the work is not being done by a qualified plumber. However, a person who hires a plumber to repair his plumbing is entitled to have the work done by, or under the supervision of, a fully qualified plumber. The General Assembly determined that the only persons who are qualified to call themselves plumbers and work on plumbing without supervision are licensed master plumbers, and journeyman plumbers are only to work on plumbing under the supervision and direction of licensed master plumbers.
The same logic applies to apprentices. A person holding himself out as an apprentice to a plumber is prohibited by KRS 318.010(7) and KRS 318.020(1) from doing more than assisting a licensed journeyman or master plumber, even though he could legally repair plumbing without supervision if he were employed as a maintenance man rather than an apprentice.
In conclusion, only licensed master plumbers and homeowners working on their own residence can legally install plumbing or alter existing plumbing without supervision. Anyone employed or acting as a maintenance man can repair plumbing, however a licensed journeyman plumber cannot do any work on plumbing unless he is being supervised and directed by a licensed master plumber, and apprentices can only assist journeyman plumbers and master plumbers.
Footnotes
Footnotes
1 "KRS 318.030. License required. No person shall engage in plumbing or engage in or work at the trade of plumbing: (1) Unless he is the holder of a valid and effective master plumber's license duly issued by the department in accordance with the provisions of this chapter; or (2) Unless he is the holder of a valid and effective journeyman plumber's license duly issued by the department in accordance with the provisions of this chapter."
2 "'Plumbing' means the art of installing in buildings the pipes for distributing the water supply, the fixtures for using water and drainage pipes for removing waste water and sewage, together with fittings, appurtenances, and appliances of various kinds, all within or adjacent to the building . . . ."
3 "'maintenance man' means a person employed to maintain and keep plumbing in good repair. "
4 "This chapter shall not apply to anyone who is employed or acts as a maintenance man. "