As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
CONTRACTOR
Any person, other than a bona fide employee of the owner, who owns or operates a home improvement business or who undertakes or offers to undertake or agrees to perform any home improvement, whether or not such person is licensed or subject to licensing requirement of this article and whether or not such person is a prime contractor or subcontractor with respect to the owner.
DIRECTOR
The Director of the Office of Licensing.
[Amended 7-18-1996 by L.L. No. 5-1996]
HOME IMPROVEMENT
The repair, replacement, remodeling, alteration, conversion, modernization, improvement or addition to any land or building, or that portion thereof which is used or designed to be used as a private residence or dwelling place for not more than three families; and shall include but not be limited to the installation, construction, replacement or improvement of the driveways, swimming pools, porches, garages, fallout shelters, central heating or air-conditioning system, central vacuum cleaning system, storm windows, awnings or fire or burglar alarms and other improvements to structures or upon land which is adjacent to a dwelling house. "Home improvement" shall not include the construction of a new home, building or work done by a contractor in compliance with a guaranty of completion of a new building project; or the sale of goods or material by a seller who neither arranges to perform nor performs directly or indirectly any work or labor in connection with the installation of or application of the goods or materials; or painting or decorating of residences owned by the state or any municipal subdivision thereof.
[Amended 6-14-2016 by G.O. No. 8-2016; 6-28-2016 by G.O. No. 14-2016; 4-10-2018 by G.O. No. 4-2018]
HOME IMPROVEMENT CONTRACT
An agreement between a contractor and an owner for the performance of a home improvement, and includes all labor, services and materials to be furnished and performed thereunder.
HOME IMPROVEMENT ESTABLISHMENT
Any shop, establishment, place or premises where the home improvement is carried on.
LANDSCAPER
Any person or company that performs the following landscaping or gardening functions referred to herein including but not limited to the cutting and maintenance of grass, the trimming, pruning, planting and maintenance of shrubs, plants, trees and other foliage, the application of chemicals and fertilizers in connection with the activities listed herein, and the removal of trees and/or tree stumps. A person who engages in such landscaping or gardening functions or activities shall hereinafter be referred to as a "landscaper" and shall be considered a contractor as defined in this article. In addition, any such work performed shall be considered as home improvement work as defined in this article, and the performance of said work shall qualify as a home improvement contract as defined in this article.
[Added 4-13-2010 by G.O. 2-2010]
LICENSEE
A person permitted to engage in the home improvement business under the provisions of this article.
OWNER
Any homeowner, tenant or any other person who orders, contracts for or the person entitled to the performance of the work of a contractor pursuant to a home improvement contract.
PERSON
An individual, firm, partnership, association or corporation.
[Amended 6-14-2016 by G.O. No. 8-2016; 6-28-2016 by G.O. No. 14-2016;4-10-2018 by G.O. No. 4-2018]
No person shall own, maintain, conduct, operate, engage in or transact a home improvement business after the effective date of this article or any amendment thereto, or solicit home improvement contracts or represent to any other person as being able to do so, after such date, unless such person is licensed therefor pursuant to this article.
A. 
A license issued pursuant to this article may not be construed to authorize the licensee to perform any particular type of work or kind of business which is reserved for qualified licensees under separate provisions of state or local law or the Code of the City of Yonkers, nor shall any license or authority other than as is issued or permitted pursuant to this article authorize engaging in the home improvement business.
B. 
Nothing in this article shall be construed to limit or restrict the power of the City to regulate the quality, performance or character of the work of contractors, including a system of permits and inspections which are designed to secure compliance with and aid in the enforcement of applicable state and local building laws, including but not limited to the Yonkers Fire and Building Code,[1] or to enforce other laws necessary for the protection of the public health and safety.
[1]
Editor's Note: See Part VI, Fire and Buildings, of this Code.
C. 
Nothing in this article limits the power of the City to adopt any system of permits requiring submission to and approval by the City of plans and specifications for an installation prior to the commencement of construction of the installation or of inspection of work done.
A. 
If the applicant does not maintain a bona fide establishment at a definite location within the State of New York, the applicant shall designate the City Clerk of the City of Yonkers as agent for the service of process and the address to which the City Clerk shall mail all process served upon the applicant pursuant to this section of this article. The City Clerk shall promptly, upon receipt of such process, forward the same to the licensee at the address designated for that purpose. In the event that the licensee is a corporation, service shall not be made on the City Clerk, but may be made on the Secretary of State of the State of New York as otherwise provided by law. Nothing herein contained shall be construed so as to prevent service of process upon the licensee in any other manner provided by the laws of the State of New York.
B. 
An applicant for a home improvement contractor's license must be the real owner and possess title to or be entitled to the possession of the establishment and will conduct, operate, engage in and transact a home improvement business and must so demonstrate to the Director. The applicant must also furnish to the Director satisfactory evidence of a good moral character and financial responsibility.
C. 
The applicant shall furnish a certificate from an insurance company licensed to do business in the state of New York, evidencing that the applicant and any motor vehicles are covered by a general liability and personal injury in the minimum amount of $100,000 for any person and the minimum amount of $300,000 for any one accident and property damage insurance in the minimum amount of $25,000 and also provide evidence that the employees of the applicant are covered by worker's compensation or by an exemption certificate meeting the requirements of the state of New York and containing a ten-day notice of cancellation clause directed to the Director, before any license hereunder shall be issued.
[Added 6-28-2016 by G.O. No. 14-2016]
A. 
All licenses, except temporary licenses, shall be for a period of two years from the date of issuance and shall expire on the last day of the 24th month following issuance.
[Amended 6-14-2016 by G.O. No. 11-2016]
B. 
No license shall be assignable or transferable except as hereinafter provided. A license to conduct a home improvement business issued to an individual may be assigned or transferred for the remainder of the license period to a partnership or corporation, if such individual is a member of such partnership or a stockholder of such corporation owning not less than 25% of the outstanding stock at the time of such assignment or transfer. A license issued to a partnership may be assigned or transferred for the remainder of the license period to any member of such partnership, provided that the transferee obtains the consent of all other members of such partnership. The application for such transfer or assignment must be accompanied by proof satisfactory to the Director that the requirements herein provided have been complied with. No assignment or transfer shall become effective unless and until the endorsement of the transfer or assignment has been made on the face of the license by the Director and such license, so endorsed, has been returned to the assignee or transferee. All such endorsements shall be made upon payment of a fee of $10.
[Amended 6-14-2016 by G.O. No. 11-2016]
C. 
Each license issued pursuant to this article shall be posted and kept posted in some conspicuous place in the home improvement business.
D. 
Any license, except a temporary license, which has not been suspended or revoked may, upon the payment of the renewal fee prescribed by this article, be renewed for an additional period of two years from its expiration, upon filing of an application for such renewal on a form to be prescribed by the Director. Failure to make application for such renewal within 15 days prior to the expiration date of the license shall subject the licensee to a penalty of $25, which shall be paid prior to the issuance of the renewal.
[Amended 6-14-2016 by G.O. No. 11-2016]
E. 
A duplicate license may be issued for one lost, destroyed or mutilated, upon application therefor on a form prescribed by the Director and the payment of the fee prescribed therefor by this article. Each such duplicate license shall have the word "duplicate" stamped across the face thereof and shall bear the same number as the one it replaces.
F. 
A supplementary license may be issued for each additional place of business maintained by a licensee within the City of Yonkers upon application therefor on a form prescribed by the Director and the payment of the fee prescribed therefor by this article. Each such supplementary license shall have the word "supplementary" stamped across the face thereof and shall bear the same number as the original.
G. 
Each licensee shall receive, affix and display, on the left fender of each vehicle and on the left rear fender of any trailer regularly used in the course of its business, an identification decal issued by the Office of Licensing. Three decals shall be issued for each license. Additional decals for vehicles registered to the license and used for the purposes as described under this article may be obtained from the Office of Licensing for an additional fee of $10 per decal.
[Added 5-13-2014 by G.O. No. 2-2014]
[Amended 8-12-2004 by G.O. No. 5-2004]
A. 
The fee for a license to conduct a home improvement business shall be $400, and for each renewal thereof, the fee shall be $400.
[Amended 6-1-2017 by G.O. No. 8-2017]
B. 
The fee for issuing each supplementary or duplicate license for one lost, destroyed or mutilated shall be $25.
[Amended 6-14-2016 by G.O. No. 11-2016]
C. 
The fees hereinabove set forth shall be those for licenses issued for the license period of two years.
D. 
The Director shall refund the fee paid by any applicant in the event that the application for a license is denied or the applicant for the license has predeceased its service prior to its issuance. Such refunds shall, upon approval by the Director and after audit, be paid from any moneys received pursuant to this article.
E. 
Licenses of all contractors shall expire two years from the date of issuance unless the license is renewed after the original license has expired.
[Amended 6-14-2016 by G.O. No. 11-2016]
In addition to the powers and the duties elsewhere prescribed in this article, the Director shall have power to:
A. 
Examine into the qualifications and fitness of applicants for licenses under this article.
B. 
Keep records of all licenses issued, suspended or revoked.
C. 
Adopt such rules and regulations not inconsistent with the provisions of this article as may be necessary with respect to the form and content of applications for licenses, the reception thereof, the investigation and examination of applicants and their qualifications and other matters incidental or appropriate to his powers and duties as prescribed by this article and for the proper administration and enforcement of the provisions of this article, and to amend or repeal any of such rules and regulations.
License to conduct, operate, engage in and transact a home improvement business as a home improvement contractor may be refused, suspended or revoked by the Director for any one or more of the following causes:
A. 
Fraud, misrepresentation or bribery in securing a license.
B. 
The making of any false statement as to a material matter in any application for a license.
C. 
The person or the management personnel of the contractor are untrustworthy or not of good character.
D. 
The business transactions of the contractor have been marked by a practice of failure to perform its contracts or the manipulation of assets or accounts, or by fraud or bad faith.
E. 
Failure to display the license as provided in this article.
F. 
Violation of any provision of this article or of any rule or regulation adopted hereunder.
A. 
The following acts are prohibited:
(1) 
Abandonment or willful failure to perform, without justification, any home improvement contract or project engaged in or undertaken by a contractor, or willful deviation from or disregard of plans or specifications in any material respect without the consent of the owner.
(2) 
Making any substantial misrepresentation in the procurement of a home improvement contract, or making any false promise likely to influence, persuade or induce.
(3) 
Any fraud in the execution of or in the material alteration of any contract, mortgage, promissory note or other document incident to a home improvement transaction.
(4) 
Preparing or accepting any mortgage, promissory note or other evidence of indebtedness upon the obligations of a home improvement transaction with knowledge that it recites a greater monetary obligation than the agreed consideration for the home improvement work.
(5) 
Directly or indirectly publishing any advertising relating to home improvements which contains an assertion, representation or statement of fact which is false, deceptive or misleading, provided that any advertisement which is subject to and complies with the existing rules, regulations or guides of the Federal Trade Commission shall not be deemed false, deceptive or misleading; or by any means of advertising or purporting to offer the general public any home improvement work or the price which is advertised or offered to the public.
(6) 
Willful or deliberate disregard and violation of the building, sanitary and health laws of this state or any political or municipal subdivision thereof.
(7) 
Willful failure to notify the Director within 10 days after any change of control in ownership, management or business name or location.
(8) 
Conducting a home improvement business in any other name other than the one in which the contractor is licensed.
(9) 
Willful failure to comply with any order, demand or requirement made by the Director pursuant to provisions of this article.
B. 
As part of or in connection with the inducement to make a home improvement contract, no person shall promise or offer to pay credit charges or allow to a buyer any compensation or reward for the procurement of a home improvement contract with others.
C. 
No contractor shall offer or pay a loan as an inducement to enter into a home improvement contract.
D. 
No acts, agreements or statements of a buyer under a home improvement contract shall constitute a waiver of any provision of this article intended for the benefit or protection of the buyer.
E. 
No person shall advertise or hold themselves out as being qualified to perform home improvements as defined in this article in the City of Yonkers unless licensed as herein provided, and the license number shall appear in all such advertising.
F. 
Exceptions. No contractor's license shall be required of any of the following:
(1) 
Any person when acting in the particular capacity or particular type of transaction set forth in this section.
(2) 
An individual who performs labor or services for a contractor for wages or salary.
(3) 
A plumber, electrician, architect, professional engineer or any other such person who is required by state or local law to attain standards of competency or experience as a prerequisite to engaging in such craft or profession and who is acting exclusively within the scope of the craft or profession for which he is currently licensed pursuant to such other law.
(4) 
Any retail clerk, clerical, administrative or other employee of a licensed contractor as to a transaction on the premises of the contractor.
G. 
This article shall not apply to a home improvement contract otherwise within the purview of this article which is made prior to the effective date of the respective provisions of this article governing such contracts.
Except when otherwise specifically exempted by the provisions of this article, no person shall act in the capacity of a contractor unless authorized to do so by a license issued in accordance with the provisions of this article.
A. 
When an application has been filed with the Director in proper form, the Director shall, within a period of 90 days from the date thereof, issue or refuse the appropriate contractor's license to the applicant. If an applicant for a license is refused, the Director shall send to the applicant a written statement setting forth the reason for the refusal to grant the license.
B. 
The Director shall prescribe and furnish such forms as are appropriate in connection with applications for licenses and the issuance, renewal or termination thereof.
C. 
An applicant for any license required by the provisions of this article shall file with the Director a written application which shall be signed and under oath.
D. 
The Director at any time may require reasonable information of an applicant or licensee, including but not limited to the applicant's true identity, personal history, history in home improvement and other businesses, the names of owners, stockholders, partners, directors and officers of any applicant and the business address and trade name of the applicant.
E. 
Temporary licenses for a period not to exceed 30 days may be issued by the Director to qualified applicants who maintain an office or place of business outside the City of Yonkers and who are licensed by the state, municipality or county in which they maintain their office.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 24-14-12, Hearing on charges; decision, which immediately followed this section, was deleted at time of adoption of Code; see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I.
All vehicles of licensees conducting business in the City of Yonkers shall display on the sides of the body of the vehicle, in permanent letters legibly printed, stamped or enameled at least eight inches in height and 1 1/2 inches in width, or on a sign attached to the sides of the vehicle or prominently displayed on an enamel sign at least two feet by three feet in size permanently attached to the vehicle the name, address and phone number of the owner.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 24-14-14, Penalties for offenses, which immediately followed this section, was deleted at time of adoption of Code; see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I.