5800-5812
BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS CODE
SECTION 5800-5812
5800. As used in this chapter: (a) "Certified interior designer" means a person who prepares and submits nonstructural or nonseismic plans consistent with Sections 5805 and 5538 to local building departments that are of sufficient complexity so as to require the skills of a licensed contractor to implement them, and who engages in programming, planning, designing, and documenting the construction and installation of nonstructural or nonseismic elements, finishes and furnishings within the interior spaces of a building, and has demonstrated by means of education, experience and examination, the competency to protect and enhance the health, safety, and welfare of the public. (b) An "interior design organization" means a nonprofit organization, exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code, of certified interior designers whose governing board shall include representatives of the public, except that an organization that is not currently exempt under that section that submits an application to the Internal Revenue Service requesting an exemption under that section shall be eligible to be an interior design organization if it meets the requirements under that section within a reasonable period of time. 5801. A certified interior designer may obtain a stamp from an interior design organization that shall include a number that uniquely identifies and bears the name of that certified interior designer. The stamp certifies that the interior designer has provided the interior design organization with evidence of passage of an interior design examination approved by that interior design organization and any of the following: (a) He or she is a graduate of a four- or five-year accredited interior design degree program, and has two years of diversified interior design experience. (b) He or she has completed a three-year accredited interior design certificate program, and has completed three years of diversified interior design experience. (c) He or she has completed a two-year accredited interior design program and has completed four years of diversified interior design experience. (d) He or she has at least eight years of interior design education, or at least eight years of diversified interior design experience, or a combination of interior design education and diversified interior design experience that together total at least eight years. 5801.1. The procedure for the issuance of a stamp by an interior design organization under Section 5801, including the examinations recognized and required by the organization, shall be subject to the occupational analyses and examination validation required by Section 139 every five to seven years. 5802. (a) All drawings, specifications, or documents prepared for submission to any government regulatory agency by any certified interior designer, or under his or her supervision shall be affixed by a stamp, as specified in Section 5801, and signed by that certified interior designer. (b) All such documents shall be identified as interior design documents, which are not architectural or engineering documents. 5803. A certified interior designer, as defined in this chapter, is exempt from Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 7000) of Division 3 insofar as he or she is designing systems for work to be performed by a licensed contractor. 5804. It is an unfair business practice for any certified interior designer or any other person to advertise or put out any sign or card or other device, including any stamp or seal, or to represent to the public through any print or electronic media, that he or she is "state certified" to practice interior design, or to use any other words or symbols that represent to the public that he or she is so certified. 5805. Nothing in this chapter shall preclude certified interior designers or any other person from submitting interior design plans to local building officials, except as provided in Section 5538. In exercising discretion with respect to the acceptance of interior design plans, the local building official shall reference the Uniform Building Code. 5810. (a) This chapter shall be subject to the review required by Division 1.2 (commencing with Section 473). (b) This chapter shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2014, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2014, deletes or extends that date. 5811. An interior design organization issuing stamps under Section 5801 shall provide to the Joint Committee on Boards, Commissions, and Consumer Protection by September 1, 2008, a report that reviews and assesses the costs and benefits associated with the California Code and Regulations Examination and explores feasible alternatives to that examination. 5812. It is an unfair business practice for any person to represent themselves as a "certified interior designer" unless they comply with the requirements of this chapter.