Updated contractor registration rules developed by Washington’ Department of Labor and Industries (L&I)  to implement the new Homeowner Recovery Program take effect July 1, 2026. BIAW has been extremely involved in the adoption of this program to ensure the new rules don't financially burden registered contractors, like BIAW members.

BIAW actively participated throughout the legislative process and rule development, including participating in the stakeholder workgroup.
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In February, BIAW’s legal team submitted a formal comment to L&I regarding the Homeowner Recovery Program under the Contractor Registration Rule.

"BIAW builder members are all required to be registered contractors per our Bylaws and Policies, and we strongly encourage our members to abide by all relevant rules and regulations," said BIAW's Associate General Counsel Sydney Phillips. in the association's formal comment. "BIAW’s number one concern, which we believe is currently addressed in the proposed language, but we wish to reiterate here, is that the bad acts by non-registered contractors should not be imputed to registered contractors like our members. Only homeowner claimants with judgments against lawfully registered contractors should be eligible to recover under this program."

In response to BIAW’s comment, L&I complimented BIAW’s involvement and acknowledged that the program does not financially burden registered contractors like BIAW members, stating:

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"Thank you for your comment. We appreciate BIAW’s engagement throughout both the legislative process and the subsequent rule development.

As you noted, BIAW participated as part of the stakeholder workgroup, and your input has been valuable in shaping both the policy and implementation framework.
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We would like to clarify and reaffirm a key point raised in your comments. The Homeowner Recovery Program is expressly limited to homeowners who have engaged with registered contractors.

Eligibility for recovery requires that the underlying work be performed by a lawfully registered contractor, consistent with the intent of the legislation.

Additionally, as discussed during the workgroup process, the program is funded through penalties collected from violations related to unregistered and non-compliant contractor activity.

Ensuring that registered contractors are not financially responsible for funding the program—and that the burden instead falls on those operating outside of compliance—was the intent of the legislation and is to ensure there is no financial impact on compliant registered contractors.

We agree that it is important to maintain a clear distinction between registered and unregistered contractor activity, and to ensure that the actions of non-registered contractors are not attributed to those who are properly registered and operating in compliance with applicable laws and rules.

We appreciate BIAW’s continued partnership and shared commitment to both protecting homeowners and supporting a fair and compliant construction industry.”